P.O.Box 782, Egmore, Chennai 600 008, India.
ISSUE
127
FEBRUARY 2003
JAFFNA MEDICAL EXPERT
EXPRESSES UNHAPPINESS OVER HEALTH CONDITIONS IN NORTHEAST
Despite peace in the Northeast
of Ceylon, there is no improvement in the health conditions of the people said
Dr. N. Sivarajah, Head of Department of Community Medicine, University of
Jaffna. He claimed that nearly a third
of the health institutions in the territory are not functioning.
Dr. Sivarajah speaking
to reporters in Jaffna said the health service in the Northeast is very
poor. Patients have no choice but to
wait for long time even to get treatment for minor health ailments. And minor health ailments ultimately lead to
major problems even to deaths. He said, Several hospitals are closed down or
functioning Part-time with someone visiting at intervals and treating patients.
There is an acute shortage of Doctors, Nurses, Family Health Workers and other
preventive staff. He said sanitation is poor leading to epidemics of water
borne diseases. Diseases are rampant caused by Mosquito. Mosquito control
measures are not properly executed. As a result viral fevers are on the
increase with several deaths.
The Jaffna Medical Association
has invited the medical experts from abroad to visit the Northeast. Several of them spend their time and
resources to visit the Medical institutions in Jaffna and other parts of the
Northeast. The Association also plans to host its annual conference in February
between the 20th and 22nd.
CHILD CONSCRIPTION BY LTTE
CONTINUES - NEW YORK TIMES
The New York Times of
January 06 in a report by Amy Waldman filed from Kinnaiyadi, Jaffna states that
the child conscription by the LTTE continues. It said that ten days ago, at
least 18, and possibly 60 or more, young people, according to different
villagers’ estimates, were taken off to join the LTTE, one of the world’s most
ruthless and effective guerilla movements. Many of these were boys and girls, some
as young as twelve.
The New York Times
report added that some were taken by force, yanked from houses or scooped up
along the roadside like found treasure. Others went ‘voluntarily’ to spare
their parents after Tiger cadres repeatedly threatened them if they did not
supply the movement with a child. They were loaded into tractor trailers and
taken away. The report further stated: ‘They insist that they no longer have,
or accept, children in their ranks. In recent months, they have undertaken the
highly publicised releases of 165 children.’
In an interview in
Kilinochchi, the Tigers’ administrative capital, the movement’s political
leader, S. Thamil Chelvan said, ‘We want to discount the disinformation
campaign of previous governments. There was no conscription. There were no
child soldiers. But in whispered interviews here villagers - afraid for their
lives if their identities were revealed told of a detailed recruiting campaign
in which the only way to save children was to send them away. One woman who had
two nieces and one nephew taken, told how parents, angry that they were losing
their own child had steered cadres towards their neighbours’ children as well.
A police intelligence official confirmed that children had been taken; he
estimated the number at 30 or 35. The villager interviewed put the number at 60
over three days. A representative of a human rights organisation, who
subsequently visited the village was told that 100 young people, mostly under
18, were taken. The Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission, a team of Scandinavians
instituted by both sides to monitor the ceasefire, has certified 281 cases of
child recruitment from February through October 2002, with more than 460 cases
still being investigated. In November there were 24.
There was a time when
young people, including some children, joined on their own. The cause seemed
just, and for a poor child, the movement offered meals and security. While some
children still join voluntarily, swayed by recruiting meetings at which Tigers
show propaganda films of battle victories, villagers say the appetite for war
here is gone. The Tigers alone have lost 17,600 cadres in battle, and the
country a total of more than 64,000 lives. So to bolster their ranks, the
Tigers appear to be continuing to use coercion, both of those under and over
18.
Whether classified as
recruitment or abduction, taking children into the movement is a violation of a
cease-fire agreement signed last February, which bars, in accordance with
international law, hostile acts against civilians. It is also a violation of
the Tigers’ own public pledges. The Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission, a team of
Scandinavians invited by both sides to monitor the cease-fire, has certified
281 cases of child recruitment from February through October, with more than
400 cases still being investigated; in November, there were 24.
