Asian island nation

Tweet

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Download MP3

In the Geo Quiz we’re searching for the jungles of Mullaitivu this time. These jungles are found at the northern end of an island nation in the Indian Ocean. It’s an area that was scarred by a civil war that dragged on for 25 years. In fact, a brutal battle between the government and this country’s separatist movement took place there two years ago.

So where is this jungle that was only recently a war zone?

---

Geo Answer:

The jungles of Mullaitivu turn up at the northern tip of Sri Lanka, the answer to our Geo Quiz. This area served as a key Tamil Tiger base during the final stages of Sri Lanka’s long civil war.

Human rights advocates say thousands of civilians were killed here in government shelling. Now, the Sri Lankan government wants to rehabilitate the one-time war zone. It says it will designate about 100,000 forested acres as a nature preserve.

The BBC’s Elettra Neysmith has details:

“The jungles of Mullaitivu were at the heart of the Tamil Tiger insurgency. For decades it was home to key rebel bases and was the scene of some of the heaviest fighting during the final stages of Sri Lanka’s bloody civil war. But 18 months after government forces finally defeated the rebels, the area has been declared a wildlife sanctuary. A government statement said it would be used to help Sri Lanka’s elephant population which has dwindled over the last century from 15,000 in 1900, to just 4,000 today. As deforestation destroys their natural habitats, the elephants venture out in search of food. The government say more than 200 of them were killed last year — electrocuted or shot by villagers in an entirely different sort of conflict.”

The jungles of Mullaitivu were heavily mined during Sri Lanka’s civil war. The government estimates “hundreds of thousands of landmines” will need to be cleared. Officials hope the sanctuary will eventually attract much needed eco-tourism dollars.