{"id":97188,"date":"2020-01-01T17:31:54","date_gmt":"2020-01-02T00:31:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/?p=97188"},"modified":"2020-01-01T17:31:54","modified_gmt":"2020-01-02T00:31:54","slug":"erasing-the-eelam-victory-part-10f","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2020\/01\/01\/erasing-the-eelam-victory-part-10f\/","title":{"rendered":"ERASING THE EELAM VICTORY Part 10F"},"content":{"rendered":"

KAMALIKA PIERIS<\/em><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n

Several external agencies were\nsupporting the LTTE during the Eelam wars. UNICEF had links with LTTE. UNICEF\nstaffers in Sri Lanka were found to be working with the LTTE.   UNICEF in    \n2007 had imported 6000 ready to eat meal packs and it was suspected that\nthis was for the LTTE. Head of the UN Children\u2019s Fund at Kilinochchi   had\nlinked with the LTTE and was moved out of Sri Lanka.   Therefore foreign assistance to the\nseparatist north is nothing new.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There was\nconsiderable foreign assistance to get the North back on its feet after the\nEelam war. Many countries offered support. They included Australia, European\nUnion, Germany, India, Japan, Korea, Norway, UK, also UN agencies such as ILO,\nUNDP, the World Bank and several NGOs. Here are some examples of foreign\nassistance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Since 2009, Australia\nh<\/strong>as provided more than AUD250 million to support the reconstruction of\nconflict-affected communities in the North and East.Australian support has\nincluded housing and local infrastructure construction, de-mining, education,\nand a wide range of economic and business activities. Resettled families in\nValikamam North, had benefited from the Australia \u2013 World Bank \u2018North East\nLocal Services Improvement Programme\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 Tripartite\nMemorandum of Understanding on a pipe-borne water provision project was signed\nin 2018 between the District Secretariat of Jaffna, the National Water Supply\nand Drainage Board (NWSDB), Jaffna, and World Vision Lanka (WVL).The project\nwill provide household level pipe-borne water to Sarasalai North Grama\nNiladhari division in Chavakachcheri, an area faced with critical water related\nissues. This will benefit88 households,\n(nearly 350 individuals including 110 children) with water connections. The\nproject is funded by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT)\nAustralia. The project so far has given access to safe drinking water &\nsanitation and promoted hygiene practices among rural people in the two DS\nDivisions of Chavakachcheri and Chankanai. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Australia\nhas\nprovided the funds to the IOM to restore critical fishing infrastructure in the\nJaffna peninsula. The reconstructed anchorage will allow full access to the sea\nat any time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The European Union<\/strong> set up a\nSupport to District Development Programme (EU-SDDP). This was a 60-month\nProgramme funded by the European Union aimed at assisting Sri Lanka to make a\ntransition from post-conflict assistance to reconstruction and\ndevelopment.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There were six implementing agencies of this Programme, United Nations\nChildren\u2019s Fund (UNICEF), International Labour Organisation (ILO), United\nNations Office for Project Services (UNOPS), Food and Agricultural Organisation\n(FAO) and International Finance Corporation (IFC). The programme was to support\nthe conflict-affected districts of Batticaloa, Mannar, Vavuniya, Ampara,\nMonaragala, Anuradhapura and Puttalam impacting half a million people.  Its duration was 2012 \u2013 2017.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 This was not all. The EU\nand UNICEF was to provide a pediatric ward at the Mannar Divisional Hospital in\nChilawathurai, a water supply scheme in Periyamadu East and the Gramodhaya\nHealth Centre at Asikulam, Vavuniya. EU and UNRC handed over equipment to the\nTechnical College of the Department of Technical Education and Training in\nNelumkulum, Vavuniya District.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

EU is helping Local Economic Development Centre and Economic Advisory\nService unit at Venkalachedikulam. This is funded through EU-SDDP and\nimplemented by UNDP. The EU-SDDP is also helping Vavuniya General Hospital\nthrough an UNOPS-implemented sewerage and waste water treatment facility,\nreported the media. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further, EU will\nfinance a Euro 14 million multi-faceted housing project, implemented by\nHabitat for Humanity and World Vision Lanka. The project aims to build 2,315\nhouses and repair 140 homes in 31 divisions across Batticaloa, Kilinochchi and\nMullaitivu by early 2020. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

