As the fireworks thundered above our heads welcoming 2009 in Sydney, despite the magnificent display, my three year old son was terrified – clutching my shoulders and burying his head – only occasionally having the courage to look up while his older sister looked on gleefully.
I remember him being terrified at the age of one when we had brought him along to watch the fireworks - but he still seemed very fearful of sudden large noises.
Standing under that colourful night sky, I felt sad thinking about the outcomes of traumatised children in war situations.
How many bombs Sri Lanka would have dropped in Tamil territories since I first saw an aerial bombing back in 1986, I wondered.
A day later when the Army entered Kilinochchi, I plunged further into depression and had to remind myself of the power of proactive deeds of individuals and positive visualisation.
One cannot fathom the hardships that the Tamil youth would have endured in fighting a highly equipped army that advanced from many sides, backed by Pakistani and Chinese weaponry and Indian radar operators!
It’s almost like, it is the rest of world vs. Tamil Eelam. If only India had done something.
These kind of “if only” scenarios ache our hearts. One simply cannot eliminate the sick feeling of having Kilinochchi - a prototype of a free and fair Eelam of the future, an infant model of our statehood - crushed before our own eyes.
Anyway, leaving political and military outcomes aside, in this article I have attempted to highlight two long felt concerns of mine – disorder in society and the effects of trauma in children.
While lamenting about the loss of land, we need to focus on the survivability and wellbeing of future generations in Tamil areas.
In this article, I am not talking about the relatively small middle class populations, but the vast majority of poverty stricken people in the war torn Tamil areas - the poor or those who have become poor, keeping in mind the many years of medical and economic embargo and the prolonged war.
What are the future outcomes for a young IDP (Internally Displaced Person or Refugee) child who has been a refugee for most or whole of his/her life? What are the outcomes for children living on hand-outs or in prolonged poverty and insecurity?
What will happen to children with interrupted schooling or no schooling? What about the subset of children who are more timid in nature and have less coping skills? Add to that, the trauma of a physical injury or losing a parent? These are some of the questions that come to mind.
First of all, when looking at trauma in children, one can acknowledge that given the right support systems, many children have good chances of bouncing back to their normal physical, emotional and cognitive developmental milestones.
Many of us have grown up to be well balanced individuals even after experiencing traumatic aspects of the war. But, what about repeated and prolonged exposure to traumatic events?
The traditional society of Ilankai Tamils has had many support systems or “safety nets” such as: the extended family system; strong religious beliefs, strong spiritual beliefs and de-stressing techniques and rituals; an ecologically friendly way of living or living off the land with a great awareness for environmental conservation and sustainability.
But, prolonged unrelenting war can pound and pound until holes are created in these safety nets! Children are especially prone to the disorders associated with trauma.
Maybe excepting teenagers, many children neither have the cognitive ability to make sense of why the war is happening nor the emotional ability to cope up with family, social break down and disruptions to normal way of living, normal education etc.
The intensified horrific war that we are seeing now in Tamil areas, has reached new levels in the destruction of society.
While Singhalese children wake up to go to schools, the scared, displaced Tamil child rotting away without schooling in a dismal shelter, wakes up to the sound of shells in the middle of night.
Take a young toddler who gets scared by the noise of the thunder or fireworks and put him/her in Vanni war zone, and the child would not cope with the bombs, cluster bombs and shells, let alone the constant running from one place to another, lack of food, lack of family and school routines etc.
Now, if there is the added trauma of injury or death – the child’s sense of security and well being is seriously damaged.
For a child, the parents and caregivers are powerful people. Seeing powerful people rendered powerless, can be very traumatic to the young child.
To compound the issue even further, the surviving parent or family member might be occupied with getting or providing very basic needs, that the emotional needs of the child can easily go unanswered.
Brooks and Siegel (1996), two experienced psychologists who worked with traumatised children talk about different kinds of trauma - death, illness and injury, abuse, natural disasters and trauma by proxy.
They talk about children who had been in car accidents who refuse to go back into the car, children who had seen buildings collapse due to earthquakes refusing to be inside buildings etc.
They talk about how different age groups react differently to trauma (see box for summary).
It’s easy to deny or turn away from the psychological and mental problems that can occur in war situations especially since stigma is attached to such happenings.
