Cologne: "The situation in the war zone in the Vanni region in the North of Sri Lanka is extremely worrying. Thousands of people are trying to flee from the front, most cannot salvage more than the clothes they are wearing", says Dr. Juergen Clemens, Sri Lanka expert at Malteser International. "The situation in the so called 'transit camps' is increasingly deteriorating as new Internally Displaced Per-sons (IDPs) arrive daily. The people are living under terrible conditions, they do not have enough water and too little food." Therefore in addition to the outbreak of diseases there is also a threat of famine in the camps. In northern Sri Lanka Malteser International is therefore helping people who, because of the civil war, have lost all their belongings and been forced to leave because of the fight-ing.
"The hygiene conditions are incredibly bad," says Clemens. "Above all, pregnant women, mothers and children are suffering in this situation." Together with its Sri Lankan partner organisation Sarvodaya, and probably with financial support from the Federal Foreign Office of Germany, Malteser International will distribute hygiene kits to those affected (including among others soap, washing bowls, baby powder and diapers). Local health workers will educate people in the camps about es-sential hygiene practices and about how best to avoid contracting infectious diseases. Malteser International will also provide the families with clothes and mosquito nets.
Attention editors: Dr. Juergen Clemens, Sri Lanka-expert at Malteser International, is available for interviews. Call: 0221/9822-125
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[ Any views expressed in this article are those of the writer and not of Reuters. ]
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