Sri Lanka
CRWRC is working in Sri Lanka to respond to the devastation of the 2004 tsunami. This has taken the form of providing emergency shelter, followed by transitional shelter, and then permanent houses. We are also working for restored communities as a whole, so the community is involved in every aspect of the rehabilitation process.
However, within the country considerable tension continues to exist between the government (armed forces) and an armed group called the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). The cease fire agreement remains fragile with people living in the shadow of potential civil war breaking out at any time as a real possibility. There are hartels or strikes called, on quite a regular basis in the Batti area. If there is a work stop order, CRWRC staff are not to travel through the area which means that sometimes they are not able to get to the worksites. However the local hired staff’s work is not so curtailed. Over all, the ability to continue our work here remains good. In Batticaloa CRWRC continues to operate under level “B” security status and the projects remain on target with significant progress. The projects in the south area of Sri Lanka, around Galle are largely unaffected.
Fast Facts
Population: 21,324,791 (July 2009 est.)
Area Comparative: slightly larger than West Virginia
Literacy rate: 90.7%
Life expectancy: 75.14 years
Population below poverty line: 22% (2002 est.)
Gross Domestic Product per capita: $4,300 (2008 est.)
Religions: Buddhist 69.1%, Muslim 7.6%, Hindu 7.1%, Christian 6.2%, unspecified 10% (2001 census provisional data)
Languages: Sinhala (official and national language) 74%, Tamil (national language) 18%, other 8%
note: English is commonly used in government and is spoken competently by about 10% of the population
(From the World Factbook. CLICK HERE for more information on Sri Lanka)
Relief Projects
Tsunami Response: Housing
International Relief Managers George and Toni Fernhout have been long term IRM’s in Sri Lanka, where three projects in the East Coast of Sri Lanka were completed this year. Each time they drive through the villages of Mankadu and Kurukkalmadam, the beneficiaries are eager to show their new homes and to thank CRWRC for helping them when no one else came to their aid.
In the South Coast, families have also benefitted from the owner-driven building process by obtaining new skills such as working with government authorities, land agents and contractors as well as gaining knowledge by assisting contractors in the building of their homes, clearing and planting their land, and renewing their livelihoods. This group of people has been living for most of their lives (some are 2nd or 3rd generation) on the beach in slum-like conditions and the CRWRC relief program is providing new opportunities for themselves and for their children.
To date CRWRC funding has made it possible to complete over 300 homes in Sri Lanka for tsunami victims, with another 500 homes in various stages.
(updated 2/08)
Tsunami Response: Education
Falling behind due to missed classes (as a result of having to babysit while parents work, or being too hungry and weak to go to school, or being ashamed of having ragged uniforms, or not being able to afford school books), CRWRC initiated a youth program in the Angulana camp. There was no program in place to counter the effects of disruption to education for the Tsunami affected children in this camp. There was also a need for meaningful activities for the children of this camp as crowded conditions made it difficult for children to have a place to do homework and/or be involved in activities other than watching TV or ‘hanging out’. The program also provided an opportunity to assist parents in recognizing and becoming involved in the educational lives of their children.
With a budget of less than $7,000, an after-school youth program, lead by three teachers, was established in the camp. Services included remedial classes in English, math, drama and music with the goal of bringing students back to their grade level. CRWRC workers also involved parents in the education of their children; helped students with their homework, and provided bus tickets, school uniforms, shoes and books and school bags to children so that they could attend the regular school program.
An especially successful venture was a school-to-school project involving an exchange of Christmas gifts, pictures and letters between 230 students in Sri Lanka and third grade students at Edmonton Christian School. “We were overwhelmed at the response of the students and their parents in the creation of gifts for their Canadian counterparts in the school-to-school exchange,” Toni Fernhout, one of the two International Relief Manager’s serving in Sri Lanka.
As CRWRC finishes its work and families find new lives for themselves, an organization called Tabernacle Relief and Development will continue to meet with remaining families to make sure that they send their children to school. TRD will also provide counseling and support to adults still trying to find meaningful work, says Toni Fernhout.
To read more about relief activity in Sri Lanka, see the links to stories below.
(update 2/08)