Will the guns go silent?
by SD
Questions after questions come pouring into my mind disturbing an already disturbed mind. I was at the Tinakural Rest and had very little sleep. Being disturbed by constant shelling. And as I sat on my bed I prayed that we should succeed in our efforts. As religious groups, our attempt is to bring peace and love which are inalienable and fundamental to our nature, into human relationship without which we cannot live as human beings interacting harmoniously with one another.
[Jaffna Public Libraray-File Photo]
Our International Summit was in the Public Library. Religious leaders From Sri Lanka and a multi-religious delegation from six countries of the World Conference of Religions for Peace, met in Jaffna on the 12th and 13th of December 2007. Jaffna was made the location of the summit merely to express solidarity with all those who continue to live in situations of violence, despair and conflict. They did see the massive destruction of infrastructure and housing, the loss of villages and very fertile agricultural lands now part of the High Security Zones. They were able to feel the fear and insecurity in the lives of the people, especially the youth-all of which are dehumanizing to all those affected.
As I sat in the bus waiting to be transported to town, a young disgruntled looking army person carrying a gun stood at the entrance to the bus. He was looking tired and forlorn and if he went berserk and decided to machine gun all of us in one stroke what do we do. I whispered to Ela who was seated next to me. She took a good look at him and said, “Yes he looks disgruntled all right. Any thing could happen. Let’s pray that nothing will happen,” she sighed.
In the spiritual scheme of things, “Religion does not want cohorts to march before its paths and clean its way. Wisdom and philosophy do not march upon bleeding human bodies, but on the wings of peace and love,” are words that ring true at these times of uncertainty when our leaders seem to have putthe peace process on hold! However, we seem to have moved away from this dictum making the story of Jaffna very sad. Peace seems elusive and one wonders where one is to begin to write about the colossal and gruesome tragedy of Jaffna.
Perhaps I would begin with the story of a girl who tried in vain to get a letter across to the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights ever since her brother went missing. Where does one appeal for succor? Then in another instant a little one saw a man who was kneeling perhaps asking to be saved, shot through his head with the brains blown out. Then in yet another instant we hear of a young boy saving his younger brother’s life by scooping his intestines back into his torn belly and holding him till he was given medical attention. Are these, man’s inhumanity to man? Could we Sri Lankans be so brutal-army or otherwise? These are little children whom we cherish and protect from such brutality. Or are we driving our people into other hands?
One realizes that here in Jaffna five persons are killed every day and four to five are abducted never to return. Whom are they killing and why are they abducting only to kill if ransom is not paid. Perhaps all this mounts to our karmic actions. And today’s perpetrators will reap the effects of their karmic action in time to come. The Law of Karma is inexorable-every action has a reaction and no one escapes this-king or beggar.
Another story tells us that a young Ordinary Level student who was to appear for the examination did appear battered and bruised crying that she was assaulted mercilessly and that her parents had been abducted the previous night. Why? O Why? I keep asking and find no answers. Have we Sri Lankans become so heartless?
Hundreds of prisoners are cramped into a tiny room with no proper sanitation nor facilities sharing their living space with their cell mates. Some of these men are ill perhaps with contagious diseases. But who cares?
Are the authorities concerned? Some of these so called prisoners are not criminals-they have been taken in for questioning and kept for how long? No one knows! I asked one of the ladies who was in charge of the arrangements whether I could visit these unfortunate persons and she was a aghast. “Are you crazy,” she asked me, looking not only terribly frightened but wondering whether I was nutty! Had we asked for permission I may not be
here to write the story!
We were told that once a young man was severely beaten up for what reasons one does not know and was thrown aside and left to die. Another young man seeing this happening went up to the young man and tried to help revive and perhaps take him to the hospital. Alas, he was tracked down, beaten and asked to mind his business. Can our own soldiers be so cruel? Or are they carrying out orders? Both the boss and the soldier seem to have forgotten their Buddhist inheritance?
You could just imagine our panic and fear when we heard that the owner of the Communication Centre we had gone to on that 12th afternoon, was killed that very evening-perhaps an hour or so later. We were told that he was shot dead by unidentified gunmen in the heart of the city.Why? Why? I keep asking.
During the lunch time, I tried to step out just across the street to have a look at my ancestral home that was in shambles. “Oh no. You cannot go out of these premises miss,” said the official clad in fatigues. “Come with me, please,” I begged and he started muttering something in Sinhala. He was one of the better behaved young men but he too had to carry out orders.
Most of the homes are in this state-bombed and shelled or with the frontage barred and the place deserted. One cannot even go by to see ones own home leave alone go outside for a walk.
To make thing worse, most of the roads are closed and out of bounds. You turn a corner and there stands a couple of sentries with wire mesh barring the road. This was our home territory and we do not have access to our homes. Intellectuals may want to deny that there is no homeland of the Tamils. The simple fact that we have been living here for the past several centuries nay even a millennia alone tells us that these are our homelands. With successive invasions around the 11th -12th centuries large numbers of immigrants from South India came into the North leading to the concentration of Tamils of various professional groups in the Northern part of the Island becoming our homelands and being gradually transformed into a cohesive homogeneous agrarian society. These are the homelands that belong to us Tamils. Where are we now? We are often told that this idea of a homeland is a myth! Today it is Tamil diaspora-dispersion away from our home. Authorities may feel happy that we are leaving yet the brain drain will surely affect the future of Sri Lanka. Aren’t we Sri Lankans? Why are we being hounded?
