To:  U.N. Secretary General
Dated: 26th November 2006

To
His Excelleny Mr. Kofi Annan
U.N. Secretary General
UN Head Quarters
New York

Your excellency Mr. Kofi Annan,

We as people who have faith in Peace and Justice would like to call up on your attention to rescue the lives hundred thousands of innocent Tamils in Jaffna peninsula and Vaharai, North East of Sri Lanka.
Background
On 18 August 2006, the Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) closed the A9 High way, the mainland route connecting Jaffna peninsula through elephant pass with the rest of Sri Lanka. In the face of a conflict, the Sri Lankan government has placed the people of Jaffna peninsula under quarantine, blocking off communications and food supplies by land, air and sea. This has resulted to a humanitarian crisis leading to dire shortage of food, starvation, vulnerability of diseases and a cycle of unemployment. It is estimated around 600, 000 people in Jaffna peninsula and around 40,000 people in Vaharai are caught in this trap.
Situation: Starvation, diseases and deaths
Essential commodities prices have risen up to 10 times after the closer of the A9 highway. There is a shortage of supplies leading to higher price that people cannot afford to buy their daily food anymore.
The first cases of death from starvation have been reported from the Jaffna peninsula last week.

A humanitarian catastrophe has since broken leading to the starvation of large amount of people. A shortage of medical supplies and doctors has worsened the situation.

East part of Sri Lanka faces the same situation where tens of thousands are being starved in Vaharai. Food and medicine is being blocked as artillery and air-strikes pound the region where 40,000 people who fled the military’s offensives in Trincomalee have forced to seek refuge under the trees with sack tents and temporary shelter facing dangerous diseases.

School attendence of teachers and students has droped down 25 to 40 percentage since the humanitarian crisis. Two deaths were confirmed due to the spreading of a strange viral fever with out proper control or medical aid.

Even the rebuilding work following the tsunami had ground to a halt because as part of its blockade, the government had stopped the transport of building materials into the peninsula.

Many business establishments are being closed and reduced the labour force due to the shortage of supplies adding vulnerability on employment.

International aid agencies are being prevented entry to the affected areas by the government forces; that put an end to the supply of food, medicine and essential commodities.
Conclusion
The only solution to this problem, we can identify, is opening the A9 highway so that people can have access to food, medicine and basic necessities.

The refusal of the Sri Lankan government to open the A9 highway and access routes to Vaharai so as to alleviate the urgent needs of the people has unmistakably demonstrated that it doesn’t care about the welfare of the ordinary Tamil civilians.

The government’s preparedness to starve an entire community as a way to win the war reveals its true nature. Food is used as a weapon of war.

Our Appeal
We urge the UN, the democratic governments, the international bodies and humanitarian organisations to take action in not only finding a way to end this humanitarian crisis, but to ensure we can never be put into this situation again
We plead you to sanction the Government of Sri Lanka to:
1. Open all the passages including A9 highway so that the relief agencies can distribute food, medicines, essential commodities and medical team under their surveillance to address the immediate needs of the people who suffer.

2. Lift the economic embargo on the Tamil people and refrain from using food as a weapon of war by putting the lives of innocent civilians at risk.

3. Create a condition of normalcy to the people, so that they can return into their life activities (including work, studies, and celebrations) with out any huddles and fear.

CC: Heads of the world’s democratic states,
CC: The European Parliament, UN Commission on Human Rights,
CC: Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch

Sincerely,