Military use of children in Sri Lanka

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Sri Lankan Conflict
Background

• Sri Lanka • History of Sri Lanka
Origins of the Civil War

• Origins of the Civil War
• Black July • Human Rights Issues • Riots and pogroms
• Attributed State terrorism
• Prison massacres
• Tamil militant groups
LTTE

• LTTE • Attributed Terrorist attacks • Child Soldiers
• Attributed assasinations
• Notable Attacks • Expulsion of Muslims from Jaffna
Major figures

• Mahinda Rajapakse
• Velupillai Prabhakaran
• Karuna Amman
• Sarath Fonseka
Indian Involvement

• Indian Peace Keeping Force
• Rajiv Gandhi • RAW
See also

• Military of Sri Lanka
• TMVP • EPDP
• Notable assassinations

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Military use of children in Sri Lanka has been an internationally recognized problem since the inception of the Sri Lankan civil war in 1983. The primary recruiters of under age children are the rebel LTTE movement and the Para-military group known as the Karuna group.[1][2][3][4]

Contents

In Sri Lanka, thousands of children are in the ranks of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). Since signing a ceasefire agreement in 2001, the latest available UNICEF figures show that the LTTE has abducted 5,666 children until July 2006, although the organization speculates that only about a third of such cases are reported to them. Sri Lankan soldiers nicknamed one unit the "Baby Battalion", due to the number of children in it. 3The LTTE has been accused of knowingly recruiting and using child soldiers as front-line troops. Amid international pressure, LTTE announced in July 2003 that it would stop conscripting child soldiers, but both UNICEF and HRW have accused it of reneging on its promises, and of conscripting Tamil children orphaned by the tsunami.

The LTTE, however, denies any responsibility for recruitment of child soldiers. It also says that some underage youth lie about their age and are therefore allowed to join, but are sent back home to their parents as soon as they are discovered to be underaged.

In addition, the LTTE claims that they are not bound by the Second Optional Protocol to the Convention of the Rights of the Child, and that they therefore are entitled, just like the Sri Lankan state, to recruit youth that have reached the age of 17.[5]

The UNICEF stated that the LTTE recruited at least 40 children orphaned by the 2004 Asian Tsunami which left up to 30,000 people dead in Sri Lankan and hundreds of orphaned children.[6]

Children in resettlement camps for tsunami survivors, were reported to be haunted by fear of abduction. One child told a correspondent "Our teachers tell us to be careful, and our mothers tell us to come indoors after dark".[7]

More recently, TMVP known as the Karuna Group, has been held responsible for the abduction of children according to UNICEF and Human Rights Watch.[8] Allan Rock, who is a special advisor to the UN Special Rapporteur for Children and Armed Conflict Dr. Radhika Coomaraswamy, alleged[9] that government forces had forcibly rounded up young Tamil children to fight with Col Karuna's group. Colonel Karuna, while categorically denying any involvement in abducting children, questioned Rock's impartiality, stating that Allan Rock is a former politician with links to the LTTE who had previously helped the LTTE in Canada.[10] Civilians have also complained that the TMVP is continuing to abduct children, including some in their early teens, for use as soldiers.[11] Allan Rock wowed that he have "credible evidence" for the accusations.↑  The government of Sri Lanka and the Government newspaper Daily News asked Mr. Rock to produce substantive proof that Sri Lankan soldiers collaborated in child soldier recruitment.[12] Later in January 20, 2007 Government Defence Affairs Spokesman Minister Keheliya Rambukwella complaint about his report as "Allan Rock in his report to the UN has failed to provide the much needed credible evidence to prove his allegations against the Security Forces", and Defence Ministry web site published a report with a picture of Allen Rock with two key members of Eelam Society in Waterloo University in Toronto, Canada.[13]

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