ABDF

Monday, September 28, 2008

Hi everybody!

This morning I got to the Synergy office a little early for class. One of the staff, Shanthan, was already there, getting everything set up for business. I asked him how his weekend went, and he told me that yesterday, Sunday, was very bad. When I asked him why, he told me he had been arrested.

I’ve been hearing from lots of sources that over the past week different neighborhoods have been subjected to what are called round-ups. This is when the military, or sometimes one of the militias, or both together, blocks off all the streets of an area and goes house to house. Usually these happen at 6:30 in the morning or so, in order to catch everyone still at home. Around election time, the purpose is often to “encourage” people to vote by herding then, en masse, to the polling station. But most often, such as now, the excuse is to “find” LTTE sympathizers.

The soldiers or militiamen go house to house, and using whatever criteria they have at that moment, snatch people from their houses and haul them off. If it’s the police or security forces, they are taken to the closest station, or military base. If it’s a militia, people are taken to a “camp.” The TMVP has an infamous camp near the town of Sittandy. Remember my friend who was abducted last month? That’s where he was taken. At any rate, during the more active phases of the conflict, most people who were rounded up never came home. Nowadays most are let go, often not even knowing why they were chosen or what the round-up was about. But still, given the history of the area, you can imagine the terror and confusion of those who are taken.

Last Friday there was a round-up in Kallady. My friend Dilakshan was almost caught up in it, but he was leaving the neighborhood as the troops were going in. Saturday there was another round-up, this time in the suburb called Arrasady. Sunday it was the area near the Kali kovil where Shanthan lives north of me. Round-ups seem to happen in waves, and I have no idea why is causing this particular spate, if indeed there is a cause at all.

All Shanthan knows is that he was shaken awake by some soldiers pointing guns at him who said “Come with us, boy.” He was taken along with 26 others to a nearby police station. Everyone was told to sit, and one by one each was taken away and questioned for about half an hour. The questions ran the gambit: “Where do you work?” “Where do you go to school?” “Do you know any terrorists (meaning LTTE)?” “Do you have a gun?” “Do you have a motorcycle?” “Brothers?” etc.

After the questioning, each was forced to submit a complete set of hand-prints (as opposed to just finger prints) and was photographed. Then they were returned, one-by-one, to the sitting room. After everyone had been so questioned and recorded, the lot was let go – not one single arrest or allegation was made. They had been picked up at around 6:30 in the morning, and walked out of the station around 2:30 that afternoon.

Now, I suppose the authorities say that they are trying to combat terrorism. But really. Let’s think this through. So far the round-ups have taken place in different parts of town, none of which are geographically connected. Of those who are arrested “on suspicion” as the excuse is called, the only thing the group has in common is being male and Tamil. Other than that, there is no rhyme or reason: old men, young boys, rich, poor, clergy, professionals, etc. And not every man in an area is taken, nor do they even know who they’ve arrested until the questioning. So really, they’re just grabbing men randomly out of their homes. That tells me that they don’t know who they are looking for, if they even have someone specific in mind.

However, each time this happens, it pushes people towards the LTTE. Every time someone, man or woman, is humiliated, each time s/he is harassed, or body searched for no reason, or randomly stopped at roadblocks, it makes that person more sympathetic to the rebels. And it’s clear that these waves of round-ups are just another way of exercising power especially, interestingly enough, as many of these neighborhoods voted for the opposition UNP in the last election, not for the pro-government TMVP militia.

I know guys who have been through this rigmarole many times, but for Shanthan it was his first. Poor kid! He says he was confused and a little frightened. I can only imagine: I’d have been terrified! I know him extremely well, and the idea that he would actively support the LTTE is ludicrous. But yet he was randomly picked up during a round-up.

I have not seen one of these round-ups myself, or yet been caught up in one. Of course, I would be left alone. I’m not sure what I would do. I don’t think there is much I could do, except watch, and make sure that the police or whoever knew that I was watching them with an eagle eye. Then I’d probably hop on the phone to my Police Inspector friend, and ask him to let any friends go. If Shanthan (or someone in his family) had called me, I probably could have got him sprung quick without the interrogation.

Speaking of my Inspector friend, it’s turning out that he is, in fact, a good guy. My various sources say he has a clean reputation, and is actually one of the nicer, more pleasant law enforcement men to deal with, and he treats Tamils with kindness and respect. So the consensus is that he’s OK and I can relax, within limits. Fortunately, he’s fairly disinterested in why I’m here; he’s just glad that I am here, and enjoys the company. When we get together, which has only been a few times, we don’t talk politics or work. Ultimately, he just wants a friend he can have a beer and unwind with. I understand his difficult situation in Batticaloa completely, so it’s OK with me. Plus, he is a good contact to have. He still wants me to visit him and his family in Bentota. As I get to know and like him, I might just take a couple of days at the end of my stay to go there. It also turns out that he’s good buddies with the Vice-Controller at the passport office in Colombo, and the V-C is the one who decides whether you get a visa extension or not. So that makes my Inspector friend an even better contact!

