Torrential rains in the northern town of Vavuniya, Sri Lanka, burst open temporary sewage pipes, destroyed make-shift shelters and trapped thousands of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) interned in Menik Farm in Vavuniya causing many of them to undergo severe difficulties as rainwaters filled with sewage matter, maggots and human excreta rose in tents sheltering some 20,000 IDPs. In May 2009, the Sri Lankan government declared victory over the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). By the end of May 2009, an additional 300,000 displaced people had fled fighting and were detained in camps: these internally displaced persons' camps remain overcrowded and unsanitary. Management of the camps is supervised by the military. Displaced people are not permitted to leave – they are, in fact, detained without charge or trial. Amnesty International is calling for the release of all displaced people wishing to leave the camps and for the immediate cessation of arbitrary detention of internally displaced people. According to the aid officials, downpours in northern Sri Lanka have flooded camps housing more than 250,000 people displaced by the fighting between the government and the Tamil Tigers. However, government officials confirmed that out of some 20,000 IDPs facing this horrendous situation, only around 1,000 had been relocated to other locations within Menik Farm. The camps occupy vast tracts of formerly forested land near the northern town of Vavuniya. Because the ground on which many of the camps were built was recently cleared of trees, the soil is soft and porous. It turns into mud almost instantly, making it nearly impossible to get trucks through to deliver food, water and medicine, aid officials said. Life in the camps was already tough, but the rain has made it almost unbearable, according to people who have visited the camps in the last 24 hours. The pegs holding down plastic tents have come loose, leaving some families without shelter. Latrines have collapsed, sending waste spilling into nearby rivers. Silt has clogged water treatment plants that are essential for providing drinking water and preventing the spread of waterborne disease. Aid workers said that they were able to restore some services, like food deliveries, and get temporary shelters for families that lost their tents. IDPs particularly in Zone 3 and Zone 4 of Menik Farm were seriously affected as poorly constructed drainage pipes caused severe flooding within the area. The flooding raised fears for the safety of the displaced, who are being held in closed camps guarded by soldiers. The situation caused panic, and while turmoil raged, the government moved in additional military personnel fearing large number of IDPs would escape the barbed wire camps. Monsoon rains are expected to begin in little more than a month, and many aid groups worry that the hastily built camps will not survive the inundation. Vavuniya government agent, P.S.M. Charles, said that around 400 people in Zone 4 of Menik Farm were on low level grounds and faced more risks than the others in the camp. “Around 1,000 persons have been shifted to locations within the camp premises. The problem in Zone 4 is that the drainage system could not be completed on time. These 400 persons are on lower level ground. Therefore, they face more problems and would have to be shifted to another location if rain continues,” she said. She said the government continues to supply them with food and essential items. The government has said it cannot allow the displaced people to go home because the areas they fled are sown with land mines, and because the Tamil Tiger fighters remain hidden among them. Access to the camps for aid agencies has been restricted by the Sri Lankan government, which says it is screening the inmates in search of former Tamil Tigers fighters. Human rights organizations and several Western governments have criticized the government's handling of the displaced, calling it tantamount to internment. The government has pledged to get most of the displaced out of the camps by the end of the year, blaming UN agencies for the flooding in IDP camps in Vavuniya by saying they had taken the responsibility to construct drainage systems and flood preventive measures at the sites. When contacted, UNHCR said it was in the process of making a statement over the issue.