We need to be aware of these problems among vulnerable groups especially children, just as we are aware of loss of lives, limbs, property and a way of life, that is taking place in the Tamil homeland.
The Singhalese government is well aware of the benefits of creating a disordered Tamil society. One can clearly see it has an agenda of creating “reserve” like areas or pockets of fragmented IDP populations who are often reduced to living on handouts.
It is effectively waging a psychological warfare. It is aiming for breakdown of family, cultural and social structures. This can be seen in all parts of the Tamil homeland.
Coming to the long term effects of disorder in society, some time ago I wondered about the alcoholism and self destructive behaviours found among Indigenous communities in Australia.
In Canada and US, similar problems were seen in “reserves” for Indigenous people. Though some of you may rightfully argue that the indigenous situation was socio-culturally different to Tamils, I think its worth looking at the cycle of events that has contributed to their present social disorder.
Theoretically, parallels can be drawn with the forced relocation of indigenous people (who were made refugees in their own land), forced removal of indigenous children and destruction of indigenous languages and culture.
The destruction of indigenous cultures also occurred with the trauma due to forced relocations, European renaming of land, losing access to sacred sites and traditional food sources.
In Tamil areas, refugees who are internally displaced or evicted, are herded from one area to another - often aerial bombings and shellings are used to make people flee, to kill them off or to relocate them to suitable positions for the government.
Internment of refugee families and in worse cases, killings of refugees are taking place. Children are being injured or killed in aerial bombings. Teenagers are vulnerable to detention, torture and death in custody.
These are the aspects of war regardless whether the people are in “liberated areas” or war zones. In all these cases, children are put into situations which are very traumatic.
We can see that in the East, destruction of culture is taking place through a gradual process of colonization and “Singhalisation”.
Young students are particularly vulnerable to government propaganda and their version of history based on Mahavamsa.
Professor Tatz (1999) in his report on youth suicide among indigenous communities, talked about how experiencing extreme forms of racism creates a disordered society for the victims. Initially, feelings of frustration are followed by a sense of alienation, of not belonging, then withdrawal from society, and finally, the threat of, or actual, violence.
Tatz mentions that violence could be ‘coercive violence’ or ‘appealing violence’ - ‘Coercive violence’ is when a person uses violence in a premeditated and controlled manner (this could be directed towards the enemy); ‘Appealing violence’ is about harm to self or to kin such as domestic violence and child abuse.
In the case of Indigenous peoples, a society that was living off the land was made to become heavily dependent on handouts and subsequently State Welfare.
A culture that had strict tribal laws on family duties, incest prohibition etc became a common place for abuse of children.
Petrol sniffing, drug addiction and alcoholism permeate day to day living.
Family gatherings and funerals are often accompanied by extensive drinking through the night where children are left to their own devices. The social decay among the youth is heart wrenching.
Loss of culture and loss of a way of life became almost a social suicide in the case of Indigenous societies.
Some of you may claim that the Tamils are more advanced that that, but one would need to consider the poor and the continuously battered people in low socioeconomic conditions.
John Campbell, a World Food Program official, recently got into trouble for comparing the conditions in Vanni to Somalia.
However, interestingly, the Tamils in North East have not yet shown any serious signs of self destructive behaviour – at least within the family unit. But there are warning signs.
Recently, a relative from Jaffna informed me that one green chilli costs 2 rupees there -One green chilli! A meal of bread and sambol would cost about 200 rupees. How can the poor afford it?
My relative also reported that thefts have become so widespread with poverty stricken people stealing coconuts, mango, chicken and whatever they can get their hands on.
Yet these problems sink into background when compared with what the displaced populations in the East and Vanni are going through.
The increase in thefts, increasing number in orphanages, refugee camps and “rehabilitation centres”, prolonged disruptions to schooling, increasing number of armed groups etc are alarming indicators where the once stable Tamil society is heading towards.
The Singhalese government is getting shrewder and shrewder with this kind of destruction to ways of living. In fact, what we are seeing is not just genocide but a well planned genocide.
The “70 million strong Tamil Diaspora” as been in called upon often. This can be a waste of time and wishful thinking.
The bottom-line is that the Ilankai Tamils living abroad are the ones who can’t go back to their home towns; are the one whose brethren are being massacred; are the ones whose unique ancient culture and language form is being destroyed. They are the stakeholders here.
