INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Image copyrightVikalpaImage caption
A crew of villagers, activists and Catholic priests set sail for Iranaitivu in
April
Last year, a flotilla of 40 fishing boats set sail from northern Sri Lanka with a mission to seize back their island
The TheIndianSubcontinent's Ayeshea Perera reports the extraordinary story of how they did this without any bloodshed
On 23 April, a peculiar sight would have greeted a casual observer standing on the coast of northern Sri Lanka's mainland, near the village
They would have seen Catholic priests, women, fishermen, local journalists and civil rights activists crowding on to dozens of tiny
motorboats bedecked with white flags and setting determined sail for the island of Iranaitivu
Their mission: to reclaim the island, their home for many generations and occupied by the Sri Lankan navy for 25 years
Iranaitivu is really made up of two linked islands - Periyathivu and Sinnathivu
It lies in the Gulf of Mannar, between the southernmost tip of India and the north of Sri Lanka
It is very much an idyllic paradise
Aquamarine waters so clear that the fish swimming in it are visible to the naked eye, starfish on unspoiled golden beaches lined with
swaying coconut palm fronds, waters so shallow and calm that you can walk about half a kilometre in without it ever reaching your knees…
the beauty is almost unreal
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The islanders were displaced more than 25 years ago
Iranaitivu's people say they were
displaced in 1992 by the navy, who built a base there during the height of the civil war between government forces and the separatist
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE)
They are not alone - thousands of families in northern Sri Lanka accuse the military of having occupied their lands during the war.The
villagers, who are Tamil, say they were forcibly settled on the mainland in Iranamata Nagar, between the cities of Jaffna and Mannar
They say they have not been allowed to return to the island since
Many of those on the boats were women
They told the TheIndianSubcontinent that they had been "scared" at the thought of potentially confronting armed naval officers, but were
determined to do so in any case
"At the most we expected that we would get some striking footage of a face-off between the naval vessels and our fleet of tiny boats which
would help us generate more awareness for the community's struggle," said Fr Jeyabalan, one of the priests present on the day
But to their surprise, there was no stand-off.A patrol vessel usually docked at the island had been moved to deeper waters, and no other
The villagers were able to land their boats on the island and walk ashore
"We were crying, we kissed the beaches
We were home once more and we were never going to leave," said local community leader Shamin Bonivas.The group walked over to the
dilapidated remains of the island's church to offer prayer.It was only then, they say, that some of the naval officers stationed on the
The people informed the officers that they had returned, and were there to stay
The local school teacher produced a file where he had meticulously stored all their land deeds
Fr Jeyabalan says that after some discussion the navy agreed to let those with the deeds stay on the island for the night, while the others
The group spent the day meandering on the beaches, visiting the compounds where their houses once stood and picking coconuts and other fruit
from the trees.A few even ventured into the shallow waters around the island where they were able to easily find fish and prized sea
cucumber, which are in high demand in China and elsewhere
Some villagers set off to recapture some of the cattle they had been forced to abandon, but soon came running back
The cattle were now wild and would not tolerate their former owners' clumsy attempts to reclaim them.Image caption
The
island's waters are home to plenty of marine life
A month later, government officials who visited Iranaitivu decided to
allow the entire village of some 400 families - even those without land titles - to stay
It was an unexpected and heartening victory, but one that went largely unmarked apart from a few articles in the local media
Everyone in the community can barely believe they have their land back and still cannot explain why the navy let them first land, and then
The Sri Lankan navy insists that it had never objected to the people of Iranaitivu living on the island after the navy base was built.The
people themselves made the decision to leave "because of troubles with the LTTE and poor habitable conditions", spokesman Lieutenant
Commander Isuru Suriyabandara told the TheIndianSubcontinent.But community leaders say that is untrue.They say that they were not allowed to
live on their island despite numerous appeals to various government officials, petitions, and even a peaceful protest on the beach lasting
nearly a year.Documents seen by the TheIndianSubcontinent also show that various officials, including former chief minister of the Northern
Province C Wigneswaran, and the chargé d'affaires of the EU delegation to Sri Lanka, Paul Godfrey, had written to the central government,
calling the people of Iranaitivu "displaced" and asking that they be allowed to return to the island
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The villagers could not believe that their daring return led to successful resettlement
It
has been 10 months since the people of Iranaitivu returned, and the struggle of how they are trying to put their lives back together is
Thatched temporary huts stand next to the remains of hollowed out concrete shells that were once homes
Crude fishing nets are hung out to dry, and people cook on open wood fires with basic implements
The only signs of modernity are mobile phones, which are charged with tiny solar-powered batteries donated by a well-wisher
But the signs of development are also there
A few of the old wells have been cleaned up, tiny paths have been cut through the heavy, overgrown brush, and people have begun growing
vegetables to supplement their income from fishing
When the TheIndianSubcontinent visited, the men were busy repairing the church on the smaller island of Sinnativu
Many of the villagers travel back and forth between the island and their homes in the village of Iranamata Nagar, staying on the mainland
for a few days at a time before returning
The island's school remains in a state of disrepair and so children can't go to school there
Since coming back the villagers say that, despite the hardships, their lives are better
Image caption
The navy built this jetty for the community
Doras Pradeepan, who is a leader of the
community's fishing co-operative, says that there is much better fishing closer to the island
Now that they can dock their boats there, they spend much less on fuel
Another woman, Pakiam Kaannikkai, said that after returning to Iranaitivu she was able to earn 70,000 rupees ($380; £300) in just two
months thanks to the abundance of fish, crab and sea cucumber around the island.Villagers live alongside the navy, which says it is in "the
national interest" to keep the base there
Iranaitivu, the spokesman said, is an important strategic location to target smugglers and Indian fishermen who illegally cross into Sri
Lankan waters.But the two sides are co-existing peacefully for now, with the navy actively helping people resettle on the island.The navy
has reconstructed the church on the larger island of Periyathivu, provided fresh water supplies to villagers and is building new
infrastructure, including pathways.Locals told the TheIndianSubcontinent that navy personnel also provide them with machinery and spare
But while the people of Iranaitivu have been able to craft themselves a happy ending of sorts, their struggle to get their land back is
Image caption
Life on the island is a struggle, but people say they are happier
It has been almost 10
years since the war ended with the defeat of the Tamil Tigers in May 2009
But the military still occupies 4,241 acres of private land in former conflict areas, according to Sri Lanka's Secretariat for Coordinating
Reconciliation Mechanisms (SCRM).The military cites both security concerns and strategic importance as reasons for their reluctance to move
Several other civilian agitations, including a 700-day protest in front of an army camp in the northern district of Mullaitivu, are still
So will the success of the Iranaitivu villagers' bold action provide a template for other communities who have been displaced due to
military occupationHuman rights activist Ruki Fernando says it will, though he cautioned that the type of action would depend on the context
and the type of community involved
"If politicians, officials and other institutions don't deliver justice, and especially if there is no response to complaints, appeals,
negotiations or protests, communities have the right to consider non-violent direct action to claim what's rightfully theirs, as the
Iranaitivu community did," he said.On the island, the real work is just beginning
Locals say they need significant government help to help them develop the island further
A ferry between Iranamata Nagar and the island has been promised, but they still need to renovate their homes, the local school and the
The youth of the island also dream of living there one day
"Yes we will all return there
This is the home of our ancestors
It is the dream of every single one of us to be buried there," Mr Bonivas said
