Menik Farm camp badly damaged by gale-force winds

The gale-force winds which lashed Vavuniya last week caused havoc at the Menik Farm complex housing internally displaced persons (IDPS).

It has also raised questions regarding the safety of its inmates as well as to the causes behind the delay in resettling the IDPS.

According to the Disaster Management Centre (DMC), the gale caused injury to 13 persons, damaged 1,288 temporary shelters and displaced 4,400 persons.

Pradeep Kodipilli, spokesperson of the DMC said the damaged buildings were being reconstructed with help from the security forces.

Tamil National Alliance (TNA) Wanni district MP Sivasakthy Ananthan said the storm had brought on a feeling of helplessness among the displaced persons.

Around 6,000 IDPS continue to languish in the IDP camp at Menik Farm. Most of the families are confined to Ananda Coomarswamy and Kadirgamar camps.

The MP said he had serious doubts regarding Government assurances to resettle the IDPS within a period of six months. He pointed out three years had elapsed since the war ended still no credible reason had been given for the delay in resettlement.

He added IDPS had complained that the District Secretaries of Vavuniya and Mullaitivu had promised to resettle them in areas outside of their original villages within a period of six months, but the people were not willing to go. The IDPS wanted to be resettled in the areas they lived in such as Mullivaikkal and Puthukuddyiruppu, MP Ananthan said.

He said he had not been permitted to enter the IDP camp but was able to see the damage from outside the camp.

“The temporary huts made of zinc sheets were badly damaged by the gale” he said. Some of the sheets were torn to pieces and a number of IDPS with cut injuries had been hospitalised at the Vavuniya hospital, where they are receiving treatment” he added. The MP added despite it being over three years since the war ended, facilities at the Menik Farm camp were far from adequate. The camp does not have adequate toilet facilities, there remains a shortage of adequate drinking water and people still face various health issues, he said.

“The present drought conditions have made it doubly difficult for the people –the shelters are made of zinc sheets and during the day these become unbearably heated. This has resulted in heat-related illnesses such as sun stroke and skin rash” he added.

“The up-coming rainy season will lead to more problems,” he added.