Refugee return and Ditwah recovery require improved partnerships

By The National Peace Council

The call by Minister Bimal Rathnayake for Sri Lankan refugees in India to return home, with assurances of reintegration support, is a welcome and positive step. Encouraging refugee return is an important signal that the past is not being ignored. Nearly 90,000 Sri Lankan refugees remain in India, many of whom have lived there for 30 years or more. Their return cannot be treated as a routine administrative process. The Government has a special responsibility to ensure that those who choose to return are received into a safe, supportive, and well-prepared environment. They must not be left stranded or pushed into already strained communities without adequate housing, livelihoods, and social support. The younger generation who may be part of the group returning home needs more assurances and inducements to live in a country which may be for the first time in their life.

 The ongoing gaps in post-disaster recovery following Cyclone Ditwah highlight the need for stronger planning, partnerships and delivery by the Government when it comes to resettling the returnees from India. Four months after the cyclone, over 153,000 people remain displaced, with many still living in temporary shelters, with host families, or in “emerging informal” settlements. This includes a significant number of hill country Malaiyaha Tamil families in temporary camps, schools, and unsafe structures. Relief and reconstruction in plantation areas lag far behind the rest of the country. A key reason is the absence of clear policy direction, especially on land allocation, housing responsibility, and institutional coordination.

 The National Peace Council deems three immediate steps to be essential. First, the Government should establish a high-level state authority to oversee both Ditwah recovery and refugee return, with overriding authority to resolve bottlenecks, ensure equitable distribution of assistance, and publish transparent timelines and progress updates. This mechanism should ensure that land allocation, housing, compensation, and infrastructure repair are handled in a timely and consistent manner across all affected areas. A model to follow may be the Mahaweli Authority created in 1979 under a special Act to implement the Mahaweli River Diversion, which was the largest integrated development project in Sri Lanka’s history. Because of the scale and urgency of the programme, the Authority was given exceptionally wide powers that cut across normal ministerial boundaries with the president taking special interest in it.

 Second, the Government should prioritise immediate relief alongside long-term resettlement by ensuring that all displaced families have access to safe transitional shelter with basic services, while fast-tracking permanent housing with secure land tenure, fair compensation, and functioning local infrastructure. Accessible grievance mechanisms and communication in local languages should be part of this effort to ensure accountability and inclusion.

 Third, the Government should form structured partnerships with non-Governmental organisations and community groups, including experienced organisations such as Sarvodaya and Organisation for Eelam Refugees Rehabilitation (OfERR) in the case of Indian returnees. These partnerships should be formalised and task-oriented, enabling rapid delivery of transitional shelter, permanent housing support, livelihoods, and psychosocial services. Civil society brings field experience, community trust, and operational capacity that can significantly strengthen state efforts. We urge the Government to mobilise the support of non-Governmental organisations in particular for this purpose. Their involvement will strengthen and extend the reach of Government efforts. With careful planning and strong partnerships, this effort can support reconciliation and help build a more stable future for all.