1. Dr. Sasitharan fled from Sri Lanka to India as a refugee in the 1980s during the civil war between the Sri Lankan government and Tamil Tigers. He has lived in a refugee camp in Tamil Nadu, India for the past decade.
2. During election seasons in Tamil Nadu, political parties try to portray themselves as champions of Sri Lankan Tamils to gain votes, but do little otherwise to improve refugees' dire living conditions in crowded, unsanitary camps with little support.
3. Despite being skilled and fluent in English, Dr. Sasitharan works low-wage manual labor jobs due to his lack of Indian citizenship. Most refugees just want to live in
Original Description:
Original Title
At Election Season’s End, Sri Lankan Tamil Refugees Forgotten Again
1. Dr. Sasitharan fled from Sri Lanka to India as a refugee in the 1980s during the civil war between the Sri Lankan government and Tamil Tigers. He has lived in a refugee camp in Tamil Nadu, India for the past decade.
2. During election seasons in Tamil Nadu, political parties try to portray themselves as champions of Sri Lankan Tamils to gain votes, but do little otherwise to improve refugees' dire living conditions in crowded, unsanitary camps with little support.
3. Despite being skilled and fluent in English, Dr. Sasitharan works low-wage manual labor jobs due to his lack of Indian citizenship. Most refugees just want to live in
1. Dr. Sasitharan fled from Sri Lanka to India as a refugee in the 1980s during the civil war between the Sri Lankan government and Tamil Tigers. He has lived in a refugee camp in Tamil Nadu, India for the past decade.
2. During election seasons in Tamil Nadu, political parties try to portray themselves as champions of Sri Lankan Tamils to gain votes, but do little otherwise to improve refugees' dire living conditions in crowded, unsanitary camps with little support.
3. Despite being skilled and fluent in English, Dr. Sasitharan works low-wage manual labor jobs due to his lack of Indian citizenship. Most refugees just want to live in
By admin on May 8, 2014 By VIABHAV VATS PUZHAL, India As Tamil civilians were increasingly caught in the crss!ire "etween the Indian Peace #ee$ing %rce and the Li"eratin Tigers ! Tamil &elam in the '()*s, Sasitharan and his $arents !llwed the e+dus !rm the Tamil,ma-rity nrthern and eastern regins ! Sri Lan.a/ As a (,year,ld in '((*, 0r/ Sasitharan, wh uses nly ne name, was ta.en "y his $arents acrss the Pal. Strait "y "at, the mde ! trans$rt !avred "y thusands ! re!ugees "e!re them/ 0r/ Sasitharan, wh grew u$ in the sunny and windswe$t har"r city ! Trincmalee, has !ew memries ! his early years in Sri Lan.a/ In India, his !amily settled near Bengaluru, where 0r/ Sasitharan studied at a schl !r Sri Lan.an re!ugees/ Unli.e mst ! the re!ugees wh arrived in India, 0r/ Sasitharan attended cllege, "ut a lac. ! mney !rced him t dr$ ut "e!re he culd graduate/ 1hat !llwed was a reverse -urney in scial m"ility/ 0r/ Sasitharan, wh is !luent in &nglish, gt a -" as a "an. salesman in 2hennai, the ca$ital ! Tamil 3adu/ His em$lyers !ired him a!ter they discvered he was nt an Indian citi4en/ 5The mment I s$.e in Tamil, they reali4ed I had a Sri Lan.an accent,6 he said/ 7es$ite "eing s.illed and !luent in the &nglish language, a valua"le asset in India8s mdern ecnmy, 0r/ Sasitharan, nw 9:, wr.s as a $etty la"rer in the cuntry8s in!rmal sectr, li!ting heavy lads !r a su"sistence wage/ %r the $ast decade, 0r/ Sasitharan has "een living at the #angaravai cam$ in Pu4hal, an hur nrth ! 2hennai and ne ! ''* such cam$s !r Sri Lan.an re!ugees acrss the state ! Tamil 3adu/ Accrding t :*'9 !igures "y the ;rgani4atin !r &elam <e!ugees <eha"ilitatin, 0r/ Sasitharan is ne ! ==,:)= Sri Lan.an re!ugees wh currently reside in India/ %r the mst $art, $litical leaders in Tamil 3adu, and the rest ! India, $ay little attentin t the re!ugees8 dire living cnditins/ But every time an electin seasn a$$raches in Tamil 3adu, $arties !rantically cm$ete t $rtray themselves as cham$ins ! the Sri Lan.an Tamils, an issue that still has sme emtinal resnance in the state/ In %e"ruary, >ayalalithaa >ayaram, the chie! minister ! Tamil 3adu, declared that her gvernment wuld release the cnvicted assassins ! !rmer Prime 0inister <a-iv ?andhi/ 0r/ ?andhi8s assassinatin in '((' was $ltted and e+ecuted "y the Li"eratin Tigers ! Tamil &elam/ 0s/ >ayaram8s decisin t !ree 0r/ ?andhi8s assassins was annunced shrtly a!ter an emergency ca"inet meeting that !llwed the Su$reme 2urt8s cmmuting ! the death sentences ! 