Human rights in Sri Lanka

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Sri Lankan Conflict

Background

• Sri Lanka • History of Sri Lanka

Origins of the Civil War

• Origins of the Civil War • Black July • Human Rights Issues • Riots and pogroms • Attributed State terrorism • Prison massacres • Tamil militant groups

LTTE

• LTTE • Attributed Terrorist attacks • Child Soldiers • Attributed assasinations • Notable Attacks • Expulsion of Muslims from Jaffna

Major figures

• Mahinda Rajapakse • Velupillai Prabhakaran • Karuna Amman • Sarath Fonseka

Indian Involvement

• Indian Peace Keeping Force • Rajiv Gandhi • RAW

See also

• Military of Sri Lanka • TMVP • EPDP • Notable assassinations This box: view • talk • edit

The situation of human rights in Sri Lanka is generally considered to be very poor.^[1] Major human rights groups such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch^[1] have repeatedly expressed concern about the states of human rights in Sri Lanka. As well, the U.S State Department has stated that "The civilian authorities generally maintained effective control of the security forces, although some members of the security forces committed serious human right abuses.".^[2]. Amnesty International stated in 2003 that There was a major improvement in the human rights situation in the context of a cease-fire and peace talks between the government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE),^[3] however in 2006 revoked the statement saying "grave violations of human rights are on the rise with the escalation of fighting". The European Union has also condemned Sri Lankan security forces in 2000 over human rights, after fighting displaced 12,000 civilians.^[4]

Contents 1 Background 2 Abuses by the government 3 Abuses by the LTTE 4 Abuses by other groups 5 See also 6 References and further reading 6.1 Books 6.2 Websites

Background

Sri Lanka has been embroiled in a civil war for more than two decades. More than 64,000 people have been killed and more than one million have been displaced since 1983. In July 1983, the most savage anti-minority program in Sri Lanka's history, known as the Black July riots, erupted. Government appointed commission's estimates put the death toll nearly 1,000 whereas others put the death toll at 2,000 - 3,000^[5][6][7][2], mostly minority Sri Lankan Tamils. At least 150,000 Tamils fled the island. Another major event was the repression of Marxist revolutionaries known as the JVP in Southern Sri Lanka by government security forces. 10,000 - 60,000 Sinhalese, including many students^[8] died or 'disappeared' over the coarse of the 3 year government crackdown.^[9]

Abuses by the government

There have been numerous massacres of civilians and political prisoners since 1983. Sri Lanka also has the second highest number of disappearances in the world, ranking only behind Iraq, according to the UN Commission on Human Rights. The report states that across the country since 1980, 12,000 people have gone missing after being detained by Sri Lankan security forces. Only Iraq had more, with 16,384 missing people.

In the January 2002 Amnesty International Report stated, " frequently reported torture in police custody. Lack of accountability for the perpetrators of human rights violations, including “disappearances” and torture" were cited as "serious human rights concerns".^[10]

Torture, including rape, in police custody continued to be reported frequently. Among the victims were women and children. In late October, the UN Committee against Torture submitted the findings of its visit to Sri Lanka in 2000 to the UN General Assembly. The Committee reported that it found a “disturbing number of cases of torture and ill-treatment”, the two cases presented to the U.N were that of Nandini Herat, a young woman, who was sexually assaulted by police at Wariyapola police station, Kurunegala district, in March and Ten-year-old T.K. Hiran Rasika and 12-year-old E.A. who was tortured at Hiniduma police station in July while being questioned about a theft. Both required hospital treatment as a result.^[11].

Abuses by the LTTE

The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam have repeatedly been accused of attacks on civilians during their guerrilla separatist campaign. A major critique of the Tigers is the use of child soldiers being a major sticking point in the U.S State Department Report on Human Rights in Sri Lanka,^[12] and several Amnesty International reports concerning the matter^[13] extortion both inside and outside Sri Lanka, torture, and assassinations of political figures and opponents.

The U.S State Department reported several human rights abuses in 2005, but It specifically states that there were no confirmed reports of politically motivated killings by the government. The report heavily criticised the LTTE, stating that,they continued to control large sections of the north and east and engaged in politically motivated killings, disappearances, torture, arbitrary arrest and detention, denial of fair public trial, arbitrary interference with privacy, denial of freedom of speech, press, of assembly and association, and the recruitment of child soldiers.[3]

Several members of the Eelam People's Revolutionary Liberation Front (EPRLF) and the Eelam People's Democratic Party (EPDP) were illegally detained by the LTTE. In addition, the LTTE has been accused of extra-judicial killings in the North and East.

Civilian massacres carried out by the LTTE is well documented in the article Terrorist attacks attributed to the LTTE. Number of civilians massacred in some incidents are as high as 166 (Palliyagodella massacre). Most of the their targets were innocent Sinhalese and Muslim civilians, who live in the North and Eastern provinces of Sri Lanka.

Abuses by other groups

During the 1980s the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna was regularly accused of arbitrary attacks on civilians during its uprising of that period.^{[citation needed]}

A breakaway faction of the LTTE led by Colonel Karuna has also been accused of assassinations of suspected LTTE supporters, and kidnapping of children for use as soldiers.^{[citation needed]}

See also

• Terrorist attacks attributed to the LTTE
• Black July
• Sri Lankan Civil War
• State terrorism in Sri Lanka
• Military use of children in Sri Lanka

References and further reading

Books

Websites

• ↑  Home for Human Rights
• ↑  Human Rights Watch
• ↑  Amnesty International
• ↑  Freedom of expression in Sri Lanka - IFEX