In a statement Anglican Bishop Duleep de Chickera said that people in Vanni, an area in the Tamil Tiger-controlled north, are concerned about the situation of constant tension and are afraid that dangers might increase should there be an escalation in violence between the army and rebels fighting for the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). In the same statement he expressed his “solidarity and closeness” to a civilian population under severe distress by a “war that seems to have no end.”

“Unarmed and trapped in this war zone, large numbers of civilians, including children, are caught in an intense cross-fire,” he said. “Thousands are already displaced and can flee only to places of temporary safety,” he added.

The “situation faced by these civilians is even more desperate since they cannot act independently. They are under conflicting pressure from both sides for support [. . .] and fear reprisals if they do not. Their dilemma adds to their suffering. Their voice is silenced with the sound of guns, manipulation and propaganda.”

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Filed under: * Anglican - Episcopal • - Anglican: Latest News • * International News & Commentary • Asia

1. New Reformation Advocate wrote: It seems ironic that it takes a Roman Catholic news outlet to break an important international announcment by an Anglican bishop.  Together with the fact that ++Rowan Williams chose a bishop from Sri Lanka to give the sermon at the opening eucharist for the recent Lambeth Conference (I mean the Sunday service in Canterbury Cathedral), this plea for international help in strife-torn northern Sri Lanka may help raise our feeble awareness of the prolonged civil war there, and the desperate needs of the people trapped in the middle of the conflict. It reminds me of the similar and even worse situation in southern Sudan, where far more people have died and been displaced.  Alas, once a war has gone on for as long as both of these ones have, they cease to be thought newsworthy and are easily forgotten by the outside world. Thanks for posting this, Kendall.  It makes me wish that we Anglicans had a similar news source to cover developments in Asia.  But then, we don’t have nearly as many people in Asia as the Roman Catholics do. David Handy+ August 29, 7:57 am | [comment link]

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