0r/ ?andhi8s assassins t li!e im$risnment, leaving their !ate in the hands ! the state gvernment/ 0s/ >ayaram8s mve was seen "y $litical "servers as an attem$t t $sitin hersel! as the leader mst sym$athetic t the cause ! Sri Lan.an Tamils, wh share ethnicity and language with the Tamils ! India/ 1ith this mve, 0s/ >ayaram, $reviusly a "itter critic ! the Li"eratin Tigers ! Tamil &elam, als inaugurated the electin,seasn chest,"eating ver the issue/ 0/ #arunanidhi, the )(,year,ld leader ! the $$sitin 7ravida 0unnetra #a4hagam, accused 0s/ >ayaram ! hy$crisy and $$rtunism/ At an electin rally in 2hennai in A$ril, 0r/ #arunanidhi, wh has devted a large $rtin ! his s$eeches t the Sri Lan.an Tamil issue thrughut the cam$aign, said 5>ayalalithaa is shedding crcdile tears !r Sri Lan.an Tamils/6 @et this $eridic !ren4y has achieved little !r thusands ! re!ugees li.e 0r/ Sasitharan, wh e+ist in lim" in Tamil 3adu8s sAualid cam$s/ 5It8s a lt ! gimmic.s and !a.e $sturing,6 said <hini 0han, an Indian -urnalist whse ". n the Sri Lan.an civil war will a$$ear this year/ 5It8s an emtive issue, "ut there is nthing t "e gained !rm the "etterment ! Sri Lan.an re!ugees, es$ecially as the re!ugees themselves can8t vte/6 In Pu4hal, where 0r/ Sasitharan has lived !r the $ast decade, cnditins ! $erilus sanitatin $revail/ Amid the $en sewage, tiny, unventilated "ric. huses cvered "y tin r!s "a.e in Tamil 3adu8s scrching summer, creating living cnditins that are anything "ut hs$ita"le/ 0st re!ugees are given a meager allwance "y the Tamil 3adu gvernment/ The eldest male ! the !amily receives B'= a mnth, while ther mem"ers ! the !amily a"ve the age ! ': get B'9/ 2hildren "elw ': are given BC a mnth each/ %amilies ! re!ugees su$$lement this incme with menial -"s, as huse $ainters and day la"rers in areas neigh"ring the cam$s/ Sri Lan.an re!ugees in India live under cnstant surveillance "y state intelligence and are restricted in their mvement/ 7ee$a., :C, wh lives at the #angavarai cam$ in Pu4hal, said residents culd nt even "uy SI0 cards !r their m"ile $hnes/ 51e need t sign every time we enter r leave,6 he said/ 5And i! the $rime minister ever visits Tamil 3adu, we are all lc.ed u$ inside the cam$/6 There is evidence t suggest that the heated $litical discurse generated in Tamil 3adu ver the Sri Lan.an Tamil issue may "e e+acer"ating the situatin/ Smaller $arties li.e the 0arumalarchi 7ravida 0unnetra #a4hagam, which wants an inde$endent Tamil hmeland in Sri Lan.a, ma.e it harder !r re!ugees in India wh wuld li.e t return hme/ 5&+treme $sitins in Tamil 3adu ma.e recnciliatin di!!icult,6 said S/2/ 2handrahasan, !under and head ! the ;rgani4atin !r &elam <e!ugees <eha"ilitatin/ 51e wuld li.e all $arties t ta.e mderate $sitins and nt $ut em$hasis n the "rea.ing u$ ! Sri Lan.a/ Hate s$eeches d us a lt ! harm/6 0r/ 2handrahasan "elieves the re$atriatin ! Sri Lan.an re!ugees in India remains the nly $ermanent slutin t the $r"lem/ That may nt "e an $tin !r re!ugees li.e 0r/ Sasitharan, t scarred "y the $ast t ever return/ 0r/ Sasitharan had h$ed t get Indian citi4enshi$, "ut since India is nt a signatry t the '(D' <e!ugee 2nventin, there is n structured rute t citi4enshi$ !r thse wh see. asylum/ 7es$ite the $rmise ! a less uncertain legal e+istence in Sri Lan.a, 0r/ Sasitharan said he wuld stay in India/ 51e are sa!e here,6 he said/ 51e are nt sa!e in Sri Lan.a/6 @et the dds remain stac.ed against re!ugees li.e 0r/ Sasitharan/ Since the end ! the Sri Lan.an civil war in :**(, internatinal attentin has mstly dri!ted away !rm the re!ugees in India, !cusing instead n the $light ! Tamils within Sri Lan.a/ And Tamil $arties acrss the s$ectrum, having whi$$ed u$ the re!ugees8 cause during electin seasn, which ended in Tamil 3adu n A$ril :E, have nce again mved n/ F2urtesy the 3ew @r. TimesG