Aid to the Church in Need: Sri Lanka: Archbishop denounces Tamil use of ‘human shields’

Sri Lanka: Archbishop denounces Tamil use of ‘human shields’

Posted by Press Release on 27/4/2009, 9:20 am
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ACN News, Monday, 28th April 2009 – SRI LANKA

Archbishop denounces Tamil use of ‘human shields’
Colombo prelate appeals for peace: “…people have to realise the folly of fighting – divided we will perish, united we will flourish.”

By John Newton

SRI Lanka’s leading prelate has accused Tamil rebel leaders of using displaced people as a human shield in a humanitarian crisis that has shocked the world.
Archbishop Oswald Gomis of Colombo criticised the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) for obstructing the safe passage of tens of thousands of people desperate to escape the violence in the north-east of the troubled island.
Speaking on Thursday, 23rd April in an interview with the Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need, the Archbishop said: “There were appeals to both sides to be careful of the civilian population… but as a last resort the LTTE kept people as a human shield.”
He went on to say that, despite a gap in the fighting to enable the civilians to flee the affected Mullaitivu district, no solution was brokered and the LTTE would not let them go.
His comments follow Sri Lankan government reports showing that, since the fighting resumed on Monday (20th April), more than 100,000 civilians had escaped from Mullaitivu, where the army is engaged in a final showdown with the Tamil Tigers to force them off the island.
But according to the government, many others remain trapped. It comes as satellite images were released showing vast numbers of displaced people gathering on the beaches in Mullaitivu to escape the terror.

(Archbishop Oswald Gomis of Colombo)

Speaking after meetings with bishops from all over Sri Lanka, Archbishop Gomis pleaded for an end to the fighting.
He said: “It is my incessant prayer that this [violence] would end as early as possible – we hear of one or two leaders of the LTTE having surrendered – people must be reasonable and not let any more innocent people be killed. They must bring conflict to an end.
“Then we can begin forgiving each other – begin reconciliation, all people living together in equality and justice.”
The Archbishop said: “It is my hope the conflict will end shortly, some day people have to realize the folly of fighting – divided we will perish, united we will flourish.”
UN appeals for a new truce have also been rejected by the government in Colombo.
Archbishop Gomis stressed that the situation was “very difficult for both sides” but called on Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa to find a peaceful resolution.
He said: “The president should find a political solution acceptable to both sides, and help the displaced to settle in areas which are their own.”
The Church is providing whatever help it can. Archbishop Gomis said: “Already we have made arrangements to provide [assistance], we have sent aid to those areas.
“Only this morning [23rd April] I instructed Caritas in the Archdiocese of Colombo to immediately get working to collect essential materials for roofing and housing [to provide shelter for refugees].”
He called on the international community to “help with reconciliation and reconstruction.
“Most places have been destroyed and damaged, like at the end of the Second World War. There is a need to help rebuild their houses and their means of living.
“Schools and hospitals also – lots of people will need medical aid and medical care.”
Archbishop Gomis said: “We are hoping very soon these struggles will end – we are hoping for a permanent solution to the problem. We are dedicated to working for reconciliation.”

Editor’s Notes:

Directly under the Holy See, Aid to the Church in Need supports the faithful wherever they are persecuted, oppressed or in pastoral need. ACN is a Catholic charity – helping to bring Christ to the world through prayer, information and action.
Founded in 1947 by Fr Werenfried van Straaten, whom Pope John Paul II named “An Outstanding Apostle of Charity”, the organisation is now at work in about 145 countries throughout the world.
The charity undertakes thousands of projects every year including providing transport for clergy and lay Church workers, construction of church buildings, funding for priests and nuns and help to train seminarians. Since the initiative’s launch in 1979, 45 million Aid to the Church in Need Child’s Bibles have been distributed worldwide.

For more information, please contact the Australian office of ACN on (02) 9679-1929. e-mail: info@aidtochurch.org or write to Aid to the Church in Need PO Box 6245 Blacktown DC NSW 2148. Web: www.aidtochurch.org

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