"We also clearly
realize our complaints are the tip of the iceberg," said the group’s
spokesman, Teitur Torkelsson. "They’re not even half." In the north, international
aid groups have about 50 open cases of children who have been taken since the
cease-fire was signed. There have also been reports that homes the Tigers
maintain for children orphaned by war have been used as recruiting grounds for
the rebels.
But most of the
complaints come from the Batticaloa district in Eastern Province, where this
village is situated. In fact, the conscription in Kinnaiyadi appears to be only
the latest wave of forced recruitment, often of children, in the Batticaloa
area. Here, Tamils said, the Tigers’ policy remains as it has long been: every
family with three or more children must give one.
"They have
thousands, and they’re still taking them," said the Rev. Harry Miller, an
American Jesuit priest who has lived in the town of Batticaloa for more than a
half century. In July, he said, the Tigers took eight children from outside a
Hindu temple feast on the edge of Batticaloa."We haven’t gotten any
back," he said. Of the problems in the east, Mr. Thamilchelvam said they
were "instances" that had been brought to the notice of the high
command, and the political hierarchy had been ordered to make sure they were
not repeated. But he said the demographics of the area (there are large Muslim and Sinhalese
populations as well) meant that Tamil youths often sought protection by joining
the guerrillas. This village is technically under government control, with an
army camp at its border. But it has largely been forgotten by the government.
The school ends at fifth grade and often is closed. The only nearby hospital,
serving a constellation of villages and towns, can see only 50 patients a day.
Instead, it is the
Tigers who hold sway here, which is why villagers have been afraid to even make
an official complaint to the police. Residents, as in much of Batticaloa, say
they do not open their mouths except to eat. To speak, even anonymously, they
said, could mean putting their lives on the line. No one knows who is with the
Tigers, but anyone might be.
DEMINING PREREQUISITE FOR
RESETTLEMENT PROGRAMME
Sri Lankan
Rehabilitation, Resettlement and Refugees Minister Jayalath Jayawardane
speaking on the occasion of the signing of the Japanese Grant Contract at the
Hilton Hotel on January 6, 2003 said that his ministry was responsible for
resettlement. He said "demining is a prerequisite for the implementation
of any resettlement programme. Demining and resettlement have to go hand in
hand. Hence, demining becomes primary concern of this ministry. It was for this
purpose that the government has nominated my ministry as the focal point for
the demining programme. I am personally aware of the good work done by the
Norwegian People’s Aid, Halo Trust and the Mines Advisory Group in this area.
The Norwegian People’s Aid is currently working in the Wanni Region of Ceylon
along with TRO".
"The Halo Trust had
been conducting mine field surveys in government-controlled areas. With the
Japanese assistance they will be in a position to train and employ more
de-miners. I have gone through the future plans of Halo Trust and I have the
confidence that they will be able to complete the survey with the Japanese
assistance. The Mine Advisory Group is also working within the LTTE controlled
area in Wanni and I am told that they are working in partnership with Norwegian
People’s Aid to support and develop the work of the humanitarian demining unit
of the TRO. I also understand that the Mine Advisory Group is undertaking an
Emergency Mine Risk Education in the Wanni area as part of the survey project.
With the assistance from the Japanese Government, they will be able to continue
their work in the year 2003. I am extremely pleased about the assistance
provided under the Japanese grant aid programme and it is necessary and it is
possible that we may be able to render humanitarian assistance on large scale
and resettle people in their original homes in time to come. There are roughly
about 200,000 families who are displaced and there is spontaneous return of
large number of displaced people after the initiation of the peace process. The
government has been unable to resettle all those people due to the fact that
most of their residential areas have to be demined before any substantial
resettlement would take place. I thank the Japanese government who made
possible this assistance and I am extremely grateful to the Japanese Foreign
Minister who is here with us to grace this occasion".
ICRC TO HELP TRACE MISSING
PERSONS
The ICRC in a statement
issued from its headquarters in Geneva subsequent to the last round of peace
talks between the Sri Lankan Government and the LTTE says. "During the
last round of peace talks between the Sri Lankan Government and the Liberation
Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), the parties agreed to ask the International
Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to help them set up an independent
verification mechanism to ascertain the fate of persons unaccounted for in
connection with the conflict, a task which the ICRC has expressed its
willingness to take on".
