Muttur Tamils flee to LTTE areas seeking safety

[TamilNet, Sunday, 22 January 2006, 00:29 GMT]
Families from Tamil villages in the divisions of Muttur and Seruvila in the government controlled areas in the Trincomalee district continued to flee to LTTE controlled areas seeking safety and to escape harassment from Sri Lanka Government troops, civil society sources said. About one thousand three hundred familes have relocated in the last two weeks, NGO sources said.

The displacement started with a clash that took place on January 8th at 58th milepost in Muttur, which resulted in the killing of a Sri Lanka Army soldier and two Tamils in retaliation by the SLA. Thereafter 30 to 40 Tamils were taken by the soldiers to the 59th milepost camps. Later all except three were released after questioning. One of three was seriously injured and was admitted to the Ali-Oluwa hospital. Later he was transferred to the Trincomalee general hospital. Following these incidents several families in Tamil villages started to flee to safe areas, NGO sources said.

299 families with 1216 persons have sought refuge in LTTE controlled areas. Of them 218 families with 799 persons are given shelter in Thangapuram School and 437 persons in Sinnakulam School in the Muttur east.

Another batch of 154 families with 549 persons have sought refuge in LTTE held Eachchilampathu division. Of them 78 families with 275 persons are accommodated in the Shembaha Maha Vidiyalayam and eighty families with 274 persons in the boatyard building of the Tamil Rehabilitation Organization (TRO).

About 245 families with 1013 persons are staying with their relatives in Muttur east and Eachchilampathu divisions, NGO sources said.

Currently 76 families from Menkamam, 47 from Sivapuram, 190 from Barathipuram and about 197 from Killiveddy and Kumarapuram- altogether 1836 persons from 510 families- have sought refuge in Killiveddy Maha Vidiyalayam which is located in government controlled territory, sources said.

Several non-governmental organizations including TRO, Rotary Club, Virucham, IOM and ZOA are providing essential food items, and other materials to the displaced, sources said.