The International Delegation together with local participants left Colombo by a Charter flight and just six other local passengers were traveling wit us. Each of us had to take three copies of our Identity Cards and these were taken in at the port of landing together with our tickets. And after a very long wait and having been shunted from one building to another, an army vehicle left with all of us on board together with the civilians. And to my horror, the names of each of the other passengers were taken down separately and were photographed at close range! Why? I simply couldn’t understand. To me it was inhuman and a violation of that individual’s rights. We were exempted because we belonged to the delegation. But those young and old just accept it-when you keep punching all the time, one gets tired and simply gives in!
These civilians stay in these camps for several hours just waiting and hoping that they would be released soon. Travel to town is only by army vehicles.
I am reminded again of another elderly lady whose card of 4 batteries was confiscated! While I was talking to her a few hours later while we were still in the Camp, I said that I had a few batteries that I had in my clock and torch and said that I would quietly give it to her. She shuddered and said , “No I cannot take it because our bags my be checked and if this is seen I will get into severe trouble and maybe I will be compelled to say that I got it from one of you. And this would be trouble for you.”
By three in the afternoon Jaffna starts closing down and by sundown it is a ghost city with sentries in every nook and corner. Electricity is available for certain hours only. A cylinder of gas is Rs5000! can any one afford this? The mobile phones are disconnected and the telephone connections to Colombo are very intermittent. All essential items that are available are expensive. The farmers’ crop of onions is now sold in Colombo but the payment for same is very late that the farmers are unable to get ready for the next crop. Groceries, dry rations and essential medicines are available at a price. Is any one concerned? One could scream from the roof top but all seem deaf and relentless.
Where are our leaders-Sinhala and Tamil?
What is happening in Jaffna? Is no one seeing these atrocities and is no one doing something to alleviate the situation. Jaffna is in turmoil. Rightly or wrongly the youth took up arms having been worst affected by policies in education and employment, the land colonisation schemes in predominantly Tamil areas, the disenfranchisement of estate workers, the destruction of life and property in several race riots. These helped our politicians to mobilize the youth into thinking that a separate state would solve these problems. A militant movement developed. Unless a negotiated political solution is reached, the conflict will continue. Such movements may go underground only to appear again. Will this be the scenario in our country for years to come?
The authorities are not bothered and the government thinks in terms of a military solution. One can go on and on relating the brutality that is perpetrated in Jaffna. It is sad. Are we traveling from one country to another? Are the Identity Cards our visas?
There were several University professors and lecturers who were really thrilled that we had atlast come to Jaffna bringing international guests. The Japanese Peace Envoy Akashi, Ela Gandhi, the Norwegian Envoy, the EU envoy, the Niwano envoy together with the Secretary General of the World Peace Conference of Religions for Peace and a few other dignitaries from the Asian Conference were some of the important international delegates. From Sri Lanka, there were several Catholic Bishops who were taking very important roles, Buddhist monks, Moulavis and I represented the Hindus together with several Temple Kurukkals. I seem to have left out something in my tale of woe. Who are these sentries? Are they not someone’s children? Are the sentries happy in doing what they are forced to do? Perhaps not. The stories that they have to tell are equally pathetic. During wars, soldiers are often given leave to go back to their families. This is done so that they do not become blood thirsty. Do these young soldiers go on leave? While we were there, we understood that some who were expecting to go on leave and who had purchased Jaffna mangoes for their families, were told that their leave had been cancelled. How could they sustain their sanity? Once, I heard a young soldier remark to his newly wedded wife who was very reluctant to let her husband go to the battle front saying in Sinhala, “Mang petti puruallaa gennawa; naththang pittiathula ennawa,” meaning when I come I will bring boxes of things (loot) or I will come inside a box meaning that I will come as a corpse in a coffin. A gruesome story for a young bride.. What becomes to the women who have lost their husbands in the battle front.
Do they have a chance to even give them a funeral? Perhaps not because these corpses would have been burnt en masse to play down the death toll? In the early years of the conflict many of our civilians were burnt in one heap in front of the Jaffna hospital.
This is Jaffna and the suffering is untold, unbearable and unheard. Will our story be an unfinished symphony? Perhaps it will be until the guns are silenced.
Two wrongs do not make a right. Let us get together in the name of religion whether we be Buddhist, Hindu, Christians or Muslim and work as a team in an attempt to bring sustainable peace into our war torn country.
_________
[A Sri Lankan solider blocked traffic on the main road in Jaffna to allow a military convoy to pass through the city at high speed: Photo Courtesy: J Adam Huggins-NYTimes.com-More Photos-June 2007]
12 comments January 17th, 2008