"Under
international humanitarian law, all warring parties must respect the right of
families to find out what has become of relatives who went missing during the
hostilities and carry out whatever research is required for this. Acting as a
neutral intermediary between the families and the relevant authorities (Sri
Lanka security forces or LTTE), the ICRC has been active since 1990 in helping
people obtain information on the whereabouts of their missing loved ones".
"Over the last 12
years, the organization has been approached by the families of over 20,000
civilians and combatants of whom they have no news. After receiving tracing
requests providing details on these persons, it systematically submits their
names to the authorities in order to obtain information on what has become of
them. Some 11,000 tracing requests are still unresolved, about 2,200 of which
concern persons who have been confirmed missing. The organisation is currently
working on the remaining 8,800 requests and will continue its tracing work in
the country until all the families are provided with an answer. The ICRC is
increasingly concerned about the fate of persons unaccounted for in connection
with armed conflict and internal violence throughout the world and the anguish
this causes their families. It is deeply committed to heightening awareness of
this issue among governments, the military, national and international
organisations - including the worldwide Red Cross and Red Crescent network -
and the general public".
To that end, the ICRC is
planning to hold an international conference of governmental and
non-governmental experts on the issue of missing persons in Geneva in February
2003
LTTE WILL LAY DOWN ARMS ONLY
AFTER A LASTING SOLUTION FOUND SAYS BALASINGHAM
LTTE theoretician Anton Balasingham
addressing newsmen after the fourth session of the peace talks in Thailand
announced that the LTTE would not surrender arms till a lasting solution was
found and a new constitution was in place.He said the LTTE was genuinely
committed towards the peace process and would not betray the effort at anytime.
Balasingham added that once a lasting solution was found, the LTTE would
definitely lay down arms. "Until then we have an army and they need
arms", he noted.
He admitted that the
LTTE has lost 17,000 fighters during the 18-year old war while thousands
languished in state jails. ‘The government has so far released only 400
members’, he pointed out. In reply to another question, Balasingham said that
he and Tamil Chelvam had given an assurance to Olara Otunu that the LTTE will
not recruit children to the organisation to fight the war. However, he said
there were some instances reported about child recruitment as the LTTE were not
aware of the actual age of children as most of the Wanni children had no birth
certificates.
UNKNOWN GROUP SEIZE LORRY,
KIDNAP CHILD
The Army website
reported the seizure of a lorry and kidnapping of a child in Wanni by an
unknown group. The report said: An unidentified group of assailants had
assaulted four civilians, taken away their vehicle and kidnapped a child who
was with them while they were in the general area of Neeliyamottai, about 23 km
west of Vavuniya town on 08 January 2003 around 11.00 pm. A complaint made to
troops at Neeliyamottai stated that four civilians who were transporting timber
was assaulted by a group of assailants and an accompanying child Suman was
abducted along with their lorry. Vavuniya Police are conducting investigations.
NEED TO CREATE CONDITIONS FOR
ORGANISED VOLUNTARY REPATRIATION OF CEYLON TAMIL REFUGEES
The Government and the
LTTE have agreed to take measures to facilitate the return of over one million
Ceylon Tamil refugees scattered across the globe, with priority accorded to
some 64,000 Tamils in the refugee camps in Tamil Nadu, India. The consensus was
reached at a UNHCR sponsored workshop attended by senior representatives of the
Sub-Committee on Immediate Humanitarian and Rehabilitation Needs (SIHRN) headed
by Director Peace Secretariat Bernard Goonatilleke of the Sri Lankan Government
and Dr. Jay Maheshwaran representing the LTTE, at Killinochchi.
The parties noted that
these persons have the right to return to their country of origin as set forth
in the International Human Rights Charter and the Covenant of Civil and
Political Rights.
They expressed their
commitment to launch such programmes to facilitate conditions for the return of
refugees, asylum seekers and migrants who fled the country during the two
decade-old conflict. Both the Government and the LTTE agreed that no sooner the
Internally Displaced Persons are resettled in their original homes, steps would
be taken to expedite the return of the 64,000 refugees in Tamil Nadu out of the
estimated 85,000 Lankan Tamil refugees living in India.
