| I couldn't imagine how a tremour underneath in the | | | | now everything has perished.Still I could hear those |
| form of an earthquake by tectonic plate movements | | | | melodies of a cinema song which was aired over a |
| caused a massive disaster in the coastal areas of | | | | radio while I was resting under the shade of a flock |
| most of the Indian Ocean Rim countries.Memories of | | | | of densely grown coconut trees.Oh! What an illusive |
| the early morning travel from George Town, the | | | | world, now everything has changed and everything |
| capital of Penang Island of Malaysia to the Teluk | | | | has disappeared. When I turned my attention from |
| Bahang, the northern coastal front of the island still | | | | the solid ruined wreckage where I was standing |
| come to mind with the different panoramas of the | | | | towards the distant northern horizon, the devastation |
| Strait of Malacca and the silently waving southern | | | | of the coastal villages Manarkadu, Nagarkovil and |
| seas of Andaman-Nicobar Islands in the far | | | | Chempianpattu were coming to mind.All were |
| distance.Likewise the memories of my recent visit in | | | | destroyed leaving a few to witness to the horrific |
| association with a mission on disaster relief to the | | | | tidal waves to the forthcoming generations.Our next |
| northern regions of Kilinochchi, Mullaitivu and Jaffna | | | | destination, the Mulliavallai hospital which is located |
| come to mind.Dietmar Doring, Director of "Peace | | | | nearly fifteen kilometers away from Mullaitivu |
| Village International", a German national with his | | | | towards the jungle interior, is telling many stories of |
| country's young university students as volunteers, | | | | the events immediately after the tidal wave |
| Jean Claude Ramige, a veteran German documentary | | | | disaster.The hospital, which was originally for |
| filmmaker who visited and documented various issues | | | | maternity purposes has now turned to caring for the |
| ranging from the tribal' cultures to the worst war | | | | injured people from the tidal waves. It is struggling |
| atrocities around the world and a few relief work | | | | with a General Practitioner who is assisted by a |
| volunteers from some local television channels made | | | | retired medical practitioner and a junior medical officer |
| up the rest of the group.When we arrived in | | | | from a different hospital, while their medical service |
| Kilinochchi, twilight was turning into complete darkness | | | | requirement is to be provided by at least twenty |
| everywhere.A member of the Sea Tiger unit of the | | | | medical officers when compared with a standard |
| LTTE was all the way along with us by guiding us in | | | | developed country which has a healthy medical |
| the tsunami ravaged areas.The LTTE member was | | | | history.The German volunteers were busily unloading |
| telling us that they were discovering everyday the | | | | the medical equipment from one of the medium - |
| dead bodies of the tidal wave victims from a pond | | | | sized lorries out of the six-vehicle convoy which was |
| which was once a rain water catchment - source, but | | | | moving always together.These volunteers who came |
| now a sea water overflowing area.He said that the | | | | to Sri Lanka as part of their student exchange |
| bodies were being burnt immediately after recovery | | | | program to complete their internship are from various |
| and asked us to wait to witness that day's | | | | universities in different fields in the streams of |
| excavation.The heavy devastation had not only | | | | Economics, Business Administration, Sociology and so |
| shattered the coastal areas but also the planet earth | | | | on. They were very active in their humanitarian task |
| itself by changing its orbital direction by the explosion | | | | which they chose voluntarily.The German TV |
| it caused.We had a chance to meet a Catholic priest | | | | personnel were busy documenting the experiences |
| who narrowly escaped from the tragedy near his | | | | of those young European adventurers who were |
| totally perished church in coastal Mullaitivu.His visit to a | | | | volunteering in Asia by risking their lives to the |
| nearby church that fateful day saved him and left a | | | | epidemics which are always associated with tragic |
| spiritual leader alive, who could lead the remaining few | | | | devastation and other jungle borne diseases, dengue |
| who have lost their kith and kin and almost | | | | and the malaria. Friederike Wagner, a second year |
| everything.The flood ravaged ruins of the houses | | | | student of a leading German university was relating |
| were scattered everywhere and I managed to get | | | | her experiences a couple of hours ago.The satellite |
| onto a piece of debris to have a wider view of the | | | | transmission of that documentary would reach millions |
| area.Now I could see the far corner of the village | | | | of Germans in a few hours and certainly make them |
| "Kallapadu", a southern coastal hamlet of Mullaitivu | | | | heroes and heroines in their motherland.While we |
| which was totally devastated by the giant tidal | | | | were passing the bridge which links Mullaitivu to the |
| waves.My inner-eyes started to visualize in a distance | | | | mainland, speedily hurrying black - cranes from the |
| spectrum gradually and now I could experience the | | | | sea to the land frightened me, making me wonder |
| tragedies of the coastal hamlets "Semmalai" and | | | | whether there were new tidal waves on their way.A |
| "Alampil", which were almost sunk underneath, where | | | | couple of hours earlier we were told when we were |
| a few years ago, during my tenure as an officer in | | | | passing that bridge towards Mullaitivu, how the tidal |
| CARE International in the war - torn periods of the | | | | waves washed away the vehicles and the |
| northern region, I visited extensively and was | | | | passengers who passed-by. |
| amazed by the hospitality of those village folk, but | | | | |