IDP-Voices

IDP-Voices - Kanapthipillai Tharmaraja
I have eight children. When shells began falling in Nachchikuda, Mulankavil area we left home and came to Jeyapuram. We then went to Anaivilunthan. After 10 days we went to Skanthapuram in Kilinochchi for one day and then we came here to Ananthapuram on 8 September. We displaced again on 17 September and went Visuvamadu. Each time we setup the shelter and then about 10 days later pull it all out, hire a tractor spending money to transport it again and the cycle repeats.

We cannot stay in a place when shells are falling. The children are very scared so we move even if it is at night. When we were in Visuvamadu they bombed and my mother’s shoulder joint was dislodged when she fell inside the bunker. So we came back.
I brought 10 cows with me from Nachchikuda hoping it will give an income to live on but I have lost all of them except one when I took them to the water hole. I searched everywhere but could not find them. Those cows would cost in excess of Rs 100,000.
I did rice cultivation and left it without harvesting and that was a big loss. We thought we could go and at least harvest the rice but apparently the army is shelling near our home so we cannot go to harvest.
IDP Voices - Balu Selvanayagam
We were living in Andankulam in Mannar. We displaced to Madhu but later we were told to go back to Andankulam by the LTTE. Sometime later, from Ankankulam we displaced to Periyamadu and from there we displaced to Iluppakkadavai. From there because of shelling we displaced Paliyaru. From there we again displaced to Kanesapuram. From Kanesapuram we displaced to Anaivilunthan. From there we displaced yet again to Murippu in Kilinochchi. From Murippu we have come here to Vaddakachchi.

In Ankankulam I worked in a bakery. I have three children; my youngest is nine months old. Since we started this repeated displacement a year ago, we have no income. I cannot find work. We keep selling our small possessions to buy food. The last thing we sold was the tiny gold earring of this child. She is now wearing an imitation earring.
We have not received much assistance in the form of relief. This hut is no protection from rain. If it rains we have to seek protection in a temple; that is all we can do.
IDP Voices - Kumar Vijayaranee
We were in Jaffna and we came during the 1995 Sooriyakathir military offensive to Chavakachcheri. We were there for about four or five months. I was already married and had three children at that time.

We then came to Padiyankulam in Mullaithivu. We had to displace from there once to Kalvilan but returned to Pandiyankulam. However, this time we first displaced to Mallavi. We left most of our belongings in Pandiyankulam because we had no money to transport them. From Mallavi we came to Skanthapuram and then to Murippu and from there we came here to Vaddakachchi.
All along during displacement, we lived under trees. We were not even given a tarpaulin, although we asked several organizations. I do not want to live in a camp because army will bomb camps. He will bomb a camp and say that he killed LTTE. Rather we have a hole here (bunker). That is the first thing we dug when we arrived. Tree is our home. If he bombs when we are in this hole what can we do? We are so used to aerial bombing you know. When we were at sea in Jaffna he used to bomb. We will jump into the sea and then come up after the bomber leaves.
In Jaffna my husband and I both did fishing. We did really well. Here we are begging for food. I have no relatives here. All my brothers are in government area. I can’t go there. If we are to go, we could have gone long ago. But what will the military do to my children I we go there. I do not know where they will cut up my children. It happened to my cousin. He was chopped up and thrown in a bush on a rock in the middle of the sea. How much torture they did to him? It happened after A9 was closed in August 2006. Another cousin disappeared after army arrested him. That is why I do not want to take my children there. At least here the LTTE take young people but they bring them back to us sometime. My daughter volunteered to join the LTTE instead of my son who is injured after a tractor accident.
My children had no education since we left Pandiyankulam. I have six children. My eldest is injured and he cannot work. My second joined the LTTE. We wanted the other four to study but now it is all getting ruined.
In Pandiyankulam, my husband was a fish vendor. I also worked for daily wages. Now there is no income. Only god knows when we can return to our village and live in peace. The UN left even after we pleaded with them not to go. Now we have to all die.
IDP voices - Shanmuganathan Sathianathan
I lived in Skanthapuram and worked in Mallavi. I lived at the work place during the week and came home only on Sundays. I worked for a big shop in Mallavi. That shop displaced in August to Kilinochchi and we continued to work in that displaced shop in Kilinochchi. Then due to shelling in Kilinochchi the shop was wound up after shifting everything away from Kilinochchi. We are not setting up shop again because we are not sure that we are safe from aerial bombing because there has been a lot of bombing lately.

Twelve people worked in the shop and the shop owner paid out more than 100,000 rupees per month as salaries. We were paid well and we were also given food. My employer, the shop owner, lost a great deal due to the shift twice and setting up the shop again. He could close the shop but he had tried to keep it running in order to give us all work. From now on we will have no work.
I have six children two died earlier. My family also displaced from Skanthapuram and we were living behind the central college and the shell noise was terrible so we displaced again.
Newly displaced Kilinochchi IDPs
The total number of Kilinochchi people who displaced in the month of September is 26,000 according to Kilinochchi District Secretariat. These people have not received any relief of any kind to date. Many are living under trees.