In this regard, both
parties undertook to support "to the maximum extent possible within
available resources the initial integration of all spontaneous, voluntary
returnees from India to Ceylon, providing them with levels of support which are
equitable to that provided to spontaneously returning internally displaced
persons, and seeking to ensure their full re-integration into society".
They however stressed that further investment was necessary to create
conditions conducive to safe and dignified voluntary repatriation. The participants
welcomed the priority afforded in the peace negotiations to search for a
durable solution for problems faced by victims of the conflict. The
participants discussed and noted that, in order to responsibly create
conditions which are more conducive to organised voluntary repatriation of
Ceylon refugees from India:
* There remains a need
to further improve the conditions of physical security through addressing
ongoing human rights concerns, ongoing incidents of violence against civilians,
and accelerating the reduction of risks from landmines and unexploded
ordinance.
* It was also noted that
there remains a need to further improve the conditions of legal security
through restoring common administrative, independent judicial and democratic
policing systems; through ensuring national documentary protection is afforded
- including simplified immigration procedures, citizenship and provision of
identity cards; through adequate laws to provide for property restitution or
assistance and through consideration of appropriate amnesty arrangements where
needed.
* The need to address
logistic issues - including formal arrangements between the Government of Sri
Lanka, the Government of India, the SIHRN, other relevant Ministries of the
Government of Sri Lanka, UNHCR and other internationally mandated
organisations; and including adequate transportation support, with special
attention needed to an early evaluation and costing of restoration of the
Talaimannar jetty for use as a principal port of entry was also stressed.
However the refugees in
India though happy about the peace process have expressed their fear of
returning to Ceylon before a comprehensive settlement of the ethnic problem is
arrived at. They look forward to India playing a lead role in the peace process
and wish to return when India assures their safety and security in the island
after the return. The refugees are apprehensive about funds that are being
provided by the international community going to the Sri Lankan Government or
the LTTE whom they consider responsible for their uprootment from their
homeland.
POLITICAL CONFLICT ENDANGERS
PEACE TALKS
Vidar Helgesen the
Norwegian deputy Foreign Minister said the conflict between Sri Lankan President
Chandrika Kumaratunga and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe is understandable
since they belong to rival political parties. "We are aware of a certain
level of conflict and that varies time to time," he told a seminar
organised by Chulalongkorn University’s Institute of Security and International
Studies. Kumaratunga has differences with her premier in many respects such as
the way to handle the reconciliation process, he said. "But our role is
certainly not to engage in that matter. We relate to the government of Sri
Lanka as a whole," he said, adding that it was Kumaratunga who initiated
the peace talks and invited Norway to mediate the process. Kumaratunga’s latest
demand for the Tigers to disarm nearly derailed the peace negotiations this week
in Nakhon Pathom with the LTTE responding by withdrawing from a key panel on
de-escalation and normalisation. The peace talks ended without an agreement on
the continuation of the work of the Sub-Committee on De-escalation and
Normalisation. The Tigers’ negotiations chief, Anton Balasingham, earlier said
the biggest hurdle in the peace process was Kumaratunga’s attitude. The
government of cohabitation where the president and prime minister share power
is causing inconsistency, he said. Norway as the peace-broker keeps Kumaratunga
informed and takes her concerns into consideration, he said. The Norwegian
minister told the seminar that his country has also been involved in brokering
peace in other parts of the world including the Middle East, Sudan and the Philippines.
Norway could win the trust of the parties involved - mostly in internal rather
than interstate disputes - because the small kingdom has neither a history of
colonialism or vested interest.
The Nordic country has
played an important role in providing humanitarian assistance to several
counties and peace is a natural and appropriate component of its foreign
policy, he said. "In the global
village, Norway cannot be a policeman, we cannot be a fire brigade but we can
be a kind of social worker to facilitate peace in certain situations in certain
regions," he said.The country would get involved in conflicts only when
the parties concerned realise that military means could not solve their
problems, he said.
