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SLAS officers among displaced

MANIK FARM COMPLEX (VAVUNIYA): At least two officers of the Sri Lankan Administrative Service (SLAS - equivalent of the IAS in India) are among the hundreds of government officials sheltered in the government transitional camps for the 2.8 lakh Eelam War IV displaced.

These officials representing health, education and other services in the erstwhile LTTE-controlled territory had either been forced or voluntarily moved deeper into Tiger territory as the military advanced.

The Hindu met a few of these officials at the Zone IV camps which shelter mostly the last batch of 80,000 civilians who crossed over to government territory in the final phase of the fighting.

Chelliah Dayananda, a grade-I SLAS officer who was Assistant Government Agent (equivalent of Assistant Collector) of Puthukudiyiruppu and Kandasamy Parthipan, Additional Government Agent of Mullaithivu, are among the senior government officials sheltered in the camps.

Though the LTTE was in physical control of 11,500 sq. km. in the north before the military commenced its operations in March 2007, officials of the government of Sri Lanka at various levels were functioning out of the area, carrying on administrative and other services.

Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF) leader V. Anandasangaree, in a letter to President Mahinda Rajapaksa on Friday, said: “Government employees in IDP camps to be treated with respect. Public servants of all levels were treated by the LTTE, only as errand boys in areas under their control and were not given due respect”.

“It should be remembered that they all helped the government’s civil administration to continue, bearing all the insults and disrespect shown to them by the LTTE. Their conduct in spite of the humiliation they suffered helped the government to show the world that civil administration was going on un-interrupted”.

“I strongly urge that these officers should be allowed to move about freely and to obtain their services to re-organise the government’s administration in Wanni and to get engaged in development works. They will prove to be a great asset to the government,” said the letter.

Separately, Minister of Ports, Aviation Irrigation and Water Management Chamal Rajapaksa said resettling the people who were temporarily housed in welfare camps would be done when the government was completely assured of their security in those areas prior to their return. Minister Rajapaksa, on a visit to the Chettikulam camp, said the government had expedited the process of de-mining in the erstwhile LTTE areas.

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