To celebrate the Best Practice winners 2010 – 2011, we will be
running a special series of Best Practice blogs over the coming days.
These articles are written by the clubs themselves, and in many cases
will appear in English and the language of the club. We hope you enjoy
learning about the 2010 – 2011 Best Practice projects and take away
ideas and inspiration for the future!

 

Programme Focus Objective: Promote peaceful conflict resolution, inter-cultural and inter-racial tolerance and condemn genocide.

We in Sri Lanka welcome with great relief and
joy the end of the very long thirty year war which had caused
so much grief and loss of life on the island. The conflict was more visible in
the North and East of Sri Lanka, often spilling over to
other areas with sporadic attacks on buildings and civilians.

At the end of the war nearly half a million
people were displaced. Many civilians who were trapped in the
war torn areas crossed over to the safer areas patrolled by the Government
authorities and were
housed in temporary make shift tents and school buildings. Much assistance was given to these people by foreign NGO’s such as the Red
Cross, and local service organisations based in Sri Lanka, as well as the Government authorities.

Members of Soroptimist International of
Colombo actively associated themselves in projects to assist the internally displaced persons in
their private capacity and later at Club level. One of our members was involved with “The
Methwela Foundation" which assisted  the
IDP’s with donations of many items of food, clothing and special packages
containing items necessary for the many pregnant ladies as well as newborn
babies present in the camps. The Club funded a reasonable quantity of packages given to the  pregnant ladies as they felt that it was a
much needed requirement – just as important as food and clothing.All these items too had to be sent to the
internally displaced persons through the airforce and organisations which  were 
permitted to visit the area.

The Club was later informed of the good work
done by the Sisters of Charity who, while providing accomodation to most of the sick and elderly displaced persons, were providing them with food and
medical needs. Since most of the inmates needed treatment in hospital the
nuns were desperately in need of a suitable vehicle to transport the sick. The
transport available to them at that time was unsuitable or non functional.
The Club decided to assist them
with funds and also  contacted some of their friendship link
Clubs for assistance. The Hamamatsu Club was quick to respond and a member of
the Club Mikiko Sasaki who visited Sri Lanka made a donation of Rs 200000/- to
the nuns for this purpose on behalf of the Club. Members of SI Colombo are
indeed very grateful to the Hamamatsu Club for their prompt action in making a
donation towards this worthy cause.

The Sisters of Charity have now purchased a van which can transport the old and the sick comfortably to the hospital. Much has been done over the last two years to
resettle the internally displaced persons. The numbers were great but there has
now been a perceptible reduction and the Government authorities have resettled
many persons in their place of origin. Schools which were destroyed are being
re established and  children who were
unable to go to school could now do so.

Travelling to the North of the island is much
easier, safer and rules more flexible. It is the hope that members of
Soroptimist International of Colombo could now visit these areas and see what
could be done to help these women and children, some of whom are still
homeless and have gone through so much
trauma over the years.

SIGBI SI Colombo