Death toll rises in Sri Lanka

The incessant violence in Sri Lanka has now caused more than seventy-thousand victims. More than 25 years of civil war between Tamil rebels and government forces have had tragic consequences for civilians, who are unable to abandon the region.The Sri Lankan Catholic community, including approximately 25 priests, have not yet left the region. Though they persist in their goal of helping the population, especially the wounded, the shortage of necessary medicine and equipment makes the assistance much more difficult.The recently appointed Apostolic Nuncio of Syria and present regent of the Sri Lankan nunciature, Archbishop Mario Zenari, spoke about the conflict in a recent interview with Vatican Radio. He explained that despite the fact that the Colombo city authorities have established a “no conflict zone” near the sea, incidents have nonetheless occurred, causing the deaths of 200 people and wounding many more.Archbishop Zenari said that “it is necessary to work on the causes of the conflict in order to obtain a peaceful solution.”“This is about healing 25 years of war, healing injustice,” the prelate said. “So the path is still uphill and the Church’s work is very important because it can offer a tone of reconciliation.”Sri Lanka entered its last truce in February 2002, but this was rendered futile by constant violations by both groups. The tragedy of the tsunami in December, 2004 created expectations that the war would come to end, but still more conflict ensued. Currently, Tamil rebels have taken refuge in a 300 km2 jungle area in the northeast region of the country.The Sri Lankan population is predominantly Buddhist; the Catholic community remains a minority in the region.

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