Economic Ministry workshops build strong North-South ties

Over 1,825 persons have been trained under second Community Development and Livelihood Improvement Project launched by the Economic Development Ministry’s special program to strengthen mutual understanding and build friendship between the North and South. The project commenced in May 2012 under which 2,000 people were brought from the South to the North.

Launched on Economic Development Minister Basil Rajapaksa’s advice, the project covers 21 districts where over 52 training workshops for community resources building have been held. Strengthening community leaders for national development, preparing resource builders for this purpose and forging strong bonds between North and South are the objectives of this project. 

Villagers in the North and South will appoint these community leaders, who in turn will arrange meetings between the two communities. Accordingly, people from the South will be guests in homes in the North where their hosts will serve meals and also give them presents. 

This North-South friendship building will be an ongoing program, according to the second Community Development and Livelihood Improvement Project’s Director Engineer S. Liyanage. He said that the project’s main target is reconciliation and to remove misconceptions caused by the LTTE which poisoned the minds of the Northerners against people of the South.     

He pointed out that Southerners had donated dry rations and other items worth Rs. 2 million to people displaced by floods and torrential rains in the North. In addition, they had been depositing money in the bank accounts of the affected people. 

The project’s Assistant Director Saman Kumara said that young Tamils whom the LTTE had forcibly recruited were undergoing training with Sinhala people in close friendship, after being rehabilitated. He further said that by this time, the project has helped to build a strong bond between the two communities.

“The Southerners were welcomed very warmly and when they parted it was very emotional. They are very close to us and even tell us of their personal problems. Almost all these young people had undergone training under the LTTE,” Project Director Engineer S. Liyanage added. “Today if somebody gives them a firearm and asks them to shoot Sinhalese they will never ever do so. They are so close to us now.”

Last Thursday, around 62 people from the Ratnapura District were taken to the homes of people in Peraru, Mullaitivu district. There, a small ceremony had been organised to welcome the visitors. Addressing those present at event, Peraru Rural Development Society Chairman Wellen Shanmukaraja said that the era when people lived in fear and suspicion is now over and today, people can live in peace and freedom. 

He recalled the time the LTTE forcibly recruited villagers and those who refused to join the Tigers had to pay them Rs. 5.000 per month.   

Female resource builders who addressed the meeting said that today they were enjoying true freedom after being forced to hide in their homes in fear of the LTTE. In those days, women had made their daughters to wear the gold ‘thella’ to show that they were married. Mothers had also been compelled to give their daughters in marriage at a very young age to prevent them from being recruited by the Tigers.  

They expressed the appreciation of the unstinted assistance given to them by the Government to rebuild their lives. Further information on this is available on the Economic Development Ministry website www.med.gov.lk.