Citizenship evades refugees from Sri Lanka even after three decades

It is a village of its own or, more suitably, an island in itself because it looks and feels different from the rest of the town, though it is located behind the Tahsildar office and is only a few metres away from the Grand Northern Trunk road.

Gummidipoondi refugee camp is the biggest of all 113 camps across the State with 912 families comprising 2,800 members living there. The other camp in the city in Puzhal has 500 families.

Wide concrete roads, well-paved lanes, proper sewer lines, overhead power lines and solar street lights make it resemble a model village. The houses have either thatched roofs, terracotta or cement sheets. Some of them have gardens and are separated by temporary compound walls made of wooden logs or metal sheets. The camp is calmer and greener compared to rest of Gummidipoondi town. There are grocery shops, smithy giving out equipment required for construction work for rent. And the residents, too, have complaints like regular citizens about uncompleted roads, failure of street lights and mosquito menace, which they often raise with authorities concerned and get it redressed.

But the land was not how it is today when the camp was set up in 1990, 29 years ago, after there was a huge inflow of refugees from Sri Lanka due to the unfavourable conditions in their land. They were made to stay at military tents which did not last even a year, though the government gives Rs 500 every six months for the upkeep of the tents. The refugees are not supposed to step outside the camp as the government gives them cash assistance every month — Rs 1,000 for the family head (usually woman), Rs 750 for other adults and Rs 400 for children below 14 years, apart from free rice up to 20 kg and sugar and kerosene at subsidised rates like other citizens. But many adults work outside, predominantly as construction labourers to take better care of themselves. “How is it possible to be confined to the camp for 29 years,” asked a refugee on condition of anonymity.

While their lives seem fine on the surface, a lot of things remain unassured for them. To start with, they could have built better houses with their earnings. But with the volatility that they could be moved to some other camps at any moment, they fear to invest in building a house. The major grievance is that they are being tagged as refugees after they have spent 29 years in Tamil Nadu with their third generation having started going to schools. “When we had to move out of Sri Lanka, we thought India would be a better place than countries like Australia, Canada and the UK because it was closer to our land and there would be Tamil speaking people around. But those who opted other countries have become their citizens, whereas here, even our children, who were born and brought up here, are tagged as refugees. We never intended to stay here forever, but going back to Sri Lanka after so many years does not make any sense. We have started from scratch again,” said S Padmajothi (45). Her brother Muniyandi brought her along with four brothers and two sisters in a boat from Mullaitheevu to Mandapam when she was 16. While she stayed at Namakkal camp, she got married to one Sekar of Gummidipoondi and moved here. Her son is currently pursuing engineering at a private college.

With no assistance to get education loan, Padmajothi claimed that she has borrowed money from others to fund her son’s education. However, there is no assurance that he would land a proper job. “There is no way we will get a government job and private companies do not want to hire refugees. Four persons, including a girl, got MBBS seats from this camp and became doctors through the exclusive quota system. But after the reservation was closed, the children can only pursue arts and science degrees. There have been many incidents in which our kids cleared all the rounds in interviews before being rejected just because he or she is a refugee,” she said. Most of the youth from the camp, though graduates, work as house painters and construction labourers. “Even in such fields, we have faced harassment and second-hand treatment besides humiliation for being a refugee,” said another person from the camp, who did not wish to be named.

Some of the youth, including girls, work as helpers in Tahsildar office. Dr Sudarshan, who completed MBBS from Gummidipoondi and runs a clinic in the locality, said that he belongs to the 2002 batch with which the reservation for the refugees was closed. “It was a policy decision by the government and we could not do much about it,” he said.

Despite all the hardships, the parents in the refugee camps across the State are determined to educate their children in the hope that they would at least be able to settle abroad as the possibility of them being recognised as Indian citizens hereafter looks bleak. After graduation, they can get back to Sri Lanka after getting clearance from authorities and they fly abroad for jobs after that. For women, marrying Sri Lankan Tamils already settled abroad is another avenue to go abroad and there are matrimony brokers within the camp to find a match for grooms abroad. Selvanyagam (63) got his daughter Nishanthini married to a groom in France recently and she has moved to Sri Lanka to apply for a visa from there. However, he said, some men cheat them in the guise of marriage to get citizenship for themselves.

Selvanayagam was a farmer in Vavuniya before he moved to Tamil Nadu with his family on August 15, 1990. He was running a cycle renting shop in the camp and after the business faded, now he gives out construction equipment for rent. “I had a two-acre land in my hometown. To go back there at this age and starting all over again seem impossible at this moment. I came here when I was 34. I did not know I would end up staying back till I am 63,” he said.

Another factor which deters them from visiting Sri Lanka is the fear that they might not be considered as refugees in India anymore if they come back. “Till 2011, there was a provision that we can go to Sri Lanka and check whether the condition is favourable to shift there and return to India if it’s not. But after 2011, those who go back to Sri Lanka are not considered as refugees when they return. They won’t get compensation like others,” said a man, who works as a construction labourer.

The refugees have been given ration cards and even Aadhaar cards and they can get driving licences. But all of them will have the word ‘refugee’ which separates them from other citizens. Rajan, an inmate of Puzhal refugee camp, said his eight-month pregnant wife was made to visit three different government hospitals as they allegedly said refugees cannot be treated there. “Had they given us citizenship considering that we have spent so many years in this land, we would have had rights to question the authorities. If I raise my voice as a refugee, I will only get humiliated further, I will be beaten up, too. At moments like these, we feel helpless and orphaned. Even if my child is born here, I will not be able to get a birth certificate here, but approach the Sri Lankan embassy and wait for months together. We have understood that we can no longer become Indian citizens, but what about the children who are born here,” asked Rajan.

When contacted, sources at Gummidipoondi Tahsildar office said that approximately Rs 21.75 lakh is spent on monthly cash allowance for all the refugee families. Apart from the grocery items and free electricity, they are also given tent maintenance and Rs 500 worth token per head to buy new clothes at Co-Optex. “School students are given scholarships and recently scholarships were approved for 44 students. And for those who die in the camp, funeral expenses are also taken care of by the government, though it usually gets delayed as applications are sent in bulk,” said a staff. Those willing to return to Sri Lanka can apply to United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) for funds, but those who have relatives abroad and who can fund the flight expenses on their own and can return without any delay. An official said that the maximum strength of the camp was 4,100 but it has started coming down after the government has decided not to entertain them flying back and forth. “Their grievances are addressed immediately,” he said.