URU, Alm.del - 2019-20 - Bilag 28: Henvendelse fra Women for Justice and Peace in Sri Lanka om undertrykkelse af etniske minoriteter i Sri Lanka

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Glimpse into Post-war Sri Lanka in 2009-2012

Sri Lanka: President appoints new *Task Force to rebuild north, 14 May 2009,

https://reliefweb.int/report/sri-lanka/sri-lanka-president-appoints-new-task-force-rebuild-north

*They have been preventing aid agents from helping war-ravaged IDPs

–

examples below:

O e a ua te of a illio S i La ka s a e o i a ps fo people displaced

by the fighting, and

over this past weekend, the government restricted access to some camps by UN workers and their

pa t e s.

- As fighting ends, Sri Lanka faces a critical moment, 20 May 2009,

http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/sri_lanka_49737.html

"After visiting a displacement camp in Sri Lanka on Saturday and flying over the site of the last

battle in the country's recently ended civil war, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called the sites

"appalling." I have traveled around the world and visited similar places, but this is by far the most

appalling scenes I have seen," Ban told CNN. "I sympathize fully with all of the displaced persons."

- U.N. secretary-general: Sri Lanka sites for the displaced 'appalling', 24 May 2009,

http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/asiapcf/05/23/sri.lanka.united.nations/

It is just o e a o th since

Asia's longest civil war in modern times came to an end, with the Sri

Lankan government's declaration that it had finally defeated the Tamil Tiger rebels (LTTE) on the

battlefield and killed nearly all their leaders.

Yet the army chief says he wants the army, already 200,000, to increase in size by 50%.

……

After decades of war, demilitarisation and a relaxation of security measures are not going to

happe soo . – S i La ka s e pa di g pea eti e a

, Cha les Ha ila d, Ju e

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/8121385.stm

The S i La ka go e

e t has told i te atio al elief age ies to ut a k thei a ti ities i the

country.

… But

it(ICRC) says an estimated 300,000 displaced people still need food, medicine and

help to etu ho e.

- Sri Lanka orders cuts in aid work, 9 July

2009,

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/8142550.stm

A senior official at the

humanitarian agency, Unicef, has been given two weeks to leave Sri

Lanka after expressing concerns about the plight of Tamils in government-run "welfare camp , the

first UN official to be expelled from the island nation. The expulsion has been condemned by

human rights groups who claim the state's actions were intended to "stop humanitarian relief and

monitoring operations. UN officials said Sri Lanka's move was reminiscent of "North Korean

diplomacy" and was aimed at "paralysing Unicef.

- Sri Lanka orders Unicef official to leave, 6

September 2009,

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2009/sep/06/sri-lanka-expels-unicef-

official

Bishop Joh Ra sthorne

of Sheffield and Bishop John Arnold of Westminster call for Tamils

displaced by civil war to be allowed to return home after visiting camps in Sri Lanka Two English

Catholic bishops have recently returned from Sri Lanka where they gained a rare insight into life in

the post-conflict camps. Alongside CAFOD, they are calling for the end of forced confinement of

nearly 300,000 Tamil survivors of the country's long and bloody conflict and allow them to go

URU, Alm.del - 2019-20 - Bilag 28: Henvendelse fra Women for Justice and Peace in Sri Lanka om undertrykkelse af etniske minoriteter i Sri Lanka

ho e. ……. –

Sri Lanka: Bishops say all must be allowed home,

11 September 2009,

https://reliefweb.int/report/sri-lanka/sri-lanka-bishops-say-all-must-be-allowed-home

It should e oted that the

problem of accessing camps for humanitarian personnel persists

th oughout the ou t

- Mission Report: Visit of Major General (ret.) Patrick Cammaert, Special

Envoy of the Special Representative for Children & Armed Conflict, to Sri Lanka, 05-11 December

2009,

http://www.un.org/children/conflict/_documents/SriLankavisitReport09.pdf/

I stead of ope i g spa e fo o ti ued p ese e a d e gage e t i the o fli t-affected

areas,

the quiet diplomacy approach employed by the humanitarian community has led to the state

placing increased restrictions upon humanitarian actors. For instance, in Mannar all NGOS, INGOs

and the UN have been instructed to obtain approval from the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on

Northern Development prior to initiating programmes on return and resettlement. Hence, by

adhe i g to the state s o ept of hu a ita ia assista e, a el o l the p o isio of asi

services, humanitarian actors severely diminished their ability and leverage to address protection

issues.

