Three years after the Indian Ocean tsunami left over 32, 000 Sri Lankans dead and 500,000 survivors homeless, this island country stands on the brink of another disaster — this time manmade and in the shape of an all-out war between Tamil separatist rebels and the country’s armed forces.

Since December 2005 skirmishes and battles have been escalating between government forces and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), ignoring a ceasefire brokered by Norway five years ago. With international efforts to get the belligerents across a table repeatedly failing, over 4,500 people, mostly civilians, have died and hundreds of thousands forced to flee their homes in what, many already be war. Amantha Perera (VS ‘04) warns that Sri Lanka stands on the brink of another disaster at Inter Press Service (IPS).

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