The Frontlines of Crisis in Sri Lanka

In Sri Lanka, escalating violence since April 2006 has forced more than 350,000 people to flee their homes and find shelter in safe pockets of the countryside. Since September, CRS has given $350,000 to our local partners, who in turn are providing people with food, shelter, sanitation, clothing, counseling and educational support in the districts of Trincomalee, Batticaloa, Mannar and Jaffna.

Father Damian Fernando, director of Caritas Sri Lanka.

CRS' partner, Caritas Sri Lanka, has supported development and relief programs in the country since 1971. Father Damian Fernando, director of Caritas Sri Lanka, spoke recently about the crisis and its impact on innocent civilians.

What is the situation like right now in Sri Lanka?

Father Damian: The situation is very volatile. At any moment, anything can happen. The government appears to have gone on the offensive and to be seeking a military solution to the conflict. So the country is on a war footing.

Sri Lanka has a law called the Prevention of Terrorism Act, and recently it is being used against people who speak out in favor of or promotion of peace. People are being arrested and detained for this. They can be kept in jail for any amount of time, even years. We have various paramilitary groups that are active, and killings and disappearances are on the rise. Some of them are political killings, and some even happen in the capital, Colombo, but sometimes it could be anybody that gets killed.

So in this atmosphere, what sort of work is Caritas doing and how are you doing it? For example, do the parties to the conflict feel you’re taking sides?

Father Damian: We are there because the [Catholic] church is there, and we continue to help the people in Sri Lanka. We are seen as neutral by both the government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. They accept the presence of Caritas and the work of Caritas.

In the north, in the Jaffna Peninsula, we are delivering humanitarian aid to people who have had to leave their homes because of the conflict. Many people are trapped there, living in refugee camps, because the government has closed off the area. But we are allowed by both sides to travel to and from the area, again because they recognize us and our work. We’re bringing food and nonfood items, and we are giving livelihoods and educational support there.

Is Caritas involved in helping to bring the sides together to work toward peace?

Father Damian: Yes. Again, because we are seen as neutral, we have been participating in ongoing discussions between the different sides. We are working quietly with all sides — the government, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam and the Buddhist People’s Liberation Front — to help bring about peace. We are also speaking with other Tamil groups and Muslim groups.

Are these the same camps that were there during the worst years of the conflict?

Father Damian: These are all new camps for displaced people that have been there since December. The old camps had been abandoned, and almost everyone had returned to their homes and villages. Some of them are now being opened again. The government is advancing into the east, and they’ve captured some important rebel areas around Batticaloa. So Batticaloa has seen an influx of 10,000 families just over the last two weeks — that’s about 50,000 people. We’re providing the people with cooked meals, temporary shelters, and trauma support.