World Vision is a Christian relief, development and advocacy\norganization. The organization serves all people, regardless of religion, race,\nethnicity, or gender and has been in Sri Lanka since 1977. The organization has\n45 programmes spread across 19 Districts in the country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 The \u2018Friends of Sri Lanka\nGroup\u2019 of the European Parliament under took a visit to the country from\n2 to 6 January 2019.  The Friends of Sri Lanka Group since its\ninception in 2006 has been involved in the promotion of EU \u2013 Sri Lanka\nrelations. The Friends last visited Sri Lanka in February 2016. “<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During their visit, they went to Vavuniya and the Security Forces\nCommander \/ Wanni,    Maj. General Kumudu Perera briefed them on\nthe work done by the army in aiding resettlement activities. They also met with\nthe District Secretary  of Vavuniya, and\nvisited a resettlement village in Sithampirapuram\/ Vavuniya, where they engaged\nin an open dialogue with the inhabitants of the area.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Germany<\/strong> funded project to construct 10 wells in the\nChettilukam division of Vavuniya. Sri Lanka German Training Institute SLGTI\ninitiated by German development corporation GIZ   and co funded by government of Switzerland\nset  up a training centre at\nKilinochchi.. It will function under NAITA. \nGermany has also helped NAITA to set up a\nvocation training centre  at Kaithady,\nJaffna.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

India <\/strong>has\nprovided a great deal of assistance to the north and east. In 2018 India issued\na list of completed projects in Sri Lanka . The list went  like this, Northern Province 26, Central\nProvince 11,    Eastern Province 10,\nWestern Province 4, Southern Province 4, North Central Province 2, Uva 2, North\nWestern Province 1, and  Sabaragamuwa 1.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

India has granted Sri Lanka a credit line of US$ 45.27 million for\nfinancing the rehabilitation of the Kankesanturai harbor. This would make the\nharbour a full-fledged commercial port. This could be considered India\u2019s most\nimportant contribution. India  also agreed\nto develop roads in Jaffna and Trincomalee . <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2018 India  funded 50,000\nhouses in the country on a grant basis. Of these 46,000 went to the North and\nEast and 4,000 to the upcountry. Another 10,000 houses have now been pledged to\nthe hill country. India has  also agreed\nto provide Rs. 300 million to build 300 houses in the vicinity of the Madhu\nChurch in Mannar, for the use of devotees and tourists.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 In 2018 India \nalso said it had  committed  4,000 houses in the Eastern Province. This is\nin addition to 42,000 houses built under grants by the Government of India in\nthe North and 14,000 being built in the upcountry.  The government of India has constructed a\ntotal of 46,000 houses  and25 model\nvillages consisting of 600 houses, said the media in 2019.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

India gave a grant assistance package of\nvehicles, equipment, machinery to the faculties of Agriculture and Engineering\nof Killinochchi Campus of University of Jaffna. The grant assistance package is\nworth SLR 90 million and is part of the SLR 600 million grant project to\ndevelop both faculties of the Universities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2019 India and Sri Lanka\nsigned a Memorandum of Understanding to establish a Business Centre for ICT\nincubators\/ accelerators in Jaffna with a grant of SLR 250 million from India.\nThere is also an Indian funded English language lab in Jaffna.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

India has provided a generous\ngrant of Rs 1.7 billion to construct a Cultural centre in Jaffna district. It\nwill be located adjoin the Jaffna Public Library. To help them reconnect with\ntheir cultural roots, and nurture the ancient cultural heritage of Jaffna <\/p>\n\n\n\n

 In2016 Sri Lanka and India singed MOU to\nsupply 150 boats and fishing equipment to fishermen of M Mullaitivu. In 2017\nIndia gave Rs 300 million to construct 3000 rain water harvesting system in the\nJaffna administration district. In 2018 India and Sri Lanka signed a Memorandum\nof Understanding  on a sanitation project\nunder which 3400 toilets would be constructed in the Batticaloa District.\n  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Japan<\/strong>\nprovided grants for two development projects to support livelihoods of\nagricultural community in Ampara and fishery community in Mannar, under the\nscheme “Grant Assistance for Grassroots Human Securities\nProject”.(GGP) <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Japan is providing Rs 90 million for a\nproject for livelihood assistance for those returning to their homes in north\nand east. About 60 pre-school children will also be provided an improved\npreschool education facility to enhance early education environment. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Japan will give US$ 86,358 (approx. Rs. 14.7\nmillion) for “The Project for Constructing School Buildings for Resettled\nChildren in Kilinochchi District” through \nthe GGP. Japan will  help in\nconstruction of two school buildings at Vembodukerny C.C.T.M School in\nPachchilaipalli Division, Kilinochchi District. At present 214 students of grade\n1 to 11 are studying at the school, however several classes are being conducted\noutside due to the shortage of classrooms. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Project for the Economic and Social\nintegration of the IDP returnees in Trincomalee District” is currently\nbeing implemented in Sampur, by Sevalanka Foundation with the Japanese\nGovernment ODA grant aid of US$93,022 (approx. Rs. 13.5 million) under this\nproject. It will benefit 189 members of the Fishermens\u2019 Society  by provision of fishing gear  and also by the construction of a fishermens\u2019\nfacility and renovation of roads.   \nJapan  also handed over eight new\nfishing boats, engines, fishing nets and cooler boxes to the Sampur Fishermens\u2019\nSociety. “<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Korean International Cooperation Agency<\/strong>,\n(KOICA) is now on the third stage of the safe drinking water project for\nMullaitivu, reported the media in 2019. It was a joint project with the NGO,\n\u2018The Lamp\u2019. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Norway<\/strong> is\nfunding a two year project Mailaddy fisheries harbour, which will be renovated\nat a cost of Rs 400 million. Norway\nhas already supported through UNDP Rs. 290 million to the newly resettled\ncommunity in the Valalai and Thellipalai areas in Jaffna District and in the\nSampoor area in Trincomalee District to start their livelihoods.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nearly 600 families resettled on newly\nreleased land in the North and East of Sri Lanka will benefit from \u00a31 million\nfrom the UK Government<\/strong> to support\nthe provision of basic infrastructure and services. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The funding is being provided through the\nUK\u2019s Conflict Security and Stability Fund (CSSF), increasing the UK\u2019s\ncontribution through the CSSF for Sri Lanka to \u00a37.9 million between 2016 and\n2019.The funding is part of the UK\u2019s contribution to Sri Lanka\u2019s Peacebuilding\nPriority Plan, a joint strategy agreed by the UN and the Government of Sri\nLanka to support long term post-conflict peace building in Sri Lanka.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The funding will help those returning to\ntheir homes in the Jaffna, Killinochchi, Mullaitivu and Batticaloa districts by\ncontributing towards roads, wells and sanitary services, and help re-establish\naccess to local government services as well as local civil society\norganizations. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

