Requiem Mass held for 'lost generation'

JAFFNA, Sri Lanka, July 01, 2009, 11.30 Hrs (UCAN):

Physically and mentally battered Tamils recently attended a requiem Mass for the thousands who died in the 25-year civil war in the country. "We have lost a generation," said Rajan Seemanpillai, 69, a mourner at Jaffna cathedral. Five of his family members died in the war and he says he cannot even see surviving family members who are now in distant refugee camps.

The memorial service in St Mary's cathedral in the northern city was held on June 20, one month after the final battle between government forces and the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), in which the government claimed victory. "Survivors in camps and hospitals are still suffering," Father Amirthanathar Francis Xavier Jayasegaram, president of the Justice and Peace Commission of Jaffna diocese, told UCA News. "They are unable to hold requiems there, so we arranged a memorial service for their loved ones here."

The LTTE, which wanted to establish a state in northern and eastern Sri Lanka for the minority Tamils, launched an independence struggle against the Sinhalese-led government in 1983. The conflict has since claimed more than 100,000 lives. The Sinhalese form the majority ethnic group in Sri Lanka.

Some 500 Catholics, including priests and nuns from many parishes, participated at the three-hour prayer service at cathedral that saw the congregation singing a popular hymn, "Do not fear, I am always with you," in Tamil. "Tamils feel they are marooned, physically, mentally and culturally. We try to give them a little relief and hope," said Father Jayasegaram. "The end of the sufferings of Tamils is not in our hands but with the nation's leaders. We can shed tears and pray but definitely God will show those suffering the way," the priest said. At present, about 300,000 civilians still languish in refugee camps with limited access by aid workers. Some of them are suspected of having connections with the LTTE and many of these camps are ringed by barbed wire and guarded by soldiers.

Father R.G. Vijintus, secretary to Bishop Thomas Savundaranayagam of Jaffna, said on June 25 that one priest has been released from a camp after a military inquiry. Six priests and three nuns are still in the camps. Bishop Savundaranayagam said he is in touch with the state government for the release of the priests and nuns. Sri Lankan president Mahinda Rajapakse on June 22 acknowledged the need to win the hearts and minds of Tamil people and ensure that they are able to without fear and mistrust. - www.ucanews.com