Unforgettable Human Sufferings

After the independence of Sri Lanka from the British rule in 1948 the political and economic environment changed drastically. During the last few decades. There were three people's rebellions and many ethnic riots and massacres leading to many Human rights violations. The worst was the 1983 ethnic riots resulting in an exodus of Tamils to foreign countries. Tamils and Muslims were most affected HR violations. "The Sufferings of Tamil Souls" is a collection of eighteen short stories covering Human Rights violations in Sri Lanka. The first is a long story is titled "The refugees at Manick Farm" near Vavuniya after the ethnic war in 2009. I wrote these stories throughout four years and some are based on true incidents that happened in Sri Lanka and among some families. The first long story deals with the refugee camps in Vavuniya in the Northern district of Sri Lanka which were subject to international criticisms because of the inhuman way the government treated the refugees after the war. Most of them were old people, children, girls and prisoners of war. The environment of the camp in which they spent their life as refugees with mosquito bites, poor sanitation and diet, was pathetic. They were treated worse than prisoners of war. The story "Beach boy" deals with child abuse by tourists in sea resorts. The road-side singer reflects the outcome of a soldier who was forced to join the army to fight the war. There are few stories such as White van, Ransom, Retribution, Avatar which cover human rights violations in different forms. The Tsunami of December 2004 took the lives of thousands of people in many countries. In Sri Lanka, a train was derailed by the waves and this killed more than 1500 people. The story titled "Destiny" is based on this incident and the family of an army soldier who was sentenced to death raping a Tamil student in Jaffna. I base my stories mainly on true incidents with change of names. Mixed with fiction They are written in Sri Lankan environment. The story "Give me my land" is revelated to the lands encroached in the fertile farming village of Kopapilavu near Nandikadal in Mullaitivu district. The final battle was fought in 2009 against the LTTE, the Tamil freedom Fighters. Fourteen countries including India, China, Pakistan helped the Sri Lankan government to win the war. If they would have had face to face battle with the Tamil freedom fighters the outcome would have been different. It appears thane army is holding the lands in that area because they appear to take vengeance against the Tamil community for fighting for their rights. The government branded the freedom fighters as Terrorist against the definition given by UN Social issues such as Temple entry is covered in a story, which was one, time a political issue. Human rights stories are the outcome of the ethnic war which became a major international issue which tarnished the image of the country. The story with the title "Ukkunna" is a true story that took place nearly fifty years ago. I wish that parents avoid discrimination against their children just because they are not good in their studies and not obedient.Writing short stories should reflect the culture, traditions and the outlook of the community. If the story is based on what happened many years ago it is interesting to know the changes in people's way of living and their attitude. The writer should have good memory power to recall the incidents and the characters involved.