 In 2016 the media reported that the    Swiss<\/strong>\nAgency for Development and Cooperation, SDC has been in humanitarian work for\n13 years, primarily in Jaffna, where they rebuilt schools, constructed houses,\nwith        Rs.   550000 per 000 per housing unit for over\n5000 families. 200 families in Jaffna and Kilinochchi. They have helped  companies for Palmyrah fiber, seaweed, dried\nfish, ground nuts and tailoring.   <\/p>\n\n\n\n

 International Labour Organization<\/strong> (ILO)\nwith  the UN office for Project services\nis working with NAITA to increase skilled labor force in construction sector of\nBatticaloa, Mannar and Vavuniya.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 ILO\nalso has its “LEED+” project.(Local Empowerment through Economic\nDevelopment and Reconciliation). LEED project has a rich history in the\nNorthern Province , having commenced back in 2011 , with funding from the\nGovernments of Australia and Norway. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

LEED launched a \nproject at Mullaitivu  in\nSeptember 2018. ” This was made possible through joint funding from\nAustralia\u2019s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and the Royal Norwegian\nEmbassy in Sri Lanka. It is aimed at empowering\nlocal farming, fishing communities, producers organizations and small and\nmedium enterprises establishing and strengthening local cooperatives and\nempowering women. Particular focus will be on vulnerable women and persons with\ndisabilities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

UNDP<\/strong>, together with FAO,\nis working at three levels in the north, to \u2018Improve sustainable livelihoods\u2019,\n\u2018Improve productive infrastructure\u2019 and \u2018Strengthen capacity of local Producer\nOrganisations\u2019. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

UNDP and FAO are supporting producer groups and\norganizations involved in key sectors of dairy, food processing, handicrafts\nand decorative items, commercial agriculture, fisheries, palmyrah and\ncoir-based products Also, over 12000 small to medium-scale producers   are being helped improve production,\nmarketing and processing. UNDP is \nalso helping to give  access to\nstart- up seed capital, business mentoring and internship opportunities for\n1100 young entrepreneurs. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2016 World Bank<\/strong>, with the \nInternational Finance Corporation has rolled out a programme to promote\nbusiness for small business in Mannar and Vavuniya districts. It is also funded\nby EU and implemented by five UN agencies and IFC.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

World Bank also granted USD 20\nmillion for improvement of local services in North and east. It was for  rural small bridges, parks, small water\nschemes, rural electrification, waste dispels, drainage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rotary h<\/strong>as\nhelped to give wells to Seenanvali and Santhosapuram in Muttur, helped to\ndevelop Trincomalee general hospital, Eravur base hospital, and provide toilets\nfor a girls’ home and boys\u2019 home in Batticaloa. Rotary also gave a computer\ncentre to Technical College, Vavuniya,  \nand provided preschool teacher training for Jaffna, Batticaloa.    <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Canadian Tamil Congress <\/strong>had\nraised Canadian Dollar 110,000 for war widows of Sampur. <\/strong>( Continued) <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

KAMALIKA PIERIS Several external agencies were supporting the LTTE during the Eelam wars. UNICEF had links with LTTE. UNICEF staffers in Sri Lanka were found to be working with the LTTE.   UNICEF in     2007 had imported 6000 ready to eat meal packs and it was suspected that this was for the LTTE. Head of the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[104],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-97188","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-kamalika-pieris"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/97188","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=97188"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/97188\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=97188"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=97188"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=97188"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}