Open Forum
New Delhi, 19 September 2008
Lankan Refugees In
TN
GOVT MUST INITIATE
A POLICY
By Syed Ali Mujtaba
The Elam
war in Sri Lanka
is entering a decisive phase. A string of defeats by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil
Elam has exposed its venerability to sustain the war for a long time to come.
On the other hand, some spectacular victories by the Sri Lankan armed forces
suggest that the Northern provinces
would soon be amalgamated into the Sri Lankan State. If and when that happens,
it remains to be seen what kind of devolution of power the Sinhala government
offers to its Tamil citizens that have been waging a war for it for over two
decades now.
As far as India
is concerned, its hands-off policy towards Sri
Lanka has led the Elam war to drift towards the one
nation state concept. However, India
has stakes in the welfare of the Sri Lanka Tamils because the disturbed
conditions in the Island nation have ominous
portents on the Indian soil. One among them being the presence of large number
of Tamil refugees living in camps spread across Tamil Nadu and Orissa. It would
be in India’s interest to
have them repatriated at the earliest to Sri Lanka so that the burden on the
government’s exchequer could be eased to some extent.
Sri Lankan Tamil refugees that are residing in Tamil Nadu
could be classified into four categories. One, who are living in the camps set
up by the Tamil Nadu government. Second, those staying with their relatives,
friends or even independently; third, those who are a security threat and are
kept in the special camps. Fourth, those who come with valid travel document
but continue to stay by renewing their visas.
Sri Lankan Tamil refugees have been coming into Tamil Nadu
in several phases. The first phase was 1983-87 when 1, 48,000 refugees arrived.
They started coming in the aftermath of the Colombo riots that broke out in 1983. Many however,
left Tamil Nadu following the 1987 India-Sri Lanka accord.
The second batch of refugees, nearly 1, 22,000 came during
1989-91. This followed the return of the IPKF from Sri
Lanka and the resumption of hostilities in the Island nation. In the third phase; 1996-2005 about 22,000
refugees arrived and in 2006, when the hostilities escalated the numbers grew
by another 18,600.
In the aftermath of the India-Sri Lanka accord—1987-89, some
25,000 refugees voluntarily returned to the Island.
However, many stayed back and some left for Europe
and other destinations.
Following the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi, the then Tamil
Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalitha ordered the closure of 50 camps during 1992 to
95 and forcibly sent 52,180 refugees back to Sri Lanka. After the ceasefire
agreement in 2002 between the LTTE and the Sri Lankan government, about 6,000 left
Tamil Nadu for back home.
The Tamil refugees are staying in 123 camps located in
different spots of Tamil Nadu. There are two camps also in Orissa. These were
set up to house those who supported the IPKF and after its withdrawal had to
leave Sri Lanka
too.
As of now there are about 71,600 Sri Lankan Tamil refugees
staying in the camps. However, it’s estimated that another 20,000 to 100,000 refugees
are living outside these camps. The refugees have had to face a number of
hardships while traveling to Tamil Nadu. They end up paying huge amounts of money
to be dropped near the Indian waters, from where they are picked up by the
Indian fishermen, who then clandestinely ferry them to the knee- deep waters of
the Indian shores.
Sometimes the Sri Lankan refugees are dropped on the sand
dunes that emerge in the water during low tide. Those who are not picked up
from there get washed away in the sea during the high tide which inundates the
dunes. On an average, a journey from Sri Lanka
to India
would cost anywhere between Rs 30,000 and 50,000 other than the discomfort and humiliation.
On arrival the refugees have to undergo a mandatory police
screening. This is extremely essential because the LTTE itself exploit the
refugee channel and infiltrate into India. Given the large influx of
refugees, the police find it difficult to segregate the genuine cases from those
connected with the LTTE. The exercise is clearly justified by the sheer example
that six of the accused in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case belonged to these
camps.
The camps by and large are in a pathetic state barring Mandapam
camp in Rameswaran, which has a proper inbuilt infrastructure since British
days as it had housed the enchanted labourers to be sent to Sri Lankan
plantation areas. Other than no infrastructure and hygiene, there are little
medical care facilities for the inmates.
The government, however, gives all adult Sri Lankan refugees
Rs 800 per month, the amount recently hiked from Rs 400. The refugees are
allowed to take up employment and are allowed to work from 10a.m. to 6 p.m. Most
of them work on the railway track that’s being converted from meter gauge to
the broad gauge between Rameswaram and Madurai, while others work at brick
kilning, cable laying, basket making etc.
One of the main problems being faced is education for the
children living in these camps, with inadequate primary and secondary education
facilities. However, the situation is
far better now since these camps were set up. The Tamil Nadu government has
recently not only announced five seats for the refugees children in the state-run
professional colleges but has directed government-aided colleges to enroll
students who have refugee status.
In spite of the ethnic and cultural proximity the refugees
have little interaction with the local public. Outsiders are not allowed to
visit the camps and there have been a number of incidences of broken family,
which have led to social problems. The camps to outsiders look like open prison
due to the strict vigilance of the police.
However, there is no denying that the Sri Lankan refuges are
a much better lot in comparison to their counterparts elsewhere. However, their
sheer presence has thrown up challenges before the government, already faced
with its own plethora of problems. There is need to formulate a policy with
regard to the refugees. India
would do well to sign the refugees’ convention and allow the UNCHR and NGOs to
play a role in dealing with them. It should look at the issue from a humanitarian
angle and not as leverage to its foreign policy. Perhaps it should go a step
further and initiate a security dialogue with Lankan Government for an early
repatriation of the refugees.
It would be worthwhile to mention here that in the aftermath
of Indira Gandhi’s assassination, there was an upsurge against the Sikh
community in Delhi
and elsewhere, whereas during Rajiv Gandhi’s assassination, not a single Sri
Lankan Tamil refugee camp was touched in Tamil Nadu. This, in spite of the fact
that six persons involved in his killing were registered members of the refugee
camps. Perhaps it’s a reflection on the character of the people, who live across
the Vindhayas. ---INFA
(Copyright,
India News and Feature Alliance)
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