Brighter future for children

One of the most heartbreaking scenes that emerged from the battlefronts in the North and the East for the last several decades is the child soldier, carrying a heavy weapon that he or she can hardly hold. This is perhaps the greatest disservice that the LTTE has done to the Tamil community, which it ironically claims to 'liberate'.

The LTTE is among the several terrorist groups worldwide that conscript children, both male and female, for combat duties. Some of them are as young as eight years old. The Tigers simply rob them of their childhood, their innocence and their education to turn them into merciless killing machines. The Tigers' modus operandi is simple - they force families to give at least one child to the organisation or else they all face death. In desperation, they have been recruiting more than one child from each family in recent

weeks. These children are mostly used as cannon fodder at the battlefront, with older, better trained cadres hiding behind them. Evidence has also recently emerged that Tigers had trained children for the most abhorrent mission of them all - suicide bombings.

From time to time, the Tigers had assured the international community including the UN that it was giving up this repulsive practice, only to go back on their word. International human rights groups have accused the LTTE of keeping thousands of children as combatants. These children are subjected to cruel and degrading treatment, hardly fed properly and brainwashed endlessly.

It has even released a few child cadres on several occasions mainly to hoodwink the local and international community, but child conscription has gone on unabated in the Wanni. The LTTE child combatants now being rehabilitated by the Government tell harrowing tales of how they were treated by the LTTE. Other groups which had child combatants had released them and they too are being rehabilitated.

With the LTTE gasping for breath in a far corner of the Wanni, there is every possibility that the twin scourges of terrorism and child conscription would end soon. They are not two distinct trends - child conscription is terrorism. There is hope once again for parents in the Wanni that their children could see a brighter future, without being holed up in a bunker, facing certain death. There is hope that Wanni students would once again be having pens in their hands, instead of guns.

The Government has worked closely with the UN, particularly UNICEF, to contain this menace. In this context, Thursday's launch of the Sri Lanka National Campaign against the Recruitment of Children for Use in Armed Conflict, a combined effort of the Government and the UNICEF, is a major milestone in the fight against child recruitment.

The national campaign targeted at armed groups, vulnerable communities and the children affected, to prevent any future child recruitment and promote the release of children recruited already, is a brainchild of President Mahinda Rajapaksa, who has vigorously campaigned against this practice. The UNICEF has also been in the forefront of campaigning against the use of child soldiers worldwide.

The President's call to the public to be part of this initiative is very timely. "I call upon all Sri Lankans to join in this cause, to be part of this campaign, to make your voices heard and your peaceful and determined actions seen the world over, as we seek to liberate the future of our land, and to free our children from having to carry arms for anyone, in any conflict, anywhere," the President said.

The total liberation of the North and the East by Government Forces has augmented this campaign, as the LTTE will no longer be in a position to recruit children. Apart from holding all civilians virtually hostage, the LTTE is reported to be using child soldiers in the very limited area it is now confined to. Most of them are likely to accept the Government's call to surrender. That will give them an opportunity to be re-united with their parents and families, continue their education and make a valuable contribution to society.

The newly-launched Campaign faces a huge challenge, even as LTTE terrorism is being eradicated. The rehabilitation of former child combatants should be given priority. The society needs an assurance that these former combatants would not re-embrace violence in any form. Education, the love and care of their families and training for various vocations will help them become peaceful citizens. Peace for the whole country is now a reality, after several decades. The end of terrorism and child recruitment is thus a victory for the whole country.