New York, 12 May, (Asiantribune.com): Sri Lanka’s terrorists outfit Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam led by its reclusive leader Velupillai Prabakaran and the Karuna Group led by V.Muralitharan alias Colonel Karuna Amman are to be warned for the continued recruitment of underage children.
The Security Council Working Group on Children and Armed Conflict considering the Report of the Secretary-General on the Situation of Children and Armed Conflict in Sri Lanka, has decided that its Chairman will issue a strong public warning to the LTTE stating that further measures will be taken by the Security Council for its continued failure to cease the recruitment of children and to release child combatants.
According to UNICEF, since 2001 alone, the LTTE has forcibly recruited over 5700 child combatants. The Working Group report has called attention to the “continuous, ongoing and even increasing pattern of abduction, recruitment and use of children by the LTTE, in spite of previous commitments contained in the Action Plan for Children affected by war in March 2003,” and has “strongly condemned the continuous recruitment and use of child soldiers and all other violations and abuses committed against children by the LTTE.
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The Working Group, chaired by the Permanent Representative of France to the UN was attended by the members of the UN Security Council. Ambassador Prasad Kariyawasam, Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka to the UN, addressing the Working Group on this occasion stated that Sri Lanka endorses the strong message that has been delivered to the LTTE.
Further prevarication on their part, he said, must entail further serious consequences.
The Ambassador emphasized that Sri Lanka, as a long-standing member of the UN, and as a party to all seven core UN Human Rights Conventions, works with all UN mechanisms in promoting human rights, democracy, pluralism and the rule of law, as well as advancing international peace and security in defeating terrorism and violence in all forms and manifestations.
He pointed out that in the meantime, the actions by the non-state actor, the LTTE, abnegates well-established international norms, and subverts the will of a section of the people it claims to represent. He remarked that, for the sake of peace and security Sri Lanka cannot allow such a terrorist agenda to flourish in any part of the country, and that the Government is of the firm view that a group which uses children as tools of terror, holds children to ransom, and denies children their future, deserves only a strong and decisive response.
The Working Group report also refers to the use of child combatants by the Karuna faction, which according to the UNICEF has as of March 2007, 194 outstanding cases out of 285 children known to have been recruited by them.
The Working Group report “strongly condemning the recent recruitment and use of child soldiers and all other violations and abuses committed against children by the Karuna faction,” has said it will also issue a strong public warning to the Karuna faction. The Working Group report has urged them to engage with UNICEF to release all children among their ranks and prevent further unlawful recruitment of children.
Oh, another strong public warning! :P :))
Why don't UN secretary general think of something new? we are tired of strong warnings!
...
we know that UN is more a 'statements on paper' organization when dealing with LTTE, so why don't UN try something new!..
. how about organizing UN's own ball signing campaign?.
..i mean signing balls.
..cricket balls, just for a change!
Who ever wrote it, a CRAP report.
LTTE openly said, that they are not a legitimate govt. Because of that LTTE is not bound to UN laws and they continue to recruit childrenfor war.
On the other hand, I remember AT published something like that, that Karuna and discussions with UNICEF or so and agreed to work for eliminating child recruitment.
Finally, UN knows for years that LTTE is recruiting children. So, what is point of Warning.
Just rubbish.
This is just plain garbage from the spineless UN!
The UN knew about LTTE's child recruitment for nearly 10 years (long before Karuna came to being) and always uttered empty threats at the LTTE, but never followed up with firm action.
Why? This is because the UN is a highly corrupted organization and it is a widely known fact the UN officials have been "gotten to" by various special interest groups, with all kinds of rewards.
Now the UN is uttering threats again and this time it not really to punish the LTTE (which it had all the opportunity to do over 10 years, but never did), but to discredit the Karuna faction!
These highly corrupted UN misfits are hoping this threat will make Karuna cringe in fear and abandon his anti-LTTE campaign. That way, the UN corrupted officials would have settled dues with the LTTE!
Karuna, while respecting human rights, just keep going where you are going.
Today you are the only sane Tamil voice that has the power to follow words with action! Millions of Tamils are today looking to you to end this tyranny of the Sun Goat!
Now for the first time there is some fairness in the way the UN's castigations are being meted out.
They are not singling out the Karuna faction for their criticisms while going "ultra-soft" on the LTTE. Let us hope that this signals a recognition by the UN at long last that for its calls and actions to be respected, it must demonstrate justice and fairplay.
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