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Sri Lanka told the United Nations Security Council that the conscription of children by Tamil militants is a major concern. Sri Lankan Ambassador Prasad Kariyawasam, Permanent Representative to the United Nations said that detestable crimes have been committed for over two decades.against young children, particularly against Tamil children living in the northern and eastern part parts of Sri Lanka, by a rebel group known as the LTTE or the Tamil Tigers. He has made the statement at the special Security Council session on "Children and Armed Conflict" in New York Monday (24). Kariyawasam told the Council that it was no secret that the situation had scarcely seen any improvement, as well-documented by none other than UNICEF, which had taken a lead role in bringing the sad state of affairs to public attention. He said the children were conscripted forcibly for battle against the Sri Lanka Army and civilian villagers, while some were programmed into suicide bombers. He said, “We in Sri Lanka, therefore, are well aware of the damage caused to the social fabric of a country and its future by this abominable practice engaged in by a terrorist group. As an affected country, we urge the international community to take swift and decisive action to end impunity enjoyed by non-state actors who continue to abuse children, without further delay. Let us not, in this endeavor, miss the wood for the trees, and let us not divert responsibility. Let us not fail in our quest to ensure a safe and secure world for our children. “Children are our future. It is the responsibility of each state, and indeed, the international community, to protect them and to promote their welfare, to ensure that their childhood is spent amidst proper care, not amidst undue danger, for children are vulnerable, less able to defend themselves, and are therefore subject to easy abuse in many ways. The fate of innocent children caught in armed conflict is one of the most serious concerns before us today.” “We observe that children are often brainwashed, sexually harassed and provided with guns to kill at will, affecting their own lives and those of others. It is the duty of this Council and Member States of the United Nations to ensure that parties identified in the report of the Secretary-General are pursued vigorously, in order to bring these abuses to an end”, he said.
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