SLDF's Child Rights Campaign

Most pressing issue: Protect under-age Tsunami victims in the East from recruitment as child-soldiers

  


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news, recent NGO statements

background material

A War-torn Night

Sivaramani

Our children
grow
in the oppression
of a war-torn night.

Faceless and bloodied
corpses
thrown across their
sun-lit dawns;
walls crumbling
around their joy
kids cease to be
children.

The silence of a
starry sky
shattered
the sound of guns
the memory of childhood
disappears.

Making toys
playing games
forgotten
in benighted days.

They learn
to shut the gates
listen
to the strange
bark of dogs.

To not ask
to be silent
when questions remain
unanswered,
they learn
to be mute,
to pluck the wings
of dragonflies
to fashion guns
from sticks
and kill friends turned foes;
these games
they learn.

In the oppression
of a war-torn night
our children grow.

 

Translated by Chelva Kanaganayakam in ‘Lutesong and Lament’

SLDF statement issued on July 16, 2004:

Child Security and Protection is the first step towards Rehabilitation

  

SLDF statement issued April 15, 2004:

Protect Dissident Cadres, Child Soldiers and Civilians in the East

Sri Lanka Democracy Forum calls on UNICEF, the GOSL, SLMM and others to work towards protection of children from recruitment in the North and East, more particularly in relation to the current crisis in eastern Sri Lanka.

SLDF joins forces with the children of the Eastern Province, their families and broader community to call for urgent action to address child security and protection. As the LTTE recruitment drive has intensified, more and more families are also openly resisting recruitment in the East – a resistance that has met with it’s particular brutal backlash. We call on all actors to take proactive steps in solidarity with these children and their families in fighting recruitment. Every child has a right to family life, a right to education, a right to live in peace. We all have a responsibility to ensure that those rights are not violated.

We call for a fundamental revision in the UNICEF Action Plan on Children Affected by War given the accentuated vulnerability of the newly released, and the unrelenting brutality of LTTE recruitment. In fact, the specificity of the situation in the East may well warrant a second action plan.

continued..

  

The Sri Lanka Democracy Forum (SLDF) is alarmed and concerned about the safety of cadres, particularly child soldiers, who had been aligned with Colonel Karuna.

Reports indicate that when Karuna decided to disband the Eastern faction of the LTTE, he asked these cadres to return to their families.

Thousands of cadres have returned to their families or found refuge in the government controlled areas of the East.

Sources have informed SLDF that the invading Northern faction of the LTTE have been driving vans whose loud-speakers are announcing that all cadres who were with Karuna must register with the LTTE in the next few days or face grave consequences.

SLDF is concerned about the safety of such cadres; if these cadres do show up to register, those who appear to have been close to Karuna may be detained or disappear. Furthermore, child soldiers who register may be re-recruited.

continued..
             

The Collective for Batticaloa:

ALSO IN OUR NAME

When a word is deprived of its dimension of action, the word is turned into idle chatter, into verbalism. If action is emphasized exclusively, to the detriment of reflection, the word is converted into activism.
Paulo Freire, Pedagogy of the Oppressed.

The Collective for Batticaloa is a small group of people from southern Sri Lanka who toured certain areas in Batticaloa in order to assess the nature of the present political and socio-cultural climate prevailing there and to be in solidarity with the people of the east in these difficult times. Our visit was motivated by a need on our part to make contact with at least some people in the east. Since the time of the MOU and the Ceasefire Agreement there has been a no war situation in the country. The peace process has been hailed as bringing calm and prosperity to the country, with its economy beginning to thrive once more. Yet, it has also been severely criticized from many angles, notably by human rights groups, the UTHR in particular, and by groups representing Muslim interests in the north and east. Groups emphasizing minority concerns in the north and east including those of Muslims, and other ordinary people, including women and children, have consistently questioned the premises on which the peace process has been built. They claim that the peace process has brought very little peace to the war ridden areas, especially the east and that the peace is about peace in the south and peace for the market to expand than about peace for people living in the north and east.

continued..

News and recent NGO statements:
                       

The United Nations

The United Nations on Children and Armed Conflict

The UN Secretary General’s latest report on Children and Armed Conflict (CAAC) presented on February 9, 2005 is one of the most comprehensive reports to date on the subject. The report builds on four previous reports and provides detailed plans and recommended processes for monitoring and improving realization of children's rights, in line with the UN's declared "era of application."

