A photo of civilian refugees released by the Sri Lankan army. Source: IRIN |
As the Sri Lankan government continues its assault against the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE ), journalists and most aid groups have been barred from the front lines — meaning the conflict is largely hidden and reports are difficult to verify.
The Tamil Tigers have long fought for an independent state for Sri Lanka’s Tamil ethnic minority, but the government is now pushing into their last stronghold — a strip of land only four square miles in size.
Morten Hvaal is a photographer based in Sri Lanka. He writes at “Frontline” about his frustration at being prevented from covering “what might be left of the war.”
For more on the conflict, listen to our online radio show on Sri Lanka’s civil war.
Free Tiger tour, anyone?
So, “Foreign media taken on a free ride by the LTTE“, according to the Sri Lankan Government’s propaganda website “Media Centre For National Security” (MCNS). Apparently, many of us are terrorist sympathisers and, well, stupid. I might actually have been insulted, had I not been at the receiving end of similar accusations for many months now. And, one does need to try and stay in the MCNS’ good books, because they too occasionally take the foreign media on free rides.
Saturday morning, 0500hrs, a military airport in Colombo; I’m reading the printed program for the day’s “VISIT OF MEDIA PERSONAL” (sic) to, amongst several other unpronounceable locations, Pudumathalan, which is on the frontline to the LTTE-held “no-fire zone”. After several hours of flights, briefings, displays of captured LTTE weapons, refreshments and rides in armoured personnel carriers the motley crew of close to 30 sweating journalists and a handful of senior Sri Lankan military officers dismount “near the front line”.
The television talking heads do their thing: “We’re at the front line where LTTE leader Velupillai Prabhakaran is about to face his destiny”. Except we’re not. The front line is four or five kilometres away. All we can see is a dirt road, Pudhumathalan lagoon, some very relaxed-looking soldiers and a few red buses, supposedly waiting to transport civilians coming out of the no-fire zone. Apart from the chatter of the TV crews it’s quiet.
The ultimate proof of how safely removed we are from what might be left of the war is that two of the Sri Lankan Army’s most important general officers are happy to hang around and chat. Both are adamant that it would all be over soon if it weren’t for the civilians. No surprises there; everything indicates that the Tigers are on their last legs as a conventional fighting force, and the generals are visibly proud to declare that the army has killed thousands of terrorists. The surprise comes when they say they’re not killing any civilians.
People are getting hurt though. Our departure from the helipad at nearby Puthukudirippu is delayed, and while we wait several casualties arrive in ambulances, only to be loaded back in and driven off again after we try and photograph them. At the same time we start hearing the sound of distant detonations.
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07/10/2009 :: 04:39:03 AM
Farid Salam Says:
You obviously not prepared to go gorilla, Mr Photographer. You wont the war brought in front of your lenses by SL MOD? Perhaps you are too old for the trade of a troubleshooter? And obviously for serious writing as well I guess.