I live in Saveriyarpuram. I studied up to grade 9 at Silavathurai school. I stopped my studies because of poverty and as I was the eldest in the family. I have been going out to sea since the age of 10. After I stopped school I educated my 8 brothers. When the ethnic conflict started in 1985, I went to India. When we went to Thalaimannar, the army shot at us. They shot at us from afar, and 15 of us got out of the boat and ran away. Later we paid 3000 per head and went at night. They took us from Thanushkodi camp to Mandabam camp. We stayed there from 1985 to 1990 and faced many hardships. They gave 75 rupees per male and 55 per women. That was not enough for us, so we went out and looked for work; sometimes we had work, sometimes we didn’t get any.