The Sri Lankan army, having been whale-watching, sold vegetables and run hotels, are now trying their luck with herding cattle.
Stray cattle in the Vanni have been herded and are being returned to civilians according to military officials.
Lt. Col. P.A. Dayananda, also known as the military's chief coordinator of civil affairs, stated that of the 10,000 stray cattle identified, 2500 have been returned to their "rightful oweners".
Dayananda asserted that as the majority of the military were Buddhists, they did not slaughter the cattle, nor did they allow for them to be stolen and transported to Colombo.
The cattle are no doubt grateful. Though, not nearly so much as the president's coordinator for Mullaithivu, Sathasivam Kanagaratnam, appears to be.
Kanagaratnam is reported to have said,
“Luckily [the] Sri Lankan Army took interest in safeguarding those cattle and now they are taking necessary steps to identify those cattle with the help of the veterinary surgeons of the area in grouping them and handing them over to the rightful owners - an unsung service by the Sri Lankan Army soldiers to the domestic animals of the region.”
Evidently the Tamil population of Vanni, at the hands of the very same military, were not so 'lucky' - but that of course would not be for a government puppet to comment on.
See here for details on Kanagaratnam's arrest and detention by the notorious Terrorism Investigation Department (TID).