–

Civilian protection in Sri Lanka under threat, Refugee Study Centre, University of Oxford,

Jan 2010,

https://www.rsc.ox.ac.uk/files/files-1/wp58-civilian-protection-sri-lanka-under-threat-

2010.pdf

The ilita p ese e i the ou t is e o ous, u h g eate tha he I as the e i

... I

was stirred by so many things. ... It took me four months to get authorisation from the Ministry of

Defence to travel north.... It was clear to us that the government was not eager to have foreigners

or NGOs up there. Strangely, it was easier to go there in 2005 than it was this

De e e . ....

- The

story of Sri Lanka, then and now, Prof Adele Barker(University of Arizona), 8 February

2010,

http://news.rediff.com/slide-show/2010/feb/08/slide-show-1-the-story-of-sri-lanka-then-

and-now.htm

''....The extent of shelter destruction appears to have been underestimated .... government

restrictions on NGO access limited programming options, .... Movement along the A9 is also still

restricted for international NGOs and UN agencies. ...since July 2009 they(ICRC) have not had

a ess to the ,

people suspe ted of LTTE li ks held i eha ilitatio e t es. ....

- Banking on

Solutions, A real-ti

e e aluatio of UNHCR s shelte g a t p og a

e fo etu i g displa ed

people in Northern Sri Lanka, March 2010,

http://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/688DFD4C5975C6B6852576F700581B53-

Full_Report.pdf

'''With nearly 200,000 people still displaced in the North

—

some living in temporary camps while

others squat with host families

—

international agencies are running out of money to meet urgent

needs like water supply and resettlement grants, according to a report released last week. The

fu di g isis follo s the go e

e t s efusal to e do se the

o Hu a ita ia A tio

Plan (CHAP), authoritative sources said. Produced annually through a collaboration of all major

humanitarian assistance groups in the country (including UN agencies), the CHAP is a document

listing out priority areas for donor funding along with estimates. This is usually released to the

international donor community by way of consolidated or flash appeal and offers information

about sectors that require injections of aid...... The last appeal should have been sent to Geneva in

January - or earlier - but has not been endorsed by the government which feels the mechanism is

useless. Consequently, there is still no consolidated appeal for humanitarian assistance to Sri Lanka

URU, Alm.del - 2019-20 - Bilag 28: Henvendelse fra Women for Justice and Peace in Sri Lanka om undertrykkelse af etniske minoriteter i Sri Lanka

this year .......

a letter was issued to the OCHA by the presidential task force headed by Basil

Rajapaksa saying the CHAP was no longer necessary. The government’s contention is that

humanitarian and other assistance for the North and East should be channelled through the task

force and line ministries rather than via the OCHA.

''' - State stubbornness leaves IDPs in a big

fix, Namini Wijedasa, 15 Mar 2010,

http://www.infolanka.com/news/IL/1213.htm

(Preventing aid agents from giving assistance and channelling it through task force

–

PTF - will

make sure tilting mindset towards the Military)

Here is reproduction of the speech (Prof) John Richardson made at Singapore National

University in April 2010:

The three ele tio s prior to the es alatio of protra ted

conflict when a new government was

swept into power with overwhelming political support were the Parliamentary elections of April 5-

10, 1956, May 27, 1970 and July 21, 1977. In each, the party previously in opposition gained decisive

power on a platform that 3 promised fundamental change. The 1970 and 1977 general elections

were followed by new constitutions. After each election, there were missed

opportunities for initiatives that could have addressed many concerns of Tamil community

members, while simultaneously respecting the concerns of all but the most radical Sinhalese

nationalists. In each instance, however, Sri Lanka

s politi al leaders hose ot

to expend their

political capital in

this way ut i stead, to a ede to de a ds of the radi als.

