Filming Sri Lanka's displaced

Filming Sri Lanka's displaced

Sri Lanka is in the unusual position of preparing for a presidential election while just under 100,000 of its citizens are being held in refugee camps. Yes, they can leave temporarily, but they can't go home.

We were granted the chance, by the Sri Lankan Army, to visit one of the camps, which were set up to house those displaced during the final stages of the civil war against the rebel Tamil Tigers. At its peak, the population was more than 245,000.

The Sri Lankan government was condemned in some quarters for forcing the Tamils into the camps, where according to some, the living conditions were less than satisfactory.

There's no doubt we were taken to the best one, and were closely watched by the officials.

We were rarely out of their sights, while a television crew from a rival channel, was allowed to wander freely. Perhaps it was felt that they could be trusted to tell the story from the military's point of view, as opposed to that of the residents.

The people seemed to be well catered for. The temporary housing is relatively well built. However, just down the road we saw "tent cities" that appeared to be a lot worse.

The common comment from the refugees was: "We just want to go home."

To be fair to the Sri Lankan government, it has released many people, who are now re-building their homes and their lives. But on our journey north, we also came across families who had been released, but were told they couldn't go back to where they lived yet, because the army is still de-mining.

In the meantime, they've set up camp on the side of the main road. In many cases, they've taken shelter in the bombed out remains of other people's homes. For them, the battle is not over.

The minority Tamils have long felt they’re not treated fairly by the Sinhalese dominated government. If the Sri Lankan authorities don’t act swiftly, I can see that sentiment growing.