The Report lists statistics on child recruitment and other information in a special section called, "Developments in Sri Lanka." Highlights include:

  • The LTTE has continued to use and recruit children despite the signing of the Action Plan.
  • During 2004, UNICEF reported 1,000 cases of new recruitment and re-recruitment.
  • A high percentage of girls made up the 2004 recruits.
  • There are 4,600 cases of child recruitment since April 2001.
  • Some recruits are as young as eleven.
  • The LTTE forcibly recruits children -- they beat family members and teachers that impede on the LTTE’s seizure of children.
  • The LTTE covertly recruits children -- they move on children when in transit to schools and religious festival sites.

In the most recent statement by Olara Otunnu, the UN Secretary General's Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict the LTTE is listed as an "offending party." This statement given to the UN Security Council on the 23rd of February delineates a plan of action to address offenser including publicly listing and targeting offenders, ensuring accountability, and establishing monitoring and reporting mechanism and proposes a timeframe. The statement calls for the following impositions to be placed on offending parties:

  • Concrete and targeted sanctions, which are overseen by a committee of the Security Council.
  • The making of a time-bound action plan within six months to end grave violations.

The Special Representative makes special mention of the LTTE. Otunnu remarks on a letter he received from LTTE political head SP Tamilselvan that reiterates the LTTE’s readiness to comply to UN standards. Otunnu responds by saying the following: "While I welcome this message from the LTTE, I call on their leadership to embark immediately on tangible actions, leading to a time-bound action plan to end, once and for all, the practices of recruitment, abductions, and use of children as soldiers."

I. Notes on 2005 SG Report on CAAC

The UN Secretary General’s latest report on Children and Armed Conflict (CAAC) presented on February 9, 2005 is one of the most comprehensive reports to date on the subject. The report’s detailed plans and recommended processes for monitoring and improving conditions that impede realization of the rights of the child build on four previous reports and exemplify the UN notion of the “era of application.” Section 3 of the report, “Action Plan for the Establishment of a Monitoring, Reporting and Compliance Mechanism,” carefully delineates all application points. In general the statement echoes previous reports and Security Council resolutions to make the following list of demands (among others):

  • Increased visibility and awareness of CAAC issues internationally.
  • Welfare of children to be at the forefront of peace negotiations between conflicting groups/parties.
  • Establishment of Child Protection Advisors (CPAs) in peacekeeping operations.
  • Listing and updating those parties that do not comply with UN standards, etc.

In the subsection on monitoring the report makes the following recommendations:

  • The gravest violations should be monitored; this includes recruiting or using child soldiers, abducting children, denying humanitarian access to children, etc.
  • Human rights standards should set the basis for monitoring. These standards include: the 1989 Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), the 2000 Optional Protocol to the CRC, the 1998 Rome Statute for the International Criminal Court (ICC), the 1999 International Labour Organization Convention 182 on the Worst Forms of Child Labour, the 1999 African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child, and the 1949 Geneva Conventions along with their two 1977 Additional Protocols.

In the subsection on gathering information on child rights the report recommends:

  • Those committed to actively gathering data are UN Peacekeeping Operations (UNPKO) and UN Country Teams (UNCT). These groups will work under the leadership of Representatives of the Secretary General (SRSG) and Resident Coordinators (RC).
  • The UN and its affiliates on the ground and internationally (government ministries/institutions, iNGOs, NGOs, civil society organization, etc.) communicate through Child Protection Networks (CPN).
  • CPNs will form Task Forces on Monitoring and Reporting (TFMR) that serve as the primary locus for monitoring and informational gathering at a national level.

In the subsection on responsibility and taking necessary actions the report recommends:

  • National governments have the most direct responsibility to ensure the protection of children and execute the actions proposed by the TFMR. The government is also responsible for rehabilitation of the child.
  • The Security Council (SC) is responsible for overseeing the monitoring and compliance progress for each country surveyed to ensure the demands by the TFMR are met. The SC is also responsible for mainstreaming child rights and making them central to peace negotiations. The SC should take targeted and concrete measures (including sanctions and travel bans) on those parties that do not comply with the standards.
  • The ICC should take steps to ensure the earliest possible prosecution of those parties that do not comply with the standards listed in the Rome Statute.

