The issues faced by the people in Mannar due to the occupation of land has left thousands feeling helpless, said Fr. S. Marcus, President of the Mannar Citizens Committee.
“For the last five years, there has been much effort by various private companies to lay claim for a stake in lands in Mannar for Ilmenite and sand mining, despite putting up stiff opposition, one company will begin its work on the 14th of this month,” Fr. Marcus told reporters.
“None of the families affected by this company has received any compensation. Altogether 4000 families in Mannar do not have their land.”
He added that the Tamil residents have opposed this project and demanded intervention to halt the illegal mining of sand in Mannar.
He went on to say that lands in Mannar are being sold off to residents from Colombo and those coming from abroad, even though locals have been waiting for their land deeds for many years. He said land in Mandal Kulam in the Anthoniyar Puram Village in Manthai West was sold to a few individuals from overseas, “yet people who have been farming on these lands for more than 30 years are without land”.
Fr. Marcus also said that many young people from Mannar are seeking employment opportunities and have applied to secure land rights to set up their businesses. “More than 800 youths had applied but none have received a response.”
Alongside land issues, the lack of proper healthcare facilities continued to impact the region, Fr. Marcus continued, pointing to a specific incident where a young mother died shortly after giving birth.
“The citizens of Mannar requested that this death be investigated. The families and residents have expressed their anger in writing as well.
Last week, Eelam Tamil residents of Parangikamam, Iluppai Kadavai, and Antoniyar Puram, villages in Manthai West, Mannar, held a protest march towards the Land Reforms Commission demanding that the commission take measures to prevent land grab by foreigners, illegal Sinhala settlers, and the Sri Lankan security forces.
A week before the protests, Tamil residents in Pesalai blocked the road to prevent Sri Lankan authorities from surveying and partitioning land for a wind farm along the Mannar-Talaimannar main road. Several women demanded that the officials retreat, stating that residents would not allow more land to be forcibly acquired by the state. The authorities surveyed a section of the land before retreating.
Despite it being 15 years since the end of the armed conflict, the Sri Lankan government and armed forces continue to occupy swathes of land belonging to the Tamil people.
