Sri Lanka: Jaffna residents unable to bear cost of new military ID cards

Wednesday, 29 August 2007

The Sri Lankan Army (SLA) is getting very poor response from Jaffna residents whom they have asked to bear the cost of the Special Identity Cards (SID) to be issued by SLA for all the residents of the peninsula who are above the age of ten. Local people said they are not able to bear the cost of SID as they are already hard pressed by utter financial crisis and such SLA order has increased their financial burden.

Meanwhile, People's Committee for Justice, Peace and Goodwill (PCJPG), the Federation of NGOs and the Human Rights Commission (HRC), in Jaffna have requested the High Commands of the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) 51-2 Brigade in Jaffna to bear the cost of the SID.

Many Village Officers (Grama Sevakas) in the peninsula through whom the people are applying for the Military SID, said that response from people to obtain such card is still very poor.

They said people are not in a financial position to bear the cost of SID.

The SLA has been sending directives to the Village Officers to issue of SID in their divisions in full swing.

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Susantha said:

Why the this article not saying the cost of the SID card?

2007-08-30 08:08:01

Jay said:

The government has destroyed the homes, the farmlands, and all the properties of the Tamils with their aerial bombardments and the SLA and the armed militia men have robbed all their possessions, now the government wants to issue the Jaffna residents with a special IC and on top of it wants the residents to bear the cost of the Special Identity Cards. In the first place why would they require a special IC? They did not ask for it. Is it to differentiate the Tamils from the Singhalese! is it to regard the Tamils as aliens in their own land! This issue to diffentiate the Tamils from the Singhalese itself implies that the North and East belong to the Tamils and the Tamils are separate nationalities from the Singhalese. If the Singhalese government feel strongly this way, then this in itself is tentamounting to agreeing that the North and East is a separate state. Then Eelam appears to be the answer to the conflict. With each nationality managing their own affairs without interference from one another, the whole conflict is put to rest.

And finally, it is surprising the government cannot even afford to pay for a piece of IC for the people.

2007-08-30 12:51:02

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