IDP's Still Locked Up in Sri Lanka

Menik Farm displacement camp in Sri Lanka. (c) Digital Globe 2009

Menik Farm displacement camp in Sri Lanka. (c) Digital Globe 2009

The IDP situation in Sri Lanka continues to worsen as weeks continue to pass without the release of civilians locked up in the camps. The government, in violation of international law, has since March 2008 confined virtually all civilians displaced by the fighting in detention camps, euphemistically called “welfare centers” by the government. In a press statement this week, Eric P. Schwartz, Assistant Secretary of State for Refugees, described his short visit to Sri Lanka’s Menik Farm:

“[T]he vast majority of displaced persons remain confined to camps, and my visit to Manik Farm – and my conversations with displaced person – underscore for me the hardships they are enduring. Moreover, there remain burdensome limitations on access to those camps for those international humanitarian organizations and others who are in a position to ameliorate the conditions faced by these victims of conflict.”

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4 thoughts on “IDP's Still Locked Up in Sri Lanka

  1. Amnesty's doing a far better coverage than the corporate media of this & other living issues ( in this case through the dedicated focus of Christophe, Jim and others )…

    Sri Lanka 's taking not only whole chapters out of Israel's book of open air prisons — it's surpassing even Israel in DIRECTLY imprisoning entire populations as indefinite prisoners of war.

    Even in such a world as this, where else — where else ???

    But, as all great students of the human condition come to realize — that which is DISPLACED comes to DETERMINE the actions of all in the society involved .

    The more the DISPLACED is hidden & withheld from public consciouosness, right under its very nose as it were,the MORE that suppressed Other COMES TO SHAPE the very DESTINIES & FATE & ALL THE EVENTS in the society of the perpetrators.

  2. Amnesty’s doing a far better coverage than the corporate media of this & other living issues ( in this case through the dedicated focus of Christophe, Jim and others )…

    Sri Lanka ‘s taking not only whole chapters out of Israel’s book of open air prisons — it’s surpassing even Israel in DIRECTLY imprisoning entire populations as indefinite prisoners of war.

    Even in such a world as this, where else — where else ???

    But, as all great students of the human condition come to realize — that which is DISPLACED comes to DETERMINE the actions of all in the society involved .

    The more the DISPLACED is hidden & withheld from public consciouosness, right under its very nose as it were,the MORE that suppressed Other COMES TO SHAPE the very DESTINIES & FATE & ALL THE EVENTS in the society of the perpetrators.

  3. If talking about Israel, there is another comparison that must be made.

    In Sri Lanka onslaught earlier this year 20,000 + civilains died. But in Gaza it was said "inappropriate force" was used in the death toll far below the toll in Sri Lanka.

    Such double standard at the UN.

    Also, sadly efforts by Amnesty International many other human rights groups and NGOs has not done much yet to alleviate the sufferings of the Tamil people in Sri Lanka. Please do more to help the horrific conditions faced by Tamils.

  4. If talking about Israel, there is another comparison that must be made.

    In Sri Lanka onslaught earlier this year 20,000 + civilains died. But in Gaza it was said “inappropriate force” was used in the death toll far below the toll in Sri Lanka.

    Such double standard at the UN.

    Also, sadly efforts by Amnesty International many other human rights groups and NGOs has not done much yet to alleviate the sufferings of the Tamil people in Sri Lanka. Please do more to help the horrific conditions faced by Tamils.

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