War is over but conflict still simmers in Jaffna as special flight to Chennai nurtures hope

While the Jaffna International Airport has been inaugrated 10 years after the civil war, Tamilians in the area still yearn for their dear ones to return home.
An Alliance Air aircraft lands at Jaffna International Airport in northern Sri Lanka as it is reopened in Jaffna on October 17, 2019 (Photo| AFP)
An Alliance Air aircraft lands at Jaffna International Airport in northern Sri Lanka as it is reopened in Jaffna on October 17, 2019 (Photo| AFP)

JAFFNA: Forty-one years after the first Indian flight landed in the newly inaugurated Jaffna International Airport, emotions ran high among the Tamils in Jaffna, the northern province of Sri Lanka, who have been cherishing for a direct connectivity to Chennai that has strong bonds with the Northern Province in Sri Lanka.

Tamil Nadu is home to one lakh Tamils from the island’s one-time warzone and two-thirds of refugees are still living in government-run camps. "There has been a huge demand in Jaffna for a direct flight to Chennai after the flight services came to a halt following the Civil War in Sri Lanka. It is a good change for Tamils here," says Kayathiri Kumaran (name changed), a resident of Jaffna who had come to witness the historic moment.

Witness to the 1983 riots where her father was attacked by Sinhala youth in Colombo, Kayathiri says that it is interesting to note that things are changing after 10 years. "There may have been commercial and military flights from Jaffna. But Alliance air’s maiden flight is the first passenger services flight," she says.

Chadrakala Devi, who is yearning to meet her aunt and her family who fled Jaffna in 1990 during the civil war, says that, "Once Alliance Air resumes its flights from November 1, I will be flying from Jaffna to Chennai to visit them."

A teacher in a school near a village 6km from Palali, where the airport is located, Chandrakala says that she had lost her father during the war. To a query on why don’t she ask her aunt to come back, she says how can they come by flight. "They allow only 15kg. They have so much to carry with them here," she said.

But only few refugees have returned back to Sri Lanka. While the war is over, the conflict is still simmering, says another resident. "The issues still persist. The government have taken the land of Tamils for building the airport and they have not received any compensation. Nearly 50 families are now protesting at the entrance of the airport," the resident says.

The issue was also highlighted by Tamil National Alliance leader Mavei Senadhi Raja during the inauguration of the airport. Wariness could be felt as the poll bugle has been sounded in the island nation which is going to polls on November 16. 

Father Rajkumar says that once there is change in the dispensation, the airport is likely to become dysfunctional. He says the name dispensation if it comes to power would focus on Mattala. "We hope the airport continues functioning after the change in dispensation. The present government has ensured peace in the Island. We don’t know about the future," says Rajkumar.

However, youngsters from the nearby school in a Jaffna village, who were present for the inauguration of airport, are happy that the airport has directly connected them to Chennai. “I want to visit Tamil Nadu. I want to see the Thanjai Perumal Kovil and Abdul Kalam Memorial,” says Surekha, whose family was affected in the war when she was only three-year-old. ”We are culturally and emotionally connected to Chennai,” she adds.

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