Sri Lanka Journal- Andew and Annette Dey 2/1/2005

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Links from Andrew and Annette:

Pro Photographer Dixie's web site

Mondo Challenge set up Andrew and Annette's trip.

Unawatuna is the village where they're staying and working

In the north, Andrew and Annette are working with Norwegian People's Aid. NPAID is partnered with the German organization called Arbeiter Samariter Bund.

Bensonwood.com

Andrew

Tony Fish, the demining specialist in charge of the Kilinochchi operations, is expecting us when we arrive at the NPA (Norwegian People’s Aid) office. He gives us an overview of the situation in the area, and the role that he hopes we will play.

Tony explains that in the immediate aftermath of the tsunami, the LTTE did a good job with the emergency phase. They have historically kept a tight grip on the people in this area. That control, coupled with their experience in twenty years of civil war, meant that they were well-positioned to respond to the tsunami. They moved the victims to centralized locations (so-called welfare centers), they made sure that those who needed medical attention received it, and they provided food, water, and sanitation. NPA and other INGOs (International Non-Governmental Agencies) were able to play an important role during that phase, because these organizations already had in place professionally-trained staff and infrastructure for communication and transportation. Many of the NGOs were working with IDPs (interally displaced people) here in the north during the war, and have continued to provide aid since the cease-fire was signed two years ago.

Our heads spin from Tony’s use of what we later learn to call “TLAs”(three letter acronyms).

Tony continues. During the past few weeks, as the emergency phase has given way to what is being called Phase II, the pace of progress has slowed. The PDS (Planning and Development Secretariat) has created a plan for about thirty transitional camps. The IDPs will live in these camps until permanent housing can be built. The PDS has been saying that they want the permanent housing to be available within twelve months, but the process is likely to take longer than that. NPA has been given responsibility for three of the transitional camps.

“We will build a total of 260 units of housing,” Tony says, “plus a preschool and a community center in each camp. That’s where you two come in. We know a lot about demining, but we are amateurs when it comes to building housing.”

Annette and I exchange a glance. This is just the type of project we had hoped to be involved with when we changed our tickets from Katmandu to Colombo. In the aftermath of the tsunami, helping to rebuild Sri Lanka felt more timely than teaching English in Nepal.

Tony goes on to explain some of the ins-and-outs of the various agencies who are also involved with the camps. The TRO, or Tamil Rehabilitation Organization, is ostensibly an NGO, but effectively a wing of the LTTE’s Peace Secretariat. They are playing a coordinating role, as well as taking on responsibility for building 25 shelters in each camp. UNICEF has taken an interest in the camps, because of the LTTE’s reputation for forcibly recruiting children. Other UN agencies are playing a role, as are a number of TLAs that are new to us.

We tell Tony that we hope we can be of assistance for the week we have committed to being in the area. We also allow as how we would consider the possibility of our staying on longer. We ask him about the demining in the area—is that still happening? Are the camp areas safe?

“We have nearly completed the process of certifying that all of the transit camp areas are cleared of mines. The demining technique used in this area is unique, but it works quite well here because the soil is rather light. The deminers use a rake with a long handle to find the mines. It usually takes 3 to 5 kilograms of pressure to detonate a mine, and the rakes apply less than that. When they see the tines deform over a mine, then they use a tined hoe to carefully excavate it.”

How do they decide where to look for mines?

“Some of the mined areas are demarcated with barbed wire. Others we find using common sense—the areas around the berms tend to be mined. Local shepherds are another good source of information—just yesterday a goat found a mine, and we went to check out the area. We try to focus our work on areas that are important socio-economically. Tom—” he nods at a coworker “conducts assessments that include interviewing locals about their needs. We have found that it’s important to interview the women as well as the men, because the men just want to have the path to the toddy [locally-made liquor] shop cleared, while the women are more interested in being able to get to a well, or to a store. When we head out to the camps later, you will see some of our deminers at work.”

The wall of the office is covered with detailed maps of the area, photographs of deminers at work, a display of different types of land mines, and examples of the tools used by deminers. The centerpiece of the tool kit is a smallish leaf rake with thin metal tines. Tony describes the mines.

“This directional mine is made in the US. It’s usually triggered by a switch or a trip wire. This one is Belgian, this one Italian, and this one Korean. This one here—” he indicates a small round canister “is called a bounding mine. Fortunately we have not found many of them in Sri Lanka, because the technique we use here does not offer much protection against them. When triggered, they jump up out of the ground and spray shrapnel 360 degrees at chest level. This one—” he points to a wooden box with a spring-loaded top. It’s about the size of a can of spam, “this one is made by the LTTE, and it’s the only mine that I would consider to be truly self-destructing over time, because it is powered by two AA batteries. Stepping on the lid closes the circuit and detonates the mine, but after several months the batteries tend to corrode.”

I suggest that the mines and demining seem like fascinating work.

“I have been doing this for a long time, and at least here in Sri Lanka, I am mainly just an administrator. To tell you the truth, right now I am more interested in learning about building shelters.”