Children in the East and North East of Sri Lanka were particularly affected by the 25 year conflict between the mainly Singhalese government of Sri Lanka and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). The 2004 tsunami caused further death and destruction to coastal communities in this region of Sri Lanka. These photographs, commissioned by UNICEF, document efforts to improve the lives of children living in this area where thousands died and many families were displaced. In 2009, just after the formal cessation of hostilities in the 25-year civil war and five years after the tsunami, I visited schools and health centres where attempts were being made to improve access to education and medical facilities and to bring some semblance or normalcy to children's lives.