About 30 Ontario university students who recently returned from tsunami-stricken Sri Lanka expressed “deep disappointment” in the Canadian government and the international community on Tuesday, as they gave first-hand testimonials that relief efforts are simply not reaching Tamil Tiger-controlled territories in the north.
The press conference, which brought together a group of Tamil-Canadian delegates who had been working on various humanitarian projects in the region when the tsunami hit in late December, urged Canadians to ask their government to do more to ensure that aid is distributed equitably throughout Sri Lanka.
U of T master’s student Anushiya Sathiananthan said that where she was located there were virtually no aid organizations providing relief. She was in the northern city of Kilinochchi, along with fourth-year pyschology student Malarvali Varatharajah. The two students were scheduled to begin filming a documentary on a local orphanage before the unrelenting waves ravaged Sri Lanka’s coast.
“Of the 170 children at the orphanage, only 30 survived the tides,” Varatharajah told The Varsity. “Almost all of the dead were under five [years old].”
“Channeling aid through the Sri Lankan government is just not working,” Varatharajah added, saying Tamil Rehabilitation Organization (TRO), and civilian-clothed Tigers are shouldering most of the burden.
“It’s now a question of distribution,” said Varatharajah, adding that some kind of monitoring system is necessary to ensure that relief reaches the north.
There have been scattered reports in recent weeks of trucks being diverted to the south in an effort to curb the Tamil liberation movement. Many of Tuesday’s testimonials backed up these claims, adding that what little aid is getting to the north is being delayed at security checkpoints. One speaker who saw trucks entering the city of Mullatitiva said that it showed obvious signs of tampering.
Chairperson of the Canadian Federation of Students Jesse Greener was in attendance, and stressed that Tamils were “entitled to equitable distribution,” saying that “the Canadian public will get a better understanding of the plight of the people in northern Sri Lanka by hearing experiences of these students.”
Greener told The Varsity that while CFS was not in a position to give financial support, they are offering outreach and support programs, and have scheduled a fundraiser in early February.
