Reintegration of ex-combatants into civilian life
The National Framework Proposal on the Reintegration of Ex-combatants
into Civilian Life in Sri Lanka developed by the Disaster Management and
Human Rights
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A group of child soldiers playing cricket in Ambepussa camp.
daylife.com |
Ministry was endorsed at a validation workshop held last Thursday,
with the participation of key stakeholders, Disaster Management and
Human Rights Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe chaired the workshop.
Many goals
The National Framework Proposal is primarily designed to achieve the
following goals: to safeguard the human rights of ex-combatants
including the responsibility to protect and assist them in accordance
with the Constitution and the Government’s international obligations; to
contribute towards sustainable peace, reconciliation and social
cohesion; and to increase the employability of excombatants, minimize
their risk of socio-economic marginalization and create opportunities
for economic revitalization in post-war Sri Lanka.
“A crucial challenge that the Government faces is the reconciliation
program that needs to be put into place so that peace which has been won
can be made sustainable, and a very important initiative which has to be
embodied such a program is to forgive and forget, and look towards the
future.
This includes those who have taken up arms to destabilize the country
and to engage in terrorist acts who are Sri Lankan citizens. They have
to be part of the reconciliation process so that kind of an experience
would never have to be faced by Sri Lankans in the future.
Ex-combatants of conflict
This is what the National Framework Proposal is designed to achieve,”
Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe said.
“The Ministry is mandated to formulate and implement policies,
program and projects for disaster mitigation, response and recovery; and
also to initiate and coordinate foreign aided projects for disaster
mitigation, response and recovery.
As the existence of ex-combatants is directly referable to the
conflict in Sri Lanka - an obvious example of a man-made disaster -
which recently culminated in the successful humanitarian operations
carried out by the military, the Disaster Management and Human Rights
Ministry has a direct responsibility to formulate policies and take
action to reintegrate ex-combatants,” the Minister explained.
Minister Samarasinghe also said consequent to the adoption of the
national framework, the Ministry would forward it to the Governmental
focal points for implementation in line with their respective
institutional mandates and also that the Ministry stands ready to assist
those institutions develop action plans and implement the program in a
coordinated manner.
| Background
A reintegration program for
ex-combatants was mooted as early as April 2006 in the Road Map
for Disaster Risk
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Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe |
Management prepared by the
Disaster Management and Human Rights Ministry and the Finance
and Planning Ministry.
The official National Framework Development Process commenced in
December 2009 under the guidance of a High-Level Steering
Committee chaired by Minister Samarasinghe. It is the
culmination of several fruitful rounds of deliberations of five
working groups on disarmament and demobilisation,
rehabilitation, reinsertion, social reintegration, and economic
reintegration which developed the respective components of the
National Framework.
These working groups comprised senior Government officials,
policymakers, members of the Armed Forces, locally-based
advisors to UN agencies and other relevant stakeholders. Working
group meetings were held over April, May, and June, and each
group prepared an issues paper based on the discussions that
transpired. These papers were collated and compiled into the
draft Framework Proposal, which was completed on July 25, 2009
and circulated among the key stakeholders to the reintegration
process. |
Attorney-General Mohan Peiris, P.C. stated, “We are conscious of the
fact that we cannot look to the past but should seize upon this
opportunity to establish a lasting peace based upon dignity and
reconciliation. We are equally conscious we cannot afford to miss this
opportunity and that we cannot leave space for the repetition of the
unlawful activity that our people have long suffered for over 30 years.”
Amnesty
The Attorney-General, speaking about proposals for transitional
justice and amnesties, stated that “in determining the specific path to
take in any particular transitional justice context, it is critical to
take into account the needs, expectations and experiences of conflict
participants -namely the perpetrators, victims, survivors and other
members of society directly affected by the violence, who are intimately
involved in the peace building process”.
He added that “the eventual [transitional justice] model adopted
will, if it is to be successful, need to be designed to respond to the
particular needs and dynamics in Sri Lanka”.
He also said “the arguments in favour of amnesty in transitional
states usually contend that peace could never be achieved without some
form of amnesty, as combatants would be unlikely to surrender their
weapons and integrate into societal harmony unless DDR is accompanied by
some kind of exoneration in exchange for contrition on their part.”
Soft development
Central Bank Governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal mentioned that soft
developmental processes such as social and economic reintegration are as
or more important than hard developmental processes such as
infrastructure building. Any successful plan or framework has to
therefore look into both sides.
Prof. Rajiva Wijesinha, Disaster Management and Human Rights Ministry
Secretary, M. S. Wickramasinghe - Constitutional Affairs and National
Integration Ministry Secretary, Sunil S. Sirisena, Secretary, Foreign
Employment Promotion and Welfare Ministry, Tine Staermose, Country
Director, ILO; and Dayani Panagoda, National Process Manager for the
Framework Development Process also spoke. |