https://groundviews.org/2010/11/05/prospects-for-post-conflict-reconciliation-and-development-

in-sri-lanka-can-singapore-be-used-as-a-model/

... the e ha e ee epo ts of a dete io atio of o ditio s i the Jaff a pe i sula, i ludi g

threats, extortions, kidnappings and killings. The government needs to take responsibility for any

concerns about crime since the Police is presently a central government function.'' - Feeling of

Deterioration in Jaffna Must Be Reversed Without Delay, Jehan Perera, Chairman, National Peace

Council, 10 May 2010

*''........ Despite the end of the war a year ago and the dismantling of the separatist LTTE, the ratio

of soldiers to citizens in the area is overwhelming. Driving through the Vanni, one loses count of the

number of checkpoints along the route to the Jaffna peninsula at the northernmost tip of the

island. There, the impression of being on a military base is reinforced by the soldiers, bunkers and

signs welcoming you to regiments' buildings at every street corner.... Ministry of Defence officials

told the reporter that clearance is required in order to prevent journalists from "reporting bad

things on what is happening in Jaffna and Vanni" - Sri Lanka - fear and trauma, one year on, Nina de

la Preugne, 19 May 2010,

http://www.thesamosa.co.uk/index.php/sri-lanka-special-report/49-

news-and-features/358-sri-lanka-fear-and-trauma-one-year-on.html

ost oads i side the Va i, hethe o the A o i te io oads, I felt as if e e e t a elli g

within a military camp. Military camps and check posts were along all the roads. ....

One of the

initial sources of livelihood when people went back to villages in the Vanni were the small tea shops

that they set up along the A9 road and other roads.

But these we

e o e shado ed the igge , ette looki g a d ette e uipped Ja aa a halas

People s estau a ts put up the ilita . Ea h a d e e ti e I go alo g the A the e appea ed

to be more military run restaurants than before. In the small Paranthan junction, there were

a ou d su h estau a ts, u

a ious di isio s, igades of the ilita .

- Vanni in the year

URU, Alm.del - 2019-20 - Bilag 28: Henvendelse fra Women for Justice and Peace in Sri Lanka om undertrykkelse af etniske minoriteter i Sri Lanka

after war: Tears of despair and fear, Ruki, 26 May 2010,

http://www.groundviews.org/2010/05/26/vanni-in-the-year-after-war-tears-of-despair-and-fear/

'' It is more than one year since the war ended but the government from the end of June 2010 has

introduced new restrictions on movement to the Wanni by staff of UN agencies, NGOs and INGOs.

…. At the e d of Ju e, o ehi les a d staff e e getti g th ough, said a autho itati e sou e i

Va u i a.

- NGOs stung by sudden new restrictions, 18 July

2010,

http://www.caffe.lk/NGOs_stung_by_sudden_new_restrictions-5-2214.html

… Raga

ela illage s a e Si halese; the a p otest agai st the i justi e do e to the , still,

without

ei g la elled Tige pa s . But p otests a e a u affo da le lu u fo the eside ts of

three Tamil villages in Murukkundi, displaced from their homes when the state confiscated 4,000

acres in Kilinochchi to build 12,000 prefabricated houses for milita

fa ilies. …

- Displacing

Northern Tamils to set up Sinhala military cantonments would increase resentment by Tisaranee

Gunasekara, 1 August 2010,

http://transcurrents.com/tc/2010/08/displacing_northern_tamils_to.html

…The A high a f o O a thai u til Elepha t Pass is do i ated p edo i a tl Si halese

soldiers, who even operate the small restaurants by the roadside. This military presence seems

o e hel i g a d stifli g…. The also ithout e eptio ie ed the a

oadside u ke s i the

Jaffna Peninsula and soldiers guarding most junctions as creating a perception of an army of

o upatio . ….

