Last week, a ship carrying humanitarian aid called Mercy Mission left England for Northern Sri Lanka to help innocent civilians caught in the war between the Tamil Tigers and the majority holding Sinhalese government. The boat has not made it to Sri Lanka, and might never get to those who need it despite the support of world renowned rapper and new mother M.I.A.

A navy official told the Sri Lankan paper the Daily Mirror the Navy would open fire on the ship if it did not have the approval of the government. The Daily Mirror also reported that the government suspects the ship is carrying food for the Tamil Tigers (LTTE), not civilians. M.I.A., a Tamil who left Sri Lanka in the 1980s, has been trying to get the word out on the problems in Sri Lanka through her songs and interviews. It’s nice to see her backing it up.

“Many have already perished from starvation and preventable disease. We cannot ignore these genocidal conditions,” says M.I.A., “and if the aim of the SL Government is to protect the lives of the civilians, then this ship will reach its destination and lives will be saved.”

When I was in Sri Lanka in 2007, none of the kids had ever heard of M.I.A. They were, however, huge fans of System of a Down, Korn, Linkin Park, Eminem and the Eagles. It was before M.I.A. got insanely popular, but it’s funny to think that the only Sri Lankan the Western World knows is M.I.A. while Sri Lankans know all of our music and not even M.I.A.

This story is hard to track because of the known media bias in Sri Lanka. Check out Pitchfork’s take and also The Quietus. For an unbiased look at what’s going on in Sri Lanka now, check out Lanka Page.