Sri Lanka invested in people during difficult times:

Lanka on the threshold of a new life- UN Resident Coordinator

By Shanika Sriyananda

Sri Lanka, which maintained good health standards with an educated population and a well functioning government machinery and a dynamic private sector despite fighting a 30-year war, will bounce back faster to become one of the best countries in the Asian region, the UN Resident Coordinator in Sri Lanka Neil Buhne said.

He said unlike in most of the countries in similar conflict situations, Sri Lanka had invested in its people.

Buhne said the country’s situation in the post conflict era has improved much with over 95 percent displaced people returned home and de-mining of former battle fronts taking place progressively. But he stressed the need of providing decent shelter for the resettled people in the North, where over 70 percent of houses are fully damaged, and also look into re-establishing their economies seriously.

Following are the excerpts of the interview:

Q: The government is now heading for a development drive and how can the UN agencies help rebuild Sri Lanka in the post conflict era?

A: We can help in a number of ways. One way is by continuing with programs which we have been doing in the North and the East in helping those population displaced and returned home to help them start their basic livelihoods, clear their agricultural fields and start cultivation, give school text books and give their children a good nutrition level through supplementary food to schoolchildren.

We also can play a role at national level where the UN agencies engaged in with the Ministry of Finance in terms of Millennium Development Goals and trying to integrate those to meet the specific targets in the national and local planning.

The UN agencies work in the field of education, nutrition and in some areas in the Southern and Uva provinces, where we are working with government. There are many things that we can do but we can’t necessarily bring in hundreds and millions dollars into the country by ourselves but we can help in partnership with the Government, which has the capacity to do that.

Q: With serious concern given to Northern development, how do you assess the existing situation in the Northern region?

A: I think there has been lots of progress specially since the return process started, may be in late October 2008 where the first group of people started to return from the Rice Bowl Mannar, and then in Thunukkai and later in Mullaithivu. That period was the hardest with a population of over 280,000 displaced people. Those areas were full of unexploded ordnances and destroyed so much.

The situation has improved so much and over 75 percent of the displaced people have now returned to their homes and over 95 percent of the displaced people are out of the welfare camps now. A very good program is going on now distributing seed paddy among the resettled people to start paddy cultivation in this maha season. The Government machinery functions well in the North and the East and it facilitated the resettled people to get back to their normal life.

But still there are tremendous challenges because everything there had to start from the zero. Exposed to a prolonged war that caused immense destruction and being under the LTTE control for a long time people of these areas need special assistance. They have gone through a traumatic period and their needs should be recognized and given special assistance.

Q: The issue of resettling a huge number of IDPs was a serious issue at the beginning and the Government was subjected to criticism. What do you have to say about the resettlement process taking in the North now?

A: I think the reason for those criticisms at the beginning was there were a large number of displaced people in closed camps. But those allegations decreased when the Government facilitated people to move.

In terms of the number of displaced people, the progress made in resettling them is very good. The main hindrance in resettling them was the mine clearing and it was overcome with the assistance of the mine action agencies in the North. But I think there is lot to be done in re-establishing the economy in the North and people need assistance for proper shelter and it is the biggest issue at the moment.

The UN agencies are working with the Ministry of Agriculture and providing seed paddy and other agri-equipment to support the farmers to commence cultivation. They were also given small water pumps.

Fishermen in the North too facilitated to continue their livelihood.

Q: Compared to resettlement programs in other countries which are in similar scenarios, what is the progress here in Sri Lanka?

A: It is hard to compare as the situation differs from country to country according to the circumstances. In Afghanistan and Pakistan people keep on returning over the years and the issues in there differs from the rest.

It is hard to draw comparisons. The most important fact is the people who have been displaced from the North to the East have a chance to go back their homes and live in peace. The Government has provided the basic needs for them and they need not be dependents. The future of their children needs to be ensured. In the North, two things are important to look into. One is the issue of shelter and the other re-establishing of the economy.

A large number of the resettled population needs decent housing as they cannot go back to their own houses as majority of houses are fully damaged or not suitable to live. They are just structures without doors and windows. The majority of the resettled people live in temporary shelters set up with the material given by the government. The Indian Government is kind enough to help build over 50,000 houses for them. The Australian Government with the Habitat is also helping them to build houses. It is a huge task.

The other vital issue is the re-establishing the economy. Most people are dependents and need assistance by the Government.

At the moment the Government and the World Food Organization (WFO) have looked into this matter. Under the WFO assistance, the displaced people will get the assistance for the first six months from the day they returned home.

After that the WFO assistance goes only to a targeted group. It is very important to provide a decent meal among the schoolchildren in the North as their parents are very poor. Under the WFO program, which gives a mid day meal to schoolchildren all over the country, the children in the Northern schools are also given a mid-day meal to fulfill 60 to 70 percent of their daily calorie requirement.

Q: De-mining which needs to be done carefully will take time to complete. How long will it take to make the former LTTE battlefronts free of mines?

A: It is hard to say because it is not just battle fronts but a large area where heavy fighting went on. There are a large number of unexploded ordnances and other remnants of war in many places in the North.