Our visit to Jaffna exposed and confirmed that all the conditions and discontent that

led to the Tamil rebellion are still present today. The only ingredient that is lacking is the

combustion of anti-Ta

il iots su h as i

,a d

. …

- Sinhala nationalist

mindset seems incapable of comprehending what Tamils are articulating: Revisiting Jaffna BY Dushy

Ranetunge, 14 August 2010,

http://transcurrents.com/tc/2010/08/sinhala_nationalist_mind_set_s.html

Ma se Li o a , head of the I te atio al Co

ittee of the Red C oss ICRC su delegatio i

Vavuniya couldn't hide her feelings at a ceremony where her organization was distributing 400 two-

wheel tractors to villagers in the Mullaitivu and Vavuniya districts. She walked to the rear of an ICRC

vehicle and cried after a minister allegedly overruled the list of beneficiaries the ICRC had chosen.

ICRC offi ials allege that the i iste dist i uted the t a to s to people of his hoi e

- ICRC Chief

weeps, 24 October 2010,

http://www.infolanka.com/news/IL/1420.htm

Sri Lanka rejects UN panel report, 13 April

2011,

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sinhala/news/story/2011/04/110413_amnesty.shtml

"Even we can't understand the situation - it is so unnecessarily complicated and confusing," said

Vinya Ariyaratne, executive director of Sarvodaya Movement, Sri Lanka's largest NGO. "This is

retarding the recovery process significantly." - Analysis: NGOs question tighter access to Sri Lanka's

north, 11 August 2010,

http://www.caffe.lk/NGOs_stung_by_sudden_new_restrictions-5-2214.html

''Bell Pottinger Group was recently hired to lobby UK, UN and EU officials.'' -

Sri Lanka 'pays PR firm £3m to boost post-war image', BBC, 22 October 2010,

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south-asia-11606899

URU, Alm.del - 2019-20 - Bilag 28: Henvendelse fra Women for Justice and Peace in Sri Lanka om undertrykkelse af etniske minoriteter i Sri Lanka

……… The diffi ult a ess situatio o pli ated hu a ita ia age ies pla i g of a ti ities a d

the delivery of services to IDPs and returnees in the north. Funding shortages during 2010 may

have been due to reluctance on the part of international donors to fund programmes that were

dependent on short-term approval and could be called off on short notice. It was also problematic

that the

GoSL did ot e do se the UN s Co

o Hu a ita ia A tio Pla CHAP fo

OCHA, 14 July 2010, p.41). If it expects donors to cater to the needs of IDPs and returnees, given

that its own budget has made return a very low priority, the GoSL must facilitate continued access

for humanitarian actors to the areas where IDPs and returnees live. This is crucial if new grievances

a o g this populatio a e to e a oided a d if these people a e to a hie e du a le solutio s.

- SRI

LANKA IDPs and returnees remain in need of protection and assistance, 14 January 2011,

https://www.refworld.org/type,COUNTRYREP,IDMC,LKA,4d3056122,0.html

''SriLanka has severe social and economic Inequalities........ We would suggest that if hostilities do

largely cease, five years after a war has ended, most economies are likely to have returned to near-

normalcy and 10 years after, the post-conflict era can, in most cases, be regarded as having ended''

- - A Typology of Post-Conflict Environments, Graham Brown, Arnim Langer & Frances Stewart,

September 2011,

http://soc.kuleuven.be/web/files/12/80/wp01.pdf

COUNTRY TRAPPED BY GOVERNMENT S WINNING FORMULA, Natio al Pea e Cou il, O to e

2011:

So fa the go e

e t has sho itself u illi g to ea h out to the eth i i o it ote s

to an extent that it might risk alienating its Sinhalese majority vote bank. However, this

unimaginative and un-statesmanlike political approach, which is power-centered and not problem-

sol i g, ill ot esol e the ai p o le fa i g the ou t .

''The nineteen person-Presidential Task Force implementing the government's "Northern Spring"

program has not a single Tamil member and does no consultation with the local communities

i ol ed o ith thei ele ted ep ese tati es, ostl TNA

- LLRC report, an inconvenient truth?

