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| Wednesday, 12 January 2005 |
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Temple of refuge and peace by Chandani Jayatilleke On December 26, 2004, tsunamis had already hit and devastated the north, east and the southern coastal areas and had taken many lives when the fishing community in the Dehiwela and Wellawatta area was evacuated to safety by Police. The usual serenity and tranquillity at Subhodaramaya, a well-known Buddhist temple in Dehiwela, has been affected by an unexpected crowd. It consists of infants, children, women (some are pregnant) and men. A few are in wheel-chairs. A group of children play in the white sand of the compound of the temple with their new-found friends. Some women gather in groups with the bits and pieces that remain of their belongings in parcels covered with cloth wrappers held close to their bodies. Some lie on mats on the cement and tiled floors. Men sit around the temple premises and talk. Some of them, specially the young, flit between the temple and their wrecked homes to bring back their belongings left behind by the receding water. They are not the usual crowd of worshippers who visit the temple for religious events. These are tsunami victims. Many of them made a living as fishermen and for years they had lived in shanties and half-built houses. On December 26, 2004, tsunamis had already hit and devastated the north, east and the southern coastal areas and had taken many lives when the fishing community in the Dehiwela and Wellawatta area was evacuated to safety by Police. "Suddenly, we saw the waves hitting the shore and the water came into our house. We ran for safety and finally ended up in this temple," Rasika, a young girl employed in a garment factory, told us. This community was lucky enough not to fall full victim the tsunami. "None of our people lost their lives. Everybody ran and managed to save their lives," she said. "We have only lost our houses and valuables - whatever we have earned through hard work but we are lucky to be alive," she added. At the time the tsunami struck, the men folk had returned home with the day's catch. "That really saved them from getting caught in the tsunami," she said. Rasika's employer had visited this temporary camp in the temple to see how he could help her and her family to rebuild their lives. Bhikkhus housed in the temple, such as the chief priest, the Ven. Sirinamaluwe Soma, Ven. Dickwelle Saranath and Ven. Dickwelle Samithasiri Theras, are supporting this group in numerous ways. Altogether about 1,500 displaced people are crammed into the 'bana maduwa' and several other buildings in the temple. They are well supplied with water, food and medicine. A group of doctors from the Kalubowila Hospital conducts a clinic in the temple premises in the morning. The girls in this camp are safe and men in the crowd are looking after their women folk well. Several girls we spoke to said that none had experienced any harassment. "They (the men) are actually helping us," one said. To maintain law and order among the displaced, a 24-hour police guard is on duty in the temple premises. What about sanitary and bathing facilities? "It's not bad. To have a bath we go to the taps by the roadside. Other facilities are fairly OK. But we want to go home as soon as possible," they said. The bhikkhus told us that their next challenge is to enable the people to resume their normal lives. "The authorities should prepare a proper plan to resettle these people in a suitable area at the earliest," one said. |
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