brand logo

Diana’s Mannar vision slammed by local women

21 Sep 2022

BY Mirudhula Thambiah The Mannar Women’s Development Federation (MWDF) yesterday (20) criticised the proposal by State Minister of Tourism Diana Gamage to develop the Mannar island into an entertainment-centric tourist hotspot that will use US dollars as its currency, akin to Macau, alongside proposed land allocations for Adani and for ilmenite prospecting in Mannar. The MWDF stressed that the war-affected communities in the Mannar District, particularly the female-headed families, are appalled by the statement. The MWDF also condemned talk of land allocations for the Adani Group’s projects, as well as the proposed ilmenite mining in the Mannar District. The MWDF is of the view that all these plans are to be set up rapidly and without any consultation with the three main Tamil-speaking communities, namely, the Catholics, the Hindus, and Muslims of the Mannar District.  MWDF Co-Founder Shreen Abdul Saroor, speaking to The Morning, stressed that the proposed plans by Gamage are going to affect the settlements, livelihoods, and cultural aspects of the people in Mannar.  She noted that the Government had failed to communicate and consult their plans with the people. “These development and tourism projects are definitely going to impact the culture of Mannar, which is a community of Tamil-speaking Catholics, Hindus, and Muslims. They have been vastly affected by the war and have been trying their best to develop themselves in the past 13 years, after the end of war,” she added. Saroor added that there are many female-headed families in the Mannar District going through hardships in order to build up their livelihoods, mainly based on selling dried fish and cultivating vegetables.  Saroor noted that everyone in the Mannar District has been affected by the war, and that the district includes people who are slowly returning to their own lands from internally displaced persons’ camps and from other areas.  “The main concern of the three Tamil-speaking communities in the Mannar District is to uplift their livelihood, rather than night clubs and other forms of entertainment included in the proposed night-life. These communities will not be interested in night clubs, selling liquor, and encouraging sex workers. Religiously, none of these communities can digest the talk about such tourist activities in Mannar island. Already, this island has been taken away for various environmentally degrading projects,” she said. She said that Mannar is known for fishing, and that it is also a rice-bowl area, which many are unaware of. “Those proposing development projects must understand that we were asked to grow our own food. When we are already growing our food, why are they going to bring night clubs?” she queried.  “Mannar has fertile soil and we are cultivating. Maybe the South is suffering, but in the North and the East, irrespective of the fertiliser ban, people are cultivating. There is coconut, rice, and animal husbandry in the Mannar District. The Mannar community is self-sufficient. It is naturally set up for bird-watching because lots of birds fly through the Mannar area during various seasons,” she noted. “Due to the war and the closure of the A9 Road, people in Mannar are used to the way that they have been living. This artificial development is going to cause various problems. Tourist development projects are going to displace a large number of families. They would ask the Mannar people to move out of the island,” she added. Meanwhile, Saroor also pointed out the attempts made by foreign companies such as the Adani Group to acquire lands in the Mannar District for oil exploration and to build a port for Indian ships to dock. She also accused Gamage of making racist comments about the people in Mannar and their livelihoods.  “Gamage said that when she was a child, she was told by adults in her home that she would be sent to Mannar to make dried fish if misbehaved. This is a racist comment. She is saying that the situation in Mannar is comparatively bad, and that it is an underdeveloped district.” Saroor noted that the Mannar community was already crushed by the 30 years of civil war, and that Gamage is attempting to dominate them. Newly appointed State Minister of Tourism Diana Gamage said last week that Sri Lanka could develop the Mannar island into an entertainment-centric tourist hotspot that will use the US dollar as its currency like Macau. As she assumed duties, Gamage said: “We can make Mannar island an entertainment location like Macau. Business can be done in US dollars instead of Sri lankan rupees.”  She also claimed: “When we were young, our parents used to scare us by saying that we may be taken to Mannar to make dried fish. Is making dry fish the solution for Sri Lanka? Why do we keep Mannar to produce dry fish, when we can earn US dollars?”  


More News..