BISHOP WARNS LTTE ON
ABDUCTION AND CHILD CONSCRIPTIONS
The Bishop for
Trincomalee and Batticaloa, Kingsley Swamipillai, has warned the LTTE that if
it did not stop abduction and child conscription, he would take up the issue
with international human rights organisations, media reports said. The Sri
Lankan Monitoring Mission has said that abductions were continuing and that it
had informed the LTTE that unless they were stopped, it would make public the
figures.
WHO REPRESENTS THE TAMILS IN
THE PEACE TALKS?
Dr.M.Y.M Sideek member
of the council of north and east Muslims of Sri Lanka has raised a fundamental
question on the peace talks. Dr.Sideek points out that by sheer terrorism the
LTTE has eliminated all Tamil opposition and is now in position to claim that
they are the representatives of the Tamils.
The TNA he said, is nothing but the pathetic remnant of the TULF with
its entire front rank of leaders horrendously mudered by the LTTE. Until and
unless there is a parliamentary election that adopts the democratic principles,
the LTTE cannot claim that they are the sole representatives of the Tamils. The
Tamil leaders and movements are not united and they are divided into more that
a dozen divisons- for example EPRLF, TULF, ENDLF, TELO, PLOT, EROS, ACTC, CWC,
PA Tamils, and UNP Tamils. They have different views and opinions. But their
opinions and views are suppressed by the armed LTTE's brutality.
EXTORTION SANS COMMUNAL AND
RELIGIOUS CONSIDERATIONS
E.Nadarajah alias
Thillaikoothan a pro-LTTE political commentator who contributes to the Tamil daily
newspaper Thinakural has praised the LTTE in a novel manner. He states that the
LTTE 'extorts' money in the Eastern Province irrespective of racial or
religious differences. Sinhalese, Tamils, Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists and
Christians are being extorted by the LTTE without any bias. Passengers on A9
road are also being extorted in the very same manner. He further states that
none of the United Nations bodies have adopted any resolution condemning the
LTTE of human rights violations.
A few years ago,
Nadarajah was employed in the Rehabilitation and Reconstruction Authority of
the North (RRAN). But for some reason or another he was relieved of his duties
in the RRAN.
TROND FURUHOVDE DISILLUSIONED
Maj. Gen. Trond
Furuhovde the Head of the Ceasefire Monitoring Mission who visited Jaffna said
that people would have to patiently wait for another generation for permanent
peace to be restored in Ceylon. He said that the youth are anticipating the
breakout of war at any moment. He also said that it was sad not to be able to
continue his services to Ceylon. Political observes say that his statement was
a reflection of his disillusionment with the LTTE.
REVIEW OF HIGH SECURITY ZONES POSSIBLE IF LTTE GIVES UP ARMS
The first commander of
the U.N. Peace Keeping Forces in former Yugoslavia, Satish Nambiar, does not
see the possibility of a review of Sri Lanka's northern High Security Zones
(HSZs), unless the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) "deposits its
weapons to neutral supervision and withdraws from frontline positions".
Such a measure, Lt. Gen. Nambiar said in his report on the High Security Zones
(HSZs) "would provide a measure of reassurance" to the Sri Lankan
Army that surprise LTTE attacks might be discounted. Lt. Gen. Nambiar, who was
invited in his personal capacity by the Sri Lankan Prime Minister, Ranil
Wickremesinghe, to study the HSZs, stressed the importance of re-assurances
that "there would be no coercion of civilians and officials by LTTE
cadres", who would be given access on dismantling the HSZs, The Island
newspaper said in a report.
The retired Indian
general, sees the possibilities for "international monitoring" or
"joint monitoring" of the Government and LTTE forces within the
HSZs" as and when they are dismantled. The former Indian Deputy Chief of
Staff, invited by the Sri Lankan Government to give his preliminary views on
long-term measures, has strongly spoken in favour of one Army for the country.
EELAM UPDATE IS NOW ON
THE WEBSITE
Readers can now access Eelam
Update on the OfERR website at www.oferr.org
to download the monthly Eelam Update soon after it is released. Eelam Update
will reach you much faster through the website than through hard copies sent through
postal mail. You can also access the latest information regarding the Ceylon
Tamil Refugees in Tamil Nadu India through the same website.
Proteg@eth.net
ProTEG, P.O.Box 782, Egmore, Chennai - 600 008. India.