Relief assistance pouring in

Relief assistance have started to pour in for the displaced civilians of the North reminiscent of the post Tsunami scenario four years ago. On that occasion aid and assistance snowballed into a deluge as big as the cataclysmic tidal wave that swept away everything in it’s wake.

The nation is still picking up the pieces of that catastrophe where tens of thousands of families were rendered homeless. Although not of the same magnitude the huge civilian exodus from the LTTE controlled areas is the nearest the nation has come to in confronting a parallel situation. Much like in the aftermath of the Tsunami there is today an outpouring of emotion and sentiment for the plight of the victims. So it is with generosity.

Already we see volunteer groups, civil society organisations and the clergy banding themselves together to dispatch relief supplies to the displaced. Hopefully this relief would grow in volume in the coming days with more and more contributions from the general public adding to the kitty.

With the figures of the displaced mounting with each passing day with more and more civilians fleeing the LTTE into the safe arms of the Security Forces the humanitarian situation could but only aggravate.

The Government alone would find it a Herculean task to provide all the requirements of these civilians a 100 per cent even with the foreign assistance it will receive in abundance. It will be placed in a dilemma to meet the gargantuan task of not only feeding these civilians for an indefinite period until they are totally resettled but also rebuilding their lives and livelihoods.

Of course relief both in cash and kind has already started to flow in and is bound to increase to the scale of the assistance received in the aftermath of the Tsunami catastrophe or even surpass it.

On that occasion one recalls the flood of humanitarian assistance that poured in from Sri Lankans both here and abroad. Every Sri Lankan responded in whatever possible way to the appeals for cash or relief items to the victims of the Tsunami. Even schools temples, churches kovils and mosques got into action urging their devotees for assistance.

No less were the goodwill shown by foreign nationals both individually and collectively who came to our assistance independent of the donations given by their respective Governments. One poignantly recalls how inmates of a junior school in Arundel in East London rallied to make their own contribution through a scheme known as ‘A Bob a Job’ whereby students performed a task of labour for a small consideration.

The pennies collected which eventually added up to a tidy sum were sent to the Sri Lankan Tsunami fund. The late Foreign Minister Lakshman Kadirgamar was at hand to receive this collection.

It is hoped that similar gestures of goodwill and consideration will be shown all round to the latest human tragedy confronting Sri Lanka. Already we see spontaneous acts of generosity with people and civic organisations of the South rallying to the aid of their destitute brethren of the North.

Vehicles carrying relief supplies are already heading to the Vanni. Today a group of 200 members of the Sangha are due to take to the streets in certain parts of Colombo on a pindapatha to collect relief items for the innocent civilians.

Addressing a media briefing the Ven Prof. Bellanwila Wimalarathana Thera who is giving leadership to this project said the event was to inspire people in the South to perform their duty and responsibility towards their counterparts in the North.

Hopefully the Ven. Thera’s call would evoke a powerful response from the public at large to contribute generously to ameliorate the conditions of these hapless civilians. People in the South are well known for their generosity and even sacrifice.

A large number of Tamil lives were saved during the Black July due to risks taken by their Sinhala brethren to give them accommodation. This spirit we are certain has not extinguished from the Sinhala hearts even after all the bloodshed and carnage during the two decades that followed.

The scenes of succour provided by our soldiers to the wounded civilians perhaps would move and inspire them to extend their largesse to these hapless people. It is time we realize that these civilians had to face this plight due to the freak circumstance of being born in a different geographical area of the country. It is as they say an accident of birth.

This is all the more reason why we should empathise with them and do everything possible to lift them out of their predicament.

The Government should in the meantime make strong appeals of it’s own to individuals and the corporate sector to assist in this humanitarian mission. It should think of offering concessions such as tax exemptions in attracting sizeable contributions.

President Mahinda Rajapaksa has already made appeals highlighting the plight of these people who had lived under the jackboot of the world’s most ruthless band of terrorists for so long. The response to his calls would be an index of our contribution to national unity and nation building.