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| War and Peace | | A lot has changed since my last article “War and Websites”. Prabakaran has been declared dead. Celebration in the Sinhalese areas, tears in the Tamil areas. | | More... | |
| Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Richard Boucher and U.S. Ambassador to Sri Lanka Robert Blake met with several U.S.-based organizations representing members of the Tamil diaspora to discuss the humanitarian situation in Sri Lanka. | | More... | |
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 Volunteer/Apprentice/Intern at OfERR |
Various Indians and foreigners support the work of OfERR by contributing their services as Resource people and/or ‘Friends of OfERR’. Hundreds of Foreigners from all over the world (Doctors, scholars, professors as well as graduates from prestigious universities like Harvard, John Hopkins etc) come to OfERR to work as Volunteers. At the moment, there is an English man, Mark Crosthwaite, who is volunteering 6 months of his time to teach English.
 "I had been following the situation in Sri Lanka for some time, and I wanted to learn more about the lives of civilians affected by the conflict. My research led me to OfERR, and their website provided some useful information about the organisation's work with Tamil refugees in southern India. Having gained a Trinty College TESOL qualification in the UK, I felt that I could make a limited but useful contribution to the refugee community as a volunteer English teacher. I wrote to OfERR and they invited me to join them in Tamil Nadu.
Upon arrival in Chennai I was immediately made to feel very welcome by all the staff working with OfERR. I was well cared for and was given lots of information about OfERR's work and its vision of a peaceful return to Sri Lanka. I met with the organisation's founder, Mr. Chandrahasan, and we arranged a programme of work for my visit. I worked with some college students in Chennai before moving on to OfERR's regional offices elsewhere in Tamil Nadu. I taught communicative English to the OfERR staff, and also worked in nearby refugee camps, teaching school and college students eager to improve their English (and excited by the foreign visitor!)
I really enjoyed my time in Tamil Nadu, working in sometimes difficult conditions but supported by generous, committed people. I learned a great deal about the lives of many Sri Lankan Tamils in India - their reasons for fleeing their homes, their struggle to find work and improve living conditions in their camps, their plans for the future. To hear these thoughts from the affected people themselves was a valuable experience for me. I wish them all a peaceful future which promises both safety and freedom.
I hope that the people I met also learned from me. Certainly OfERR was eager to make use of me, and took an interest in my teaching methods and resources. The organisation hopes to use these ideas to benefit future English teachers and learners in the refugee community. In this way they aim to ensure that the volunteer does not simply pass through, but makes a lasting contribution to the rehabilitation of Sri Lankan Tamil refugees.”- Mark Crosthwaite.
To Volunteer/Apprentice/Intern at OfERR, Please click on the link below and fill in the online form.
Online Form
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| Visit to OfERR (20 Nov- 5 Dec 2008) |
I will never forget the smiles and kind hospitality I was shown during my visit to Chennai last year. Though my visit was very short, I have learnt much from the refugees and was deeply touched by their resilience and resourcefulness to survive in spite of the difficult living conditions and numerous societal constraints.
I was most impressed by the commitment of the many individuals - people like Minoor Camp President, Mr Raja to Dr Chandrahasan, the founder of OfERR who works selflessly to fight for the recognition and improvement of the lives of the refugees.
I would like to thank all the volunteers at OfERR who helped made our school trip visit possible and more importantly the refugees who had so kindly opened up their homes and lives to us. Though the time spent together was brief, the encounter left a profound impression in our hearts and mind.
As the teacher mentor to the students for this trip, I had witnessed the development of these students over the course of their stay by becoming more independent and more culturally aware. The students bonded through painting murals in the nursery at the Chinnapalikupaam camp, and learnt how to plan and conduct activities such as the English classes and Art and Craft lessons for the children at the Minoor Camp.
I will treasure these experiences and memories always, and I believe my students will too.
Ms Chan Wan Cheng
Teacher mentor, Raffles Junior College
OfERR visit 20 November - 5 December 2008
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