By IPS Correspondents
COLOMBO, Dec 5 2008 (IPS)

The only good thing about tropical storm ‘Nisha’, that lashed northern Sri Lanka in the last week of November, was that it brought a lull to the fierce fighting between Tamil separatist rebels and the Sri Lankan army.

According to the Disaster Management Centre, over 370,000 persons were affected by gale force winds and rains, and more than 50,000 houses were damaged – 11,000 of them completely destroyed – in nine districts in the country between Nov. 22 – 30 when Nisha struck. Eleven persons were known to have died.

The worst damage was recorded in the northern Jaffna peninsula where 330,000 people were affected and nine killed. The peninsula at the northern edge of the island has been besieged by renewed fighting between government forces and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) since August 2006.

Heavy fighting had been reported on the western flanks of Kilinochchi, the political nerve centre of the LTTE, during the Nov. 22 -23 weekend. Both the government and Tigers reported that the fighting during the two days resulted in the death of at least 150 combatants.

During the week that followed little fighting was reported and Nisha seemed to have achieved what the international community failed to do – bring about a break in the bloody hostilities.

“The two offensive divisions have currently lined up their strengths along the western and southern boundaries of Kilinochchi built up and moving in with no hurry considering weather and the terrain,” the defence ministry said on Nov. 28.

“Army 57 Division (57 Div) and Task Force 1 (TF 1) soldiers who have lined up themselves along the western and southern boundaries of the Kilinochchi town yesterday [Dec. 2] started pushing their forward boundaries further in to the town area. Army’s march towards the LTTE’s once administrative hub and symbolically vital town has been slowed down by the torrential rains and resultant floods in the area during last two weeks,’’ the statement said.

The Tigers did not confirm or deny details of the latest fighting given out by the defence ministry but said that artillery fire and air attacks by the Sri Lankan armed forces had increased after Nisha passed.

Apparently the escalation in fighting was linked to a speech delivered by LTTE leader Velupillai Prabhakaran on the ‘Heroes Day’ observed on Nov. 27. In the speech, the reclusive Prabhakaran appealed to India to lift the ban on the Tigers while criticising other countries for taking a hard stance towards his organisation.

“Some countries which identified themselves as so-called peace sponsors rushed into activities which impaired negotiations. They denigrated our freedom movement as a terrorist organisation. They put us on their black list and ostracised us as unwanted and untouchable,” he said in the speech delivered at an undisclosed location in the Tiger-held area called the Vanni.

“Today, there are great changes taking place in India. The dormant voices in support of our struggle are reemerging aloud again. There are also indications of our struggle becoming accepted there,” he said. “Even though the armed struggle was thrust on us by inevitable needs, yet we wish to stop the war and seek a peaceful resolution to the national question of our people.”

But Prabhakarn’s message was that the LTTE would stand its ground and resist the government offensive. “When compared to these happenings of the past, today’s challenges are neither novel nor huge. We will face these challenges with the united strength of our people.”

Government ministers dismissed the speech as a plea for clemency from India. Foreign minister Rohitha Bogollagama told parliament that India will never accommodate the Tigers.

“The foreign minister held out an olive branch to Prabhakaran by urging him to heed President Mahinda Rajapakse’s call to lay down arms, renounce terrorism and enter the democratic path in order to be part of the political process that is already underway, to evolve a sustainable solution that will bring lasting peace and stability to Sri Lanka,” the foreign ministry said.

Meanwhile, Nisha has added to the miseries of the more than 230,000 civilians trapped in the fighting by disrupting the delivery of humanitarian relief.

The Commissioner General of Essential Services S. B. Divaratne told IPS that roads in the Vanni were impassable during the typhoon. “The roads had gone under, some of the tanks [reservoirs] were under threat of overflowing, there was no way to move convoys.”

No supply convoys travelled in the week that Nisha was active. On Nov. 25 one convoy of government trucks had to turn back when it was 50 km east of Kilinochchi due to bad weather and flooding.

Among the supplies that were delayed was the first consignment of 1,700 MT of relief sent by the Indian government on Nov. 15. “The Indian relief items will be distributed by government agents and ICRC officials,” Sarasi Wijeranthe, spokesman for the International Committee for the Red Cross, said.

Over 5,000 MT of supplies have been transported to the internally displaced people since April with the bulk of it, 4,700 MT, supplied by the United Nations.

Meanwhile, the United States has announced emergency relief worth 100,000 US dollars for people affected by the flooding in the north and east of the island.

The U.S. donation, to be administered by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), will be used for non-food relief items in Jaffna and the Vanni.

“The U.S. government is eager to respond to this request for assistance to provide relief to the thousands of Sri Lankans who have been displaced and affected by this disaster,” said Robert O. Blake, U.S. ambassador to Sri Lanka. “With more than 400,000 individuals in the north affected by terrible flooding, it is imperative that we respond quickly to this situation and work together to keep people safe.”

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