In the Loop: May 21, 2009 Archive

For Manju, going home to Sri Lanka wasn't even an option -- but now?

Posted at 11:50 AM on May 21, 2009 by Sanden Totten (1 Comments)

Over the 25 years of civil war in Sri Lanka, hundreds of thousands of people have left the country. They traded the familiarity and common culture of their homeland for the safety and relative peace of other countries. But for many of them, there was always a question of when to return home.

Composer Manjunan Gnanaratnam at work.
Photo from MNArtists.org

After announcements earlier this week that the war may finally be over, many Sri Lankan refugees are facing the prospect of finally answering that question. The Sri Lankan government itself is appealing to refugees abroad, asking them to come home and help rebuild the country. But for people like Manjunan Gnanaratnam, the answer doesn't come easy.

Manju has lived in the U.S. for a quarter century now. He has built a life here but he still holds close ties with Sri Lanka and thinks about his homeland daily. We spoke with him recently about what the end of the civil war means to him, and what he plans to do now that it is finally over.

This is but one of many glorious segments from our latest podcast episode. Get the whole thing here!

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