chaos and uncertainty

Today has been an entirely chaotic day, not unexpected.  By the time I got into office, I had already had about 10 different phone calls all about responding to what is now a dire humanitarian crisis.  As is symptomatic in Sri Lanka where there is a calm before the storm, the sleepiness of the last 10 days when there were extended holidays in Sri Lanka was suddenly shattered today as there were frantic and almost panic ridden attempts to get access into areas where the IDPs are being kept.  So far there has been very little access given as a result of what can best be described as a political tennis match being played in Colombo between heads of NGOs and the government.  Between the two parties, it is very clear that the eventual losers will be those 100,000 plus who have been displaced, all in all, a very frustrating thing considering what is happening in the north.  It is as my colleague said ‘it is a crime that we are sitting here with all our equipment ready to help people and not doing anything’.  Whilst the need to sign an MOU of operation with the government has been an unwelcome additional bureaucratic hurdle, what has also been unhelpful has been the attitude from some of the NGOs.    As one weary ministry official told me, ‘look we have learnt from the tsunami. You guys came in with loads of money and promised the sky and the moon.  Some of that was not delivered and some of that ended up in the wrong hands.  We don’t want to take any chances’.  There is very little you can argue with that but just to persevere.  Thankfully it seems that access will be granted and we will be let in.  So today has been spent trying to ensure all our equipment and supplies and staff are primed for entering.

This week in particular, we have watched images flashed across our screens of people crossing lakes and rivers and being met by the Sri Lankan armed forces. ‘the biggest humanitarian exercise in history’ as the president claimed. As the physical battle seems to be reaching to a logical conclusion, the battle has been moved to cyberspace with claims and counter claims being levelled at each other.  It is obvious from following the discussions on you tube or face book or even for that matter alertnet that feelings run very deep on both sides.   This has also been played out on the streets of Europe much to the surprise of many here in Sri Lanka as well as disgust.  One of my friends told me ‘you know I can understand the deep distrust and resentment of Tamils to the Sri Lankan government.  They have suffered in the past.  What I don’t understand is why they choose to fly the flags of the LTTE?’  This is the one argument that is on everyone’s mind. 

When looking at these, I can not help but be reminded of the analogy of the shattered mirror.  Each one of us holds a piece of that shattered mirror and ‘‘you will find parts of the truth everywhere and the whole truth nowhere’’.

This past week, more than ever has there been a need to cast aside those preconceived notions.  If the images of malnourished women and children have not struck a chord in your heart, then surely the sight of over run hospitals with the injured and wounded should have.  The need of the hour is for a moratorium of these thoughts.  For once in a long time, why can’t the thoughts be about those innocent civilians who need our help?  It is not about the politics of the situation nor about right and wrong or about unfettered access or limited access.  It is not about forgetting past grievances for to do this will dishonour all those who have suffered.  We should not forget the blot on Sri Lanka’s history that was 1983 when Tamils were forced to leave Sri Lanka in their thousands; nor should we forget those Muslims who were forced to leave Jaffna in 1990 and who have been in refugee camps since then; nor those who have been killed directly or indirectly as a result of the conflict particularly the poor rural Sinhalese villagers who comprise most of the armed forces.

The need of the hour is that 100,000 civilians plus through no fault of their own are now in desperate need of help.  It is obvious that this is a logistical nightmare for any government to handle.  The need of the hour is for support to be given from all stakeholders.  It is now time to rise and cast aside the shackles of our discontent.  Already there are signs that people want to help.  Our office has received many offers to help and donations for the IDPs and even offers to help on the ground.  These are from people who genuinely are feeling for the plight of these helpless and voiceless people.  In this light, these singular offers of help emerge as small shards of glass brought together by the crisis to form an embryonic union, and a template for a larger cosmopolitan mosaic.