No excuses for using child soldiers
The UN report by Allan Rock on child soldiers in Sri Lanka blamed the government for complicity of recruiting child soldiers. While acknowledging the government does not directly recruit or employ anyone under the age of 18, the report accused the government of turning a blind eye to abduction of children by the renegade Karuna faction. Rock’s report was quickly condemned by both the government and Col. Karuna saying they do not engage in the conscription of child soldiers. In addition, they denied collaborating militarily with each other.
The UN report was followed shortly by a recent report from Human Right Watch which again squarely blamed the government for doing nothing about the abductions and the use of child soldiers by the Karuna faction. The report pointed out that none of the abductions have been investigated and the police in the East of Sri Lanka which is the center of Karuna activity have failed to register a single complaint about disappearances.
Despite the questionable credibility of Allan Rock, who is rumored to be sympathetic towards the LTTE’s cause, there is little doubt child soldiers are being used by the Karuna’s army in the war against the LTTE. There also seem to be very little doubt the government colludes with the Kahuna group in the abductions.
While from a military standpoint it makes every sense to support Karuna’s group which creates a massive advantage for the government forces in its fight against the LTTE, the use of child soldiers is an undoing of all the good things this government has done over last one year. The government did a brilliant job of campaigning against the LTTE and successfully has them banned in number of countries including the EU. More significantly, the recent developments in the island has turned the tide against the LTTE with the local Tamil population as well as the Tamil diaspora becoming increasingly agitated with the LTTE’s military campaign. This time, the government is genuinely winning the war against the LTTE. But why taint the victory by engaging in the same atrocities the LTTE is known to carry out. What then, are we fighting for? Who do we claim to liberate if those under government rule are living in fear and anxiety.
The UN report was followed shortly by a recent report from Human Right Watch which again squarely blamed the government for doing nothing about the abductions and the use of child soldiers by the Karuna faction. The report pointed out that none of the abductions have been investigated and the police in the East of Sri Lanka which is the center of Karuna activity have failed to register a single complaint about disappearances.
Despite the questionable credibility of Allan Rock, who is rumored to be sympathetic towards the LTTE’s cause, there is little doubt child soldiers are being used by the Karuna’s army in the war against the LTTE. There also seem to be very little doubt the government colludes with the Kahuna group in the abductions.
While from a military standpoint it makes every sense to support Karuna’s group which creates a massive advantage for the government forces in its fight against the LTTE, the use of child soldiers is an undoing of all the good things this government has done over last one year. The government did a brilliant job of campaigning against the LTTE and successfully has them banned in number of countries including the EU. More significantly, the recent developments in the island has turned the tide against the LTTE with the local Tamil population as well as the Tamil diaspora becoming increasingly agitated with the LTTE’s military campaign. This time, the government is genuinely winning the war against the LTTE. But why taint the victory by engaging in the same atrocities the LTTE is known to carry out. What then, are we fighting for? Who do we claim to liberate if those under government rule are living in fear and anxiety.
posted by java man at 1/26/2007 03:05:00 AM
2 Comments:
allan rock's a terrorist sympathizer. http://www.lankaweb.com/news/items07/230107-4.html check that url, theres a photo of him the with the canadian guys who got arrested last year for buying weapons for ltte.
If the report is true, its content must cause all thinking people to take a step back and re-examine our own individual values.
We have taken a civilizationist perspective even in going to war against the evil of tamil-racist-terrorism championed by the LTTE. We are in the right in fighting such people at any cost.
Yet, in fighting the beast, we must guard against becoming one ourselves.
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