The Cage



Bill and I both finished the book by Gordon Weiss, called the Cage. We couldn't put it down. It is the history of the war between the Sri Lankan army (Sinhala) and the LTTE (Tamil). It is a very well written, and we both think a very objective documentation of the history of the struggle between these two ethnic groups. It is a very disturbing account of racism, discrimination and struggles for power.

Here in Jaffna, the war has only been over two years and it was here that the fighting really happened. Evidence of war is everywhere. Bombed and shelled homes, about every 10th home has been shelled heavily. It only recently occurred to me that with that shelling, people have most likely been killed. It is very sobering.

I have begun to learn more about the war. People in the south of Sri Lanka don't talk about the war, because it really didn't affect them. Here, the war was in the Tamil people's back yard. People tell you their stories. At work, I will begin to hear the stories as I begin to support the "Trauma Team." I must leave it to your imagination to fill in the meaning of the work I will be doing. Something that Sri Lanka is being internationally scrutinized and criticized about. What can I possibly offer this team?

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