II. Notes on Resolutions

Much of this report is a compendium of reports and resolutions issued between 2001 and 2005. The three most noteworthy resolutions are: 1379 (November 20, 2001), 1460 (January 30, 2003), and 1539 (April 22, 2004). This period marks the inception and evolution of the “Era of Application” theme that is most prominent in the current report.

All resolutions cover similar themes and topics. Resolution 1379 is the earliest and therefore most general, and sets the basis for the other resolutions that follow. A point of transition for the content of the resolutions occurs between resolution 1379 and 1460. Points included in 1460 and not 1379 include:

  • The taking on of the notion of “Era of Application,” which is coined in the November 26th, 2001 Secretary General report.
  • Calls upon parties to “halt” recruitment of child soldiers.
  • Calls upon all parties involved to integrate and center well being of children in peace process and negotiations.

The theme of critical action becomes increasingly prominent between resolution 1460 and 1539. The following concrete points listed in 1539 exemplify this:

  • Claims advancements made for the protection of children. However, acknowledges lack of overall progress on issue.
  • “Strongly condemns” use of child soldiers in violation of international standards
  • Calls upon parties to create concrete Action Plans to be surveyed in three months.
  • A systematic monitoring and reporting process should accompany the Action Plans
  • Acknowledges the exploitation and abuse on young girls as being different from young boys.
  • Explicitly states the Security Council will be permanently “seized” by the CAAC issue.

III. The Latest UN reports and Sri Lanka

Background of UN Involvement:

In May 1998, the UN Secretary General’s Special Representative for Children in Armed Conflict, Olara Otunnu, held talks with the rebel organization Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) about the use of child soldiers. At that point, the LTTE formally committed to ending the use of children below the age of 18 in combat. They also committed not to recruit any under the age of 17.

In 2003, the LTTE increased commitments to ending the use of child soldiers by signing on to the Action Plan for Children Affected by War (Action Plan). This agreement commits the LTTE and its humanitarian wing the Tamil Rehabilitation Organization (TRO) to work directly with UNICEF to not only end child conscription but to also rehabilitate ex-cadres and reintegrate them into society.

According to UNICEF, since1998 the LTTE has continued to engage in child recruitment. In the time between January 2002 and November 2004 UNICEF documented 4,600 cases of child recruitment. After the Action Plan was signed the LTTE engaged in some release of children. However, according to UNICEF, the number of children recruited from June 2003 to September 2004 was more than twice of those released. Most recently, less than a month after the Asian tsunami hit Sri Lanka, UNICEF publicly reported that the LTTE recruited a total of 43 children -- three in the early part of January and 40 in the latter.

Special Reference to Sri Lanka in UN Reports:

The Secretary General’s Report (detailed earlier) lists statistics on child recruitment and other information in a special section called, “Developments in Sri Lanka.” The following points are highlights of the section:

  • The LTTE has continued to use and recruit children despite the signing of the Action Plan.
  • During 2004, UNICEF reported 1,000 cases of new recruitment and re-recruitment.
  • A high percentage of girls made up the 2004 recruits.
  • There are 4,600 cases of child recruitment since April 2001.
  • Some recruits are as young as eleven.
  • The LTTE forcibly recruits children -- they beat family members and teachers that impede on the LTTE’s seizure of children.
  • The LTTE covertly recruits children -- they move on children when in transit to schools and religious festival sites.

In the most recent statement by the Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict the LTTE is listed as an “offending party.” This statement given to the UN Security Council on the 23rd of February generally follows the theme of “Era of Application” carried throughout the Secretary General’s report. It concretely delineates plans of action (listing offenders, ensuring accountability, targeting offenders, and establishing monitoring and reporting mechanism) and time frames in which to achieve them. The statement calls for the following impositions to be placed on offending parties:

  • Concrete and targeted sanctions, which are overseen by a committee of the Security Council.
  • The making of a time-bound action plan within six months to end grave violations.