4 January 2012,

http://www.dailymirror.lk/article/llrc-report-an-inconvenient-truth-15903.html

''But that truth cannot excuse human rights violations that currently afflict the nation as a whole; or

for that matter obscure the looming threat of the cultural and political colonisation of the north by

the Sinhala Buddhist majority'' - Biased and Prejudiced Collection on Sri

Lanka, Gananath Obeyesekere (a Sinhalese Buddhist and Emeritus Professor of Anthropology),

Economic & Political Weekly, VOL 47 No. 04, 28 January-03 February 2012

'President Mahinda Rajapaksa is to lead a campaign organized by the government to muster the

support of the people against the Resolution passed at the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in

Geneva'' -

MR To Lead Ca paig To Get People s Suppo t, Ap il

2012,

http://www.thesundayleader.lk/2012/04/01/mr-to-lead-campaign-to-get-peoples-support/

''During

my time working in Haiti after the January earthquake in 2010, several humanitarian

workers from various United Nations agencies approached me regarding what they viewed as a

parallel situation between ethical problems within the UN mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) and what

they experienced in the final months of the conflict in Sri Lanka. ..... This report is a collective

statement of individual experiences by twelve UN workers who lived and witnessed incredible

abuses of the mission that they were supposed to fulfil in Sri Lanka. Ultimately this study reveals

URU, Alm.del - 2019-20 - Bilag 28: Henvendelse fra Women for Justice and Peace in Sri Lanka om undertrykkelse af etniske minoriteter i Sri Lanka

repeated and corroborating testimony of those humanitarian workers and one press agent who

witnessed and experienced an array of abuses which brought them within months of their missions

in Sri Lanka to speak out. Each and every interlocutor has compared the abuses in Sri Lanka to

various abuses they witnessed in Haiti. There seems to no doubt that changes need to be made

within these agencies not to mention within the hierarchy of the United Nations which has

demonstrated itself in Sri Lanka as an organisation which makes decisions that are often more

political than in the interest of the people it ostensibly serves'' - Independent Report on Sri Lanka

and United Nations Human Rights Violations, Julian Vigo, 10 April

2012,

http://endoplasm.org/independent-report-on-sri-lanka-and-united-nations-human-rights-

violations/

What this p eli i a assess e t of the a tio pla e eals is that the go e

e t is less

interested in meeting the challenges of political transformation within Sri Lanka than in meeting the

challenge of the international community in Geneva. - LLRC ACTION PLAN AND TAKING LLRC

REPORT SERIOUSLY,

National Peace Council of Sri Lanka, 29 July 2012

These i depe de t e pe ts se e as the e es a d ea s of the UN hu a ights s ste . This ook

provides concrete evidence of why the

s ste

o ks a d a s it a e i p o ed

- Catalysts for

Change: How the UN's Independent Experts Promote Human Rights, 13 July 2012,

http://www.brookings.edu/research/books/2012/catalystsforchange

''De sit of ilita pe so el i pea e ti e i the No the P o i e is u h highe tha du i g

the peak times of activity in Iraq, Northern Ireland, Kashmir, Chechenya and the French occupation

of Alge ia –

Notes on the

Milita P ese e i S i La ka s No the P o i e, Vol –

XLVII No. 28, 7-

14 July 2012,

http://www.epw.in/insight/notes-military-presence-sri-lankas-northern-

province.html

Jathika Hela U u a a JHU toda staged a p otest i f o t of the UN offi e i Colo o u gi g the

United Nations Human Rights Commissioner Navaneetham Pillay not to interfere with the

e o iliatio p o ess i S i La ka . –

Saying NO to interference, 20 September 2012,

http://www.dailymirror.lk/caption_story/saying-no-to-interference/110-22086

More than 480,000 people have registered as returned (Government statistics as compiled by

UNHCR, 31 December 2012), but many have not been able to achieve a durable solution but

continue to face difficulties in accessing basic necessities such as shelter, food, water and

sanitation, in rebuilding their livelihoods and in exercising their civil rights (IDMC interview, October

2012).

' Co fli t-affected

areas remain highly militarised, which has made progress towards achieving

durable solutions more difficult. The military has become an important economic player and a key

competitor of local people including returnees in the areas of agriculture, fishing, trade, and

tourism. It has also been involved in areas that would normally come under civilian administration.

