Away from the bloodbath, life goes on for Tamil refugees

Away from the bloodbath, life goes on for Tamil refugees
AKHAYA KUMAR MISHRA

MALKANGIRI, MAY 21: In a remote tribal district of Orissa is a refugee camp housing hundreds of Sri Lankan Tamils who weave dreams of Tamil Eelam and look forward to go home to Jaffna, Sri Lanka, as soon as possible.

Their wait has been a long one.

It has been 10 years since Pravakaran, a 21-year-old Tamil guerrilla then, left Sri Lanka with the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) to settle as a refugee in Malkangiri in Orissa. He came with 3,000 others with a hope to return in the near future, when the war would be over and peace restored. They are still waiting for the dawn of their Eelam.

Ten years later in Malkangiri, Pravakaran feels his community's dream will remain unfulfilled as there is little hope for peace in Sri Lanka. Chances of the refugees returning home to Jaffna seem bleak. However, hope dies hard.

"The fight for a separate Tamil land in Sri Lanka will be on till the last Tiger guerrilla is alive. And Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) will go on fighting till the Tamil population in Sri Lanka is eliminated, which is impossible," Pravakaran, now 31 and leader of Malkangiri Tamil Refugee Camp, said.

Pravakaran is still an active leader of the Eelam National Democratic Liberation Front (ENDLF) which was fighting along with the LTTE in Sri Lanka 10 years back for a separate land for the Tamils.

Of the 3,000 refugees who came to India, 1,500 were settled by the Government of India in Malkangiri in 1990 after the return of the IPKF from Sri Lanka. About 300 Tamils spread over 40 families live in Malkangiri now. In these 10 years, the refugees have adjusted to the socio-economic milieu of Malkangiri though memories of home persist.

"We love the local traditions, social customs here. The camp is one of the best in the country for Tamils," Pravakaran said. The natives treat us like their own people, added Sridhar, a refugee who runs a photo studio in the town.

In fact, three refugees S Muralidhar, P Faruki and S Kandan have married local girls and become a part of the local community. "The local community adopted us and we adopted them," Kandan said. What is remarkable is that in the past 10 years no ethnic clash has occurred between the refugees and the local people.

The State Government had provided over 15 acres to the refugees for farming. The refugees dug up about 5-km-long canals for irrigating banana, coconut and groundnut plantations. They are also engaged in contract works, fruit vending and driving tractors for their livelihood.

Sometimes, they depend on the ENDLF party head office in Chennai for financial help. Children of some of the refugees are being educated at Indira Gandhi National Academy, Bangalore.

The district administration has been providing Rs 180 per Tamil refugee and 12 kgs of subsidised rice per month. However, lack of medical facilities and health care expenses tax their meagre income. "We send our people to Chennai for treatment as there is no provision (by the government) for medical facilities to Tamil refugees," they said. But, local officials are very cooperative with the camps, maintained the refugee families.

Asked about India's present stand on the Sri Lankan situation, they said "We appreciate the present policy of India."