On June 4th, 2004, communities that are being negatively affected by the Southern Transport Development Project (STDP) in Sri Lanka, filed a complaint with the ADB’s Accountability Mechanism. The complaint, submitted by the Joint Organisation of the Affected Communities of the Colomba-Matara Highway, raises the following concerns, amongst others:
- The road trace currently being developed is not the one originally approved by the ADB. As a result, the required environmental and social assessments were never conducted.
- They have lost, or will lose, their homes as a result of this project; Forced resettlment is already taking place without a resettlement plan. In some instances communities have been forced onto lands without water or electricity.
- The project stands to destroy an environmentally sensitive wetland.
- The project will disrupt and disperse extensive family networks spanning four generations which have always resided within walking distance.
- Five temples will be damaged.
The ADB Accountability Mechanism requires that complaints first be submitted to the Special Project Facilitator (SPF). The SPF will determine whether the case is eligible to be addressed by his office within 21 days of having received the complaint.
Web page on the Special Project Facilitator (SPF) (ADB website)
For more information on the ADB’s Accountability Mechanism, click on the following link:
ADB Accountability Mechanism (ADB website)