It continues to occupy p

i ate la d, the e i pedi g IDPs etu . The go e

e t has failed to

make durable solutions a priority, and humanitarian organisations have faced funding shortages

and restrictions on programming and access''

–

Sri Lanka: A hidden displacement crisis, *Internal

Displacement Monitoring Centre, 31 October 2012,

URU, Alm.del - 2019-20 - Bilag 28: Henvendelse fra Women for Justice and Peace in Sri Lanka om undertrykkelse af etniske minoriteter i Sri Lanka

http://www.internal-

displacement.org/8025708F004BE3B1/(httpInfoFiles)/0F7746546306FCB3C1257AA8005845A6/$fil

e/srilanka-overview-oct2012.pdf

Restrictions and intimidation on journalists covering resettlement process in the Vanni,

31/10/2012,

https://groundviews.org/2012/10/31/restrictions-and-intimidation-on-journalists-

covering-resettlement-process-in-the-vanni/

The U ited Natio s s ste failed to eet its espo si ilities, Se etary-General

Ban Ki-moon said

on 14 November 2012 as he released the report of the Secretary-Ge

e al s I te al Re ie Pa el

o UN a tio i S i La ka. This fi di g has p ofou d i pli atio s fo ou o k a oss the o ld,

and I am determined that the United Nations draws the appropriate lessons and does its utmost to

ea the o fide e of the o ld s people, espe iall those aught i o fli t ho look to the

O ga izatio fo help

- Following report on Sri Lanka war, Ban determined to strengthen UN

responses to crises, 14 November 2012,

http://reliefweb.int/report/sri-lanka/following-report-sri-

lanka-war-ban-determined-strengthen-un-responses-crises

In Sri Lanka, where many UN agencies and NGOs are phasing out their humanitarian programmes,

it is unclear whether the development sector will include people affected by displacement in

development strategies.

…. Pe siste t i se u it , da age o dest u tio of housi g, the slo

restoration of basic services and infrastructure, unresolved land and property issues and a lack of

livelihood opportunities were all major obstacles to returns across the region, and in many cases

p e e ted the out ight. I S i La ka, the ilita s o goi g o upatio of la d i o fli t-affected

a eas as a ase i poi t. …. Hu d eds of thousa ds of u e t a d fo

er IDPs in Sri Lanka

remained in need of protection and assistance as of the end of 2012, more than three and a half

years after government forces defeated the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in May 2009.

More than 93,000 people were still living in camps, with host communities or in transit situations.

Of more than 480,000 people who had returned to Northern and Eastern provinces, many are still

to achieve durable solutions.

At the end of September 2012, the Menik Farm displacement camp, where around 225,000 Tamil

IDPs were interned in June 2009, was closed. Of more than 1,300 IDPs still living in the camp in

September, 560 were unable to return to their home areas because they were occupied by the

Mullaitivu Security Force headquarters. Instead they were relocated, many of them against their

will.

Military occupation of land is preventing around 26,000 people from returning across the north and

east of Sri Lanka, and it is estimated that more than 3,000 people have been relocated, in many

cases involuntarily.

Many returnees faced challenges in accessing their basic humanitarian needs such as shelter, water

and sanitation during 2012. Displaced and returning communities also required livelihood

assistance, social support, legal assistance and psycho-social care in recovering from the effects of

the o fli t. ………… S i La ka still has o legislatio go e i g IDPs p ote tio . A ill d afted the

National Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka in 2008 had not been taken forward as of

De e e

. ….

At the end of the year, the UN cluster system was phased out as the

international response shifted from humanitarian to development interventions, despite continuing

humanitarian needs on the ground. International funding for both areas of activity was significantly

reduced.

–

Global Overview 2012, Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre, April 2013,

URU, Alm.del - 2019-20 - Bilag 28: Henvendelse fra Women for Justice and Peace in Sri Lanka om undertrykkelse af etniske minoriteter i Sri Lanka

http://www.internal-displacement.org/sites/default/files/publications/documents/2012-global-

overview-corporate-en.pdf