KAROD - Our Story

The violent conflict in the North and East of Sri Lanka for the last 2 decades has largely ceased following the signing of the Memorandum Of Understanding between the Government of SriLanka and the Tamil separatist group the LTTE in 2002. Although the situation is calm the restrictions in mobility, communication and access to social facilities has yet to improve to really cater to the affected people. The physically impaired and mentally retarded are not able to receive proper treatment or to receive assistance to remedy their disabilities. The hospitals that exist in the District of Kilonochchi are confined to the town areas. The rural communities have no transport facilities to attend hospitals for treatment. The available public transport system is weak and, with higher charges imposed, the poor refrain from travelling. There were no facilities exist in the areas for regular treatment especially for the differently-abled.

However in Kilinochchi district today there are two institutions which offer a service so some of the differently-abled. One is Vetti Manai, which serves mentally impaired women who have no one to take care of them. The second is an organization called the White pigeon, which provides orthopedic appliances to the many war disabled people. The central Government is largely absence from this region and has yet to develop any special program for the differently-abled. There are also no international agencies with specific programs in Kilinochchi to assist differently-abled. Many of these agencies do consider differently-abled as a first priority for assistance in selected locations but none have special programs for them.

In this context the differently-abled people frequently loose faith in becoming like others and building self-confidence to overcome the physical handicaps that nature or war have bestowed on them. The caretaker family also tends to think that the differently-abled are a burden from nature and so often treat differently-abled as objects or sick people. The identity of the differently-abled in the community was fading away and psychological trauma and stress was increasing until KAROD was born.

KAROD, started by a group of differently-abled people in 1990, is now the only organization concentrating on their needs with special activities for those with disabilities and livelihood facilities for the caretaker family. KAROD helps create awareness in the wider community, provides counseling, relief assistance, education, medical assistance and income generation activities. Every 2 years, when fund permit. KAROD also hosts a local para-Olympic games.

The main cause of poverty in this region is that the materials needed to build livelihood resources were lost or destroyed during the violent conflict. Now the cessation of hostilities has enabled the wider community to re-build its lost assets but they are not properly mobilized to take the differently-abled along with them. These differently-abled, who have lost their natural powers are not easily able to realize that they have alternative abilities within themselves to help them overcome their disaster situation. They were in turn often excluded from community level activities the thinking behind this being that they were powerless unable people.

Politically the present trend shows little difference with neglect shown by the political masters who seem to consider differently-abled as a minor priority in their rehabilitation strategies. The community, displaced by the war, is in the process of returning home and trying to develop urgent livelihood sources. Technical knowledge is being given to these returnees helping them to establish sustainable development livelihoods. But the differently-abled have not been taken into account with technical assistance to suit their existing abilities. This trend in the district makes the differently-abled vulnerable to poverty, marginalization and powerlessness. They can be considered as excluded from the broader community based development

Yet there are positive trends towards the differently-abled. From previous experiences of the KAROD programs it is demonstrated that with counselling and necessary awareness raising, which helps build self-confidence, the differently-abled can attain skills comparable to that of an ordinary person and can be enabled to execute or participate in many community level activities. Once confident that they can create attitudinal changes in the community differently-abled are stimulate to find ways of building their own livelihood sources.

There are still a number of barriers identified that prevents the effective development of the differently-abled community. The culture of the wider community is still not to expose the disability to outsiders. The differently-abled member’s family feels that the disability is a type of disease that cannot be overcome. The people themselves have no idea about the alternative powers they have within them.

In this situation KAROD is making a real difference. The organization has been working with the differently-abled in the Kilinochchi District since 1995. KAROD’s Board members come from the differently-abled community and there is a real sense of ownership of ‘their organization. KAROD’s village volunteers are concentrating on helping their village beneficiaries raise awareness and explored all possible assistance with them to overcome their bodily restrictions or to improve their coping mechanism.

KAROD is the only organization which really gets in-touch with the differently-abled at village level. The staff are exposed to frequent training in how to manage disabilities, develop alternative abilities and to establish realistic rehabilitation programmes. But more capacity building and skills development is needed to enable KAROD to deliver better and more effective programs, Sister Lourdes, of the Holy Family Congrgation, the present Director of KAROD says, ‘the fact that not one beggar has to sit on the A9 Road thorough Kilonochchi to Jaffna is clear evidence that despite the troubles faced by the differently-abled KAROD has played a major role in ensuring that people no longer beg for assistance to survive, a common sight on the streets of Colombo’.