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Background
For more than 20 years, civil war ravaged Sri Lanka, claiming over 64,000 lives
and leaving up to 1 million people displaced. The signing of an indefinite ceasefire
agreement between the Government of Sri Lanka and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil
Eelam on 22 February 2002 has given hope for a permanent cessation of hostilities
and induced more than 200,000 people to return home.
Help for all
At 'Samata Sarana' (Help for All) in Colombo, women and children displaced
or traumatised by conflict are supported with the provision of meals, basic
education and training. Started by Sister Bernie in 1990, financial support
for Samata Sarana now comes from around the world.
The internal courtyard of the Samata Sarana building
Copyright: AusAID/Peter Davis
Standing in the middle of the central courtyard of the five-storey building,
you can hear the hum of many activities. On the upper floors, the sounds of
children in their classrooms can be heard - one group is singing, another is
reciting the alphabet. Children from families who have come to the city in an
attempt to rebuild their lives, receive a broad education - home science, art,
music and dance - and free uniforms and midday meals.
Girls learning to read
Copyright: AusAID/Peter Davis
From the ground floor you can hear the sounds of laughter from young children
in the crèche. Their mothers are taking part in educational programs
elsewhere in the building, or are out working. Nearby are 20 beds for the elderly.
Abandoned by their families they can rest, watch TV or play a traditional board
game known as Carom (or Carrom). They also receive medical attention and healthy
meals.
Prema from the conflict-affected northern provinces of Sri
Lanka learns sewing skills to assist her in earning a living when she returns
home
Copyright: AusAID/Peter Davis
Life skills
Skills training courses of three months duration are offered to young women.
Tamil women from the conflict-affected northern and eastern regions live with
Sinhalese and Muslim women. Many of the women come from families where the main
income earner has been killed in the conflict. They learn needle and sewing
crafts, and also develop new views of the world as they discuss social issues,
such as leadership and discrimination. "They realise that with the same
rice and flour, somebody else makes it a little different. When they return
home they take these new attitudes with them, and that clearly benefits the
entire community" Sister Bernie enthuses.
Returning home after the courses, many women set up their own small businesses,
while some become teachers or return to school to catch up on what they missed
during the conflict, and others involve themselves in rebuilding their communities.
They have new skills, new confidence and new hope. Their personal transformation
is exemplified in a letter home written by one young women: "The Chuti
who came for sewing is not the Chuti who is coming back!"
It is significant that this building stands on what was once Colombo's main
rubbish tip. In the fold of Samata Sarana, the slum dwellers, the refugees and
the impoverished elderly are far from the discarded refuse of a society that
has failed them. Rather, they are valued individuals and vital members of a
community.
Sources:
Based on Focus vol.19, no.1 (May 2004)
http://www.ausaid.gov.au/publications/focus/focuspdfs/may04/focus_may04_26.pdf
and http://origin.sundayobserver.lk/2002/01/06/fea07.html
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