The estimated 1 million Ilakai Tamils living abroad is the current lifeline to Tamils in Sri Lanka. This is the vital connection that can help prevent a disordered Tamil society in Sri Lanka until peace comes.
Recently I met a 2nd generation Tamil youth who is very involved with humanitarian and political work and whose father went back to Vanni few years ago. There is a small dedicated group of volunteers (local and expatriate Tamils) on the ground in Sri Lanka who is willing to take on aid work and rehabilitation work
The effects of post traumatic stress in children can be reversed with proper support, nurturing and debriefing - which consists of four steps: preparing, having the child tell the story, sharing the child’s reactions, survival and recovery.
Sometimes, debriefing could be simple as telling the child that it is not his fault. For example, Brooks and Siegel talk about a 4 year old child who saw his father being shot to death by intruders. The child told the counselor that he had shouted at the men to stop and if he had shouted louder, they might have left. According to his mother, the child had not shouted at all!
To help the child understand that he was not responsible, the counselor had to tell the child that even a grown up might not have been able to do anything.
In the above case, the child was suffering from guilt. Debriefing takes the child through the stages of sadness, denial, guilt and anger, shame or stigma and finally acceptance. Anger towards the enemy is understandable but it should never be fostered on guilt or shame – that kind of anger would be self destructive.
Getting a child to tell the story through play, role play and drawing, correcting misconceptions about the events, providing explanations, providing realistic reassurances and explaining that time would heal, are all effective. However, debriefing can also be complex depending on the trauma.
Children in Tamil areas of Sri Lanka, whether it is the North and East or Upcounty or other Southern parts stand exposed in this war on Ilankai Tamils.
Now is the time to refocus. Now is the time for more humanitarian help. The children of Tamil Eelam need our support more than ever before.
It is very impotent to carry on rehabilitation and humanitarian work at grass root levels even while the war is raging on: this could mean helping out a relative in the North East or contributing to the Tamil charities that work at the ground level.
For example, we have medical organisations helping hospitals, alumni associations helping schools, TRO projects etc.
This could also mean helping out with political work and rallying politicians, media, NGOs etc.
This could mean professionals (such as doctors, lawyers, teachers, psychologists, historians etc) creating support networks. “Siru thuli, peru vellam” - Every thought, prayer, word and action counts. No defeat is greater than a psychological defeat.
Reaction to trauma in various age groups
Summary of Brooks, B. & Siegel, P. (1996) The Scared Child – Helping Kids Overcome Traumatic Events US: John Wiley & Sons Inc
Age group – 0 to 2
- Are unable to articulate how they feel (limited vocabulary). May fuss more.
- May lose developmental steps already acquired
- May fail to learn new and expected developmental tasks
Preschoolers : Age group 2 - 5
- Preschoolers combine reality with fantasy/make belief. The very self centered outlook at this age may cause them to think that they caused the events.
- May lose developmental steps already acquired
- May become aggressive in their interactions with others
- May express non-realistic ideas about an event (“Father was taken away because I was bad”)
- May become anxious and clingy
- Playing the same game over and over again maybe a sign of post traumatic stress
- May get angry, sullen or intense with play
School age children: Age group 6 -12
- More realistic thinking of this age group, makes the world a very frightening place for them – “Even Mother and Father can’t protect us”. “Mother and Father are just as frightened and vulnerable”.
- Tends to put a brave face while still traumatised inside
- Lack of control over trauma may make them feel that the future is unsure. Hence, some children might engage in reckless behaviour
- Significant change in School performance – may find it difficult to concentrate and to perform
- May blame themselves
- Sleep disturbances, difficulty sleeping
- May show fear of supernatural things
- This age group believes in rules. When bad things happen even when they have been good and have obeyed rules, children may become oppositional and defiant
Teenagers
- They feel whatever they are working for or studying for, can be destroyed in a minute - So planning for the future is pointless.
- May develop a negative self image because they are not able to avoid or alter a situation
- Engages on revenge fantasies but then feel guilty about their feelings.
- May experience a shift (either an intensification or withdrawal) in the normal developmental tasks of their age – such as love, friendship, sense of autonomy ie They can become obsessive or withdrawn