At any rate, class went really well today. Among this weeks’ 10 vocabulary words were would/could/should. You and I know how to use them intuitively, and understand the difference. But it sure is a challenge to actually explain! Just try to explain it to yourself, and you’ll see the difficulty. We spent an hour on those three words, and I think understanding is beginning to dawn. Wednesday we’ll talk more about them, and hopefully they’ll get it. Claire from Ireland will be going to class, so maybe she can help me illustrate their use in conversation.

Yes, Claire is now in Sri Lanka. She arrived in Colombo yesterday, and is taking tonight’s train to Batti. I’m gonna pick her up – at four in the morning – and bring her back to the house. Then some toast and tea, and back to bed for a few hours!

Saturday, September 27, 2008 (almost a week later)

Well, when it rains it pours, as the saying goes. So:

Claire arrived safe and sound, if exhausted; I’ve written about how difficult it is to sleep on the overnight train, which arrives in Batti at the ungodly hour of 4 AM. It was so great to see her walking out through the gates. We had a big long hug, not caring who all was around us; Claire was so happy that she started to cry. I came this close myself.

Since then, we’ve been pretty busy doing things, which explains the gap in my dispatch.

After getting up from sleeping on Tuesday, we went into town to see what has changed and what hasn’t. So, for example, Claire and her cousin Fiona had helped with a project at the Batticaloa Public Library. Specifically the children’s wing had been pretty much trashed by the tsunami. So we went to the Library to see how the project was holding up; I think Claire was satisfied.

Wednesday was my birthday. The plan was to go to class at the Synergy office, where the staff (the “kids”) would also give me a birthday lunch. There was also some talk of a small party held by some of my SFS (Sri Lanka Friendship Society) friends.

So in the morning, we went to the Synergy office for class. However, there was a very serious hartal (see below) and only Pushpakaran and Shanthan showed up, the two ladies staying home. We decided to close up the office and take a small holiday with the two guys. So we went into Kallady and Navalady. In Kallady we visited Patrick’s old house, where we had first lived during tsunami times. We took a stroll on the beach (it used to be covered with rubble, but is clean now), stopped by the damaged Murugan kovil next door to the old house (still not repaired: they’re building a new one to replace it), and visited Pushpakaran’s house, which is across the street from the temple. Then we took our bikes and went into Navalady, the next beach village, which had been the worst hit of all; the whole village had been wiped off the map, and the percentage loss of life enormous. Those who’ve seen my pictures from those days will remember all the houses with undermined foundations or buildings split in two: that was Navalady.

After spending much of the morning and early afternoon touring Kallady and Navalady, we returned home. The hartal was still in full swing, so any plans for a big party were squashed. We did know that the Riviera was still open, so I text a few friends saying that Claire and I would go there at 6:30 and anyone who could come, should.

Pushpakaran and Shanthan were the only two who managed to brave the security gauntlet and have a drink with us at the Riviera. Izzadeen would have, but he was too busy trying to prevent Tamils and Muslims from going at each other (again, see below). But we had a couple of drinks, and managed to have a good, relaxing time. Due to security issues, the guys ended up sleeping at my house, out on the veranda.

On Thursday we had a funeral to attend. Our friend, and SFS member, Murali’s father died Tuesday night and the funeral was Thursday in the village of Sittandy. Mulrai’s dad was extremely prominent in the village, and very popular, so most of the village showed at some part of the day-long ceremony. The SFS folks here in Batti had organized a van, as Sittandy is about 20 km to the north.

This was my and Claire’s first Hindu funeral. (I have previously written about the communal sitting that takes place after the funeral.) It was an experience I will never forget. But in order to do it justice, I’m going to have to write about it in my next dispatch, as there is just too much going on right now that I need to tell you. Suffice it for the moment to say that the funeral was all day, it was very sad, unique compared to how we do it in the West, and very fascinating. To be continued next time.

We all got back to Batticaloa very hot, dirty, and tired. However Claire and I immediately went and did some shopping, as there were rumors of a second hartal for Friday.

The rumors proved untrue, and we went to Synergy for class at 9 AM, where we concentrated on should/would/could and this week’s naughty word was a-hole. Then, as we had planned for on Wednesday, the staff through a small birthday lunch party for me, and I got a new shirt as a gift. Bathsala and Janetdarsheeni immediately bonded with Claire, and while we were waiting for Pushpakaran and Shanthan to return with the food, a bottle of nail polish was whipped out and the three gals chatted away while painting Claire’s fingers and toes. It was cute.

Claire and I finally left Synergy at 2:30 or so. Time had just flown by.

