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| Saturday, 7 August 2004 |
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NCPA appeal to armed groups has gone unheeded - NCPA Chairman by Nadira Gunatilleke Although the National Child Protection Authority (NCPA) has appealed to local armed groups through UNICEF not to recruit children as child soldiers, this request has gone unheeded according to NCPA Chairman Prof. Harendra De Silva. "The armed groups know that recruiting children as soldiers is wrong, but, they continue to practise it. Therefore, there is no need to educate them, said the NCPA Chairman. Prof. De Silva said that the NCPA operates in the war affected areas but do not deal directly with the armed groups. "We do not consider any political, social or racial differences when it comes to protecting children. This is not a political issue at all. This is about the welfare and rights of the child community". The professor was addressing a press briefing held at the NCPA in connection with the issuing a first day cover on preventing child labour. Since there could be many armed groups which could recruit child soldiers in the future, the most important thing is building a strong public opinion against recruiting children as soldiers. Then no armed group will be able to recruit child soldiers to use in conflicts in the future. Mass media plays a major role in this task, he added. He said in the past child soldiers all over the world were treated as heroes. But later the world started to consider recruiting child soldiers as a violation of child rights. The exploitation of child labour (including employing children as soldiers) is yet another form of abuse, according to ILO Convention 182. Even abusing children sexually was not considered as a crime in the nineteen seventies and early eighties, he said. Prof. De Silva pointed out that in Sri Lanka the necessary laws were there to ensure the safety of the children but they do not function properly. The lack of public response and participation is another problem that exists in this field. The public should provide information about child abuse incidents. But the general opinion is providing information about such incidents is 'inviting unnecessary trouble'. This negative attitude should be changed, he said. There are some Principals who abuse children and then prevent the victim from being admitted to another school. These Principals call and inform other school Principals not to admit the child. The mass media should encourage people to provide information to the NCPA about similar incidents, he added. |
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