The Special Representative makes special mention of the LTTE. Otunnu remarks on a letter he received from LTTE political head SP Tamilselvan that reiterates the LTTE’s readiness to comply to UN standards. Otunnu responds by saying the following: “While I welcome this message from the LTTE, I call on their leadership to embark immediately on tangible actions, leading to a time-bound action plan to end, once and for all, the practices of recruitment, abductions, and use of children as soldiers."
 
                     

Human Rights Watch

Press release, New York January 14, 2005

Sri Lanka: Child Tsunami Victims Recruited by Tamil Tigers. LTTE May Seek Children to Replace Lost Forces

-- The rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE, or Tamil Tigers) are recruiting children affected by the tsunami for use as soldiers, Human Rights Watch said today.

Human Rights Watch said that the Tamil Tigers, who were already recruiting large numbers of child soldiers, now may seek to replace forces lost to the tsunami with child recruits.

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) reported Thursday on three cases of children recruited from camps for tsunami survivors in Batticaloa and Ampara, on Sri Lanka’s eastern coast. Human Rights Watch has received additional information on LTTE recruitment of children in Trincomalee and Jaffna.

Read the full News Release in English and Tamil at the following links:
In English: http://hrw.org/english/docs/2005/01/14/slanka10016.htm
In Tamil: http://hrw.org/tamil/press/2005/srilanka011405.pdf (for download)

Press release, New York, November 11, 2004

Sri Lanka: Tamil Tigers Forcibly Recruit Child Soldiers

– By abducting children or threatening their families, the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam have recruited thousands of child soldiers in Sri Lanka since active fighting ended in 2002, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today.

The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE, or Tamil Tigers) use intimidation and threats to pressure Tamil families in the north and east of Sri Lanka to provide sons and daughters for military service. When families refuse, their children are sometimes abducted from their homes at night or forcibly recruited while walking to school. Parents who resist the recruitment of their children face retribution from the Tamil Tigers, including violence or detention.

“ The ceasefire has brought an end to the fighting, but not to the Tamil Tigers’ use of children as soldiers,” said Jo Becker, children’s rights advocacy director for Human Rights Watch, and a co-author of the report. “Many Tamil families who expected a ‘peace dividend’ now expect an unwelcome visit from armed Tamil Tiger recruiters.” ...

Press Release, April 27, 2004:

Sri Lanka: Former Tamil Tiger Child Soldiers Remain at Risk

The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), an armed opposition group in Sri Lanka, must halt all efforts to recruit recently released child soldiers, Human Rights Watch said today. International agencies in eastern Sri Lanka should actively monitor the situation to help ensure the safety of hundreds of threatened children.
http://hrw.org/english/docs/2004/04/26/slanka8495.htm

 

 
Amnesty International

AI is also concerned by reports from Sri Lanka that orphaned children may be recruited as soldiers by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), in the north and east of the country and is monitoring this closely. Recruitment of children by the LTTE has been a longstanding concern. The organization is continuing to appeal for an immediate halt to this practice and is urging that those children recruited to date are returned to their families or communities.

From http://web.amnesty.org/pages/tsunami2-eng

The Coalition to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers

The Coalition to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers issue their 2004 Global Report

Download their 2,5 page 2004 Sri Lanka Country report here: http://www.child-soldiers.org/document_get.php?id=878

(62,9 kB pdf-file)
 

UNICEF

Colombo, April 16, 2004

UNICEF confirms death of two child soldiers in LTTE fighting, calls on the LTTE to ensure released child soldiers are not re-recruited

Follow link to http://www.unicef.org/media/media_20424.html

unicef

Background material for the child-soldier problem in Sri Lanka:
The Quaker United Nations Office

 

The voices of girl child soldiers Sri Lanka by Yvonne E. Keairns, Ph.D., The Quaker United Nations Office, 2003

To download the 66 page pdf-file, click on picture to the right -->

  
Office of the High Commissionar of Human Rights (UNHCHR)


Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child
on the involvement of children in armed conflicts
Adopted and opened for signature, ratification and
accession by General Assembly resolution
A/RES/54/263 of 25 May 2000
  entered into force on 12 February 2002

The States Parties to the present Protocol,
  Encouraged by the overwhelming support for the Convention on the Rights of the Child, demonstrating the widespread commitment that exists to strive for the promotion and protection of the rights of the child,

Read the full convention text..

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