Right now it’s Ramadan, the Muslim month of fasting. The beginning and endpoints are based on lunar observation, so this year Ramadan ends on Sept 31. During Ramada, Muslims fast, taking no food or liquid from sun up to sun down. As you can imagine, this makes the dinner a very festive occasion. My friend Aneesha (Remember her? Brain curry) who is also a good friend of Claire’s invited us to break fast with her family. So after resting up in the afternoon, we drove down to Kattankudy to Aneesha and Firthous’ home.

The fast is broken when the evening call to prayer is heard from the mosque, about 6:15. First, everyone eats from a plate of dates, which is the tradition. Then a spiced rice porridge is served. It’s called Congee (with a soft “g”) although I’m sure I’ve spelled it wrong. It is wonderful. I’d never had it before and I’m afraid I pigged out, having three huge bowls. On top of this was served short eats, fruit, and so on. It was a lovely healthy meal. Aneesha has promised to give me the recipe for the Congee, saying that it’s easy to make. Yum!

On the way home from dinner we stopped at Izzadeen’s house and chatted for a while. We got home around 10 PM. It had been a really nice day.

OK, so I keep mentioning this hartal thing. I had better explain what’s going on around here.

Hartal is the Sri Lankan term for a sort of general strike with street demonstrations. It’s one method of protest here. This particular one was called by the TMVP. If there is actual public support behind the hartal, they often turn violent. Remember the Tamil/Muslim troubles I talked about earlier? This one, however, was imposed and so there was little public enthusiasm for it outside the TMVP itself. In fact the average citizen here was more irritated than anything. After all, the TMVP is highly unpopular in Batticaloa, as the people here feel it is a puppet regime imposed on them by the hostile central government. However, since the TMVP thugs were going around enforcing the closure of all business, public transport, and public facilities, the hartal was near total. Generally speaking the only places exempt from closure are hospitals, pharmacies, the police, and hotels catering to foreigners. That’s why we were able to go to the Riviera on my birthday despite the hartal. But otherwise, the TMVP shut Batti down; they even threatened the international agencies like NRC and the UN, forcing their offices closed.

So why all this bother? It’s a long, Byzantine story and I’ll try to keep it simple. TMVP is now split into two factions, the current Pilliyan faction (he’s the guy that ran in the recent election) and the group led by Karuna. Technically they are leaders in the same party/militia, but the truth is they are fighting for control.

The other important thing to know is that Arriampathy abuts Kattankudy to the south. Remember when that guy was assassinated, and it started all the Muslim/Tamil trouble some months ago? Well, he was from Arriampathy, which seems to be a hotspot right now.

Last week, two Pilliyan followers went to the Kali kovil in Arriampathy, which was having its festival. They bought two goats and told people they were going to an unnamed nearby village to sell them. They were never seen again.

Some people assumed that the guys had gone to Kattankudy and immediately blamed the Muslims. And while there are villages on all sides of Arriampathy, the TMVP (Pilliyan) agreed that it could only be Kattankudy. The residents of Kattankudy were alerted via the Mosque Federation, searches were made, fliers distributed, etc. No sign of the two. This is why Izzadeen was too busy to come have a drink at the Riviera.

There had been a whole series of rumors sweeping the District: two bodies had been found in Kallady. No, they had been found in Eravur. No Kaluwankerny. No, no, they were found in Dutch Bar. Wrong, it is fact that they were found in Kalkuda. You see what I mean. It was all this mess that was the immediate trigger for the hartal on Wednesday, as the TMVP felt the need to flex its muscle. Here rumor is often taken as gospel without any proof: it turns out that no bodies have been found anywhere.

I mention at the top of this dispatch how there have been all these round-ups as of late; Shanthan was swept up in one last Sunday. These round-ups are in part searches for these two guys or their presumed abductors, as it soon became obvious the Muslims had nothing to do with their disappearance.

It turns out that the two guys were very strong partisans of Pilliyan, acting as “enforcers” against those of the Karuna faction in Arriampathy. Karuna seems to be in the ascendancy right now, while Pilliyan’s influence is on the decline. So these disappearances are apparently a result of infighting.

Needless to say the security forces were out in force on Wednesday; there was a real threat of violence against Muslims, as some of the hardcore TMVP thugs really hate them. Fortunately there was no violence. But this is why Pushpakaran and Shanthan ended up staying at the house; security was real intense, especially that night.

At any rate, the two men have not been found, but things have calmed down a lot. Like I said, the general population was entirely unenthusiastic about this hartal, or even about the two vanished guys themselves, their being TMVP. The Tamil population realizes that the TMVP had tried at first to blame the Muslims in order to cause trouble, and the common citizenry, who are tired of all the fighting, resents the attempted manipulation. I think that the Pilliyan folks overplayed their hand this time. Perhaps its time for them to lay low for a little bit and not make any more noise.

So it’s shame that all this cloak and dagger BS has to overshadow Claire’s visit. I suppose, however, you could say it adds a certain spice to the trip.

I’m going to go to town to post this, so I had better close.

xoxoxoxoxo

B.

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