Tuesday 19 August 2008
 
By John Newton
 
A leading Sri Lankan Bishop has demanded increased government help for those displaced by the fighting in the north of the country.

Speaking to Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need, Bishop Thomas Savundaranayagam of Jaffna, in north Sri Lanka, described how nearly 200,000 civilians fled their homes because of the conflict between the army and separatist rebel forces.

He said: "The battle with the Liberation Tigers has now reached a peak, and people are caught in the middle. As the troops advance, people are leaving their villages and running for their lives. They don’t know what to do."

Bishop Savundaranayagam told ACN he was deeply concerned by the plight of those who have had to leave their homes because of the fighting. The bishop said: "In this war the civilians are the ones who get hurt. May God preserve them in this on-going war."

The refugees, who have been driven to the middle of Kilinochchy district by the fighting, face a bleak situation, living rough and taking shelter under the trees.

"There is no shelter, no water, no toilets, no food, and no medical assistance," said Bishop Savundaranayagam.

Tents and other essential items were not being allowed in to the area, even though they were desperately needed to provide shelter for the homeless.

While the government was providing help, military restrictions meant it was not always getting through, added the bishop.

He said: "The government is sending food, but only a limited number of lorries are allowed to pass through the army check point to enter the area."

Bishop Savundaranayagam also hit out at the fact that medical aid was not being allowed through the check point to reach the homeless. "The government is not permitting necessary medicine," he said.

While Catholic aid agency Caritas is doing what it can to help, Church and humanitarian organisations are severely hampered by restrictions.

Neil Buhne of the United Nations said up to 75,000 people had been displaced in the past two and a half months alone and warned that the figure was expected to increase.

Fighting between the military and separatist rebels has intensified since the government pulled out of a six-year truce in January 2008.

The Sri Lankan army captured Mannar District from the rebels and is now engaged in conflict in the Mulathivu and Kilinochchy districts.

The army guaranteed safe passage to Mannar from 12–17 August for the thousands who made the annual pilgrimage to the Marian shrine in Madu.

The government has poured in a record US$1.5 billion into the conflict this year, and has said that it will not stop the fighting until the rebels are wiped out.

[ACN]