A good progress has been made in clearing almost all the areas except the areas where the military divisions had the final fighting. All other areas, including the resettled areas have been surveyed and de-mined. They are considered to be low risk but remember not ‘no risk’. The areas where the final battle took place, the lands including the agri lands have not yet been surveyed and de-mined and considered as risk areas.

I have different estimates with regard to making these former battle zones free of mines. According to my estimation, it will take at least five years to complete the de-mining process in the North. In Europe, still they are digging up for mines and recovering mines buried during the World War II after 50 to 60 years later.

In Jaffna incidents were reported where some people were caught in mines which were buried some years ago.

Still the risk is there and we cannot under-estimate that. But the progress made in de-mining is fairly good.

Q: The EU is to allocate Rs. 12 billion in post war recovery projects and what would be the UN’s contribution for such programs in the N/E?

A: It is difficult for us to give estimation. The UN agencies spent over US $ 300 million on humanitarian assistance and development activities in Sri Lanka last year. Next year most probably this amount will reduce to US $ 150 to 200 million as issues have changed.

Apart from our own programs, we tried to encourage donors. For example some donors start projects and finance through the UN agencies and some directly through the Government and some through the NGOs. No matter from which channel the financing goes through if the project is a success it transfers the maximum benefits for the people who need the benefit to make the lives better that is the objective of the UN.

Q: Out of all districts in the North and East, what are the districts that need the most support for revival?

A: Though it is hard to say specifically that this particular part of the country is affected the most, from judging the level of destruction from the fighting, Kilinochchi and Mullaithivu and the rest of the areas that the final battle was flared up were the devastated areas.

The damage was huge and people of these areas needs lots of support to stand up on their own. But as a whole, the North and the East and the whole country are affected.

Q: You went on a fact-finding visit to the Eastern province to see the progress in resettlement. What are your observations?

A: Yes, it was a very useful trip and what I have seen was that needs of the people of the East is overlooked as the authorities had to look into the needs of over 280,000 displaced people in the North.

The number of displaced people in the East is around 4,000 but still they have issues and are facing challenges like AP mines, threats from wild elephants while living in far away villages with fewer facilities.

On the other hand the progress made in the East is tremendous, especially along the coastal line.

With improved infrastructure, night life, it has become a popular among tourists. But like any other area of this country, when one goes to the interior the picture there is not so impressive.

Q: According to your assessment what is the country’s situation in the post conflict era?

A: I think generally you have to be optimistic about Sri Lanka and there are whole lots of reasons for that. One is that despite all the difficulties faced for the past 30-years, Sri Lanka continued to invest in its people. Sri Lanka still has free health care, good health standards, good education and most importantly a well functioning government structure all over the country. In most of the war torn countries these aspects are not seen and these are Sri Lanka’s great achievements.

The other aspect is the private sector of such a country not being as dynamic as Sri Lanka’s private sector. With all these positive achievements, there are some areas that need serious thought. People of the North were exposed to the war for a long period of time and they were traumatized. The families of these people and also the military personnel, especially the widows need special recognition for the suffering they underwent. Special programs are needed to address their issues.

However, Sri Lanka will bounce back faster and Sri Lanka today has all the ingredients to do so.

Q: How is Sri Lanka complying with the Millennium Development Program goals - is it on track to meet the goals?

A: Yes, at the overall level Sri Lanka is on the target to meet the goal but there are substantial regional differences. For example, the progress of the hill country is slow and also the war affected North and East. In some districts still the urban poverty prevails and this is mainly due to high inequality, which resulted in low human development. When there is equal distribution, human development is quicker and Sri Lanka needs to consider more on this aspect.

Q: Will the present political and economical stability draw more money in Sri Lanka’s development efforts?

A: The issue is not funding. The way the UN agencies work, the international experience and partnership that we bring are important.

The political and economic stability will make Sri Lanka more attractive for investors who will bring more money into the country.

Q: The government proved the ex-terrorists can be rehabilitated effectively to reintegrate them to the society. Over 4,000 of them are now with their families. How can the UN agencies can help those who have gone back home to start their lives?

A: Yes, it’s going well. But the biggest challenge is after the integration of these ex-LTTE cadres. The international experience shows, the difficulties that they face when they go back to the community because, sometimes people in their own environment don’t accept them. The authorities need to set grounds for it and the UN agencies to work in teams with the Ministry of Justice. They should also have skills to engage in some work to start a livelihood. The IOM is involved in some programs designed to rehabilitate ex-LTTE cadres.

Q: Since ending the war against the ruthless LTTE, the country is maintaining a peaceful environment with zero incidents of terror. What are your observations?

A: Sri Lanka had a hard time and the uncertainty prevailed throughout the country for the past 30-years. It created disturbances in investor confidence and also among the Sri Lankans. This uncertainty made lots of educated Sri Lankans including scientists and academics leave the country as they were in fear of the future.

Since the war is over, it is really the right time to get these people back and give them a chance to comeback. This would be a long-term investment.

I am really happy that I got the posting to Sri Lanka as the UN could help lots of people through the UN system. We helped Sri Lanka a lot during the difficult times.

Sri Lanka is a model in the economics text books, in which I read in the university, for a country which invest lot in its people. Being a middle income country, now really is the chance for Sri Lanka to translate that investment into much economic growth, where people have more opportunity and confidence about their lives and remain in the country.

Pic: Shanika Sriyananda