Human Rights Watch 2013 Sri Lanka: Sexual Violence
By Shenali Waduge
"'We will teach you a lesson': Sexual violence
against Tamils by Sri Lankan Security Forces" is a 140page report
published on 22 February 2013 giving 75 cases of alleged rape and
sexual abuse between 2006-2012 in official and secret detention
centres throughout Sri Lanka
The 140 page report gives 3 accounts out of 75
cases through a 6 year period:
The first is of a 31year old Tamil woman picked up
from her Colombo home by CID officers in November 2011. HRW says
that the women had been taken to the 4th floor of CID office denied
food/water and the following day photographed, fingerprinted and
made to sign a blank sheet of paper. She had been asked to disclose
the whereabouts of her husband who was abroad and he was accused of
supporting the LTTE. She had been alleged beaten by objects, burned
with a cigarette, slapped around and beaten with sand-filled pipe
(thankfully they did not waterboard her!). After this description
she goes on to being raped one night by 2 men in civilian clothes
speaking Sinhala and unable to identify because it was dark.
A vague account which HRW needs to first prove
that she was taken to the CID - it would be quite an embarrassment
if the CID can prove that its log books do not have such a woman
being interrogated? Moreover ICRC is given access to anyone being
questioned by CID and so it is prudent to have ICRC confirm they
knew of this woman being interrogated in November 2011. Moreover,
why was this rape not featured in Geneva in March 2012 given that
the "incident took place in November 2011" and newsworthy enough for
HRW? Moreover, if the questioning was related to terrorism, she has
to have been arrested by the TID (Terrorist investigation
department) not the CID (Criminal investigation Department)
The next case is that of a 23year old male in
August 2012 who was taken to a room with 4 men and tied to a chair
and questioned for links to the LTTE. He is alleged to have been
stripped and beaten with electric wires, burned with the cigarettes
and suffocated with petrol-infused polythene bag and raped on 3
consecutive occasions and after the rapes he had confessed to links
with the LTTE. There is no mention of not being able to see the men
therefore HRW can forward a pencil sketch of the men who had raped
this youth plus where he was taken and the general lists of answers
that removes the vagueness to this description.
The third case given is another youth, who
surrendered before the security forces in May 2009 and two officials
who held his arms back and another officer who held his penis and
inserted metal rods inside and metal balls (as a female I cannot
even imagine such but wonder who held his 2 legs) thankfully there
is a medical report but that must correspond with evidence how a
male who surrendered to the army and who should be one of the 11,770
former combatants under the rehabilitation program of the army
should land up overseas. Moreover, with his case being far more
dramatic than the 1st rape of the lady at the CID, why did this rape
not make headlines in Geneva 2012 and moreover why did he not
feature (even with a blurred face) in the Channel 4 films? Certainly
odd.
Of the 75 cases HRW plan to dramatically release
naturally closer to the Geneva 2013 sessions, these 3 cases deserve
the benefit of doubt provided that HRW can corroborate each version
with proof and ICRC confirmation which ties with the
Governments/Armed Forces and police records - allegations meant to
embarrass every time an international forum or meeting comes up is
just bad taste and now become quite boring for all of us to read
given that we know the entire drill - therefore expect annual UN
sessions especially the UNHRC sessions to have trailer
documentaries, films, panel reports, foreign delegations all leading
to another Resolution and doing their best to get the country's
leaders to compromise the country thinking that would save them from
war crime trials!
According to the HRW the GOSL dismisses the
allegations as "fake" and "pro-LTTE propaganda". Though there is
enough evidence to establish that LTTE is a master of lies and
fabrications, let us give the benefit of doubt and look at the cases
of reports logged by the police.
When Sri Lanka's armed forces saved 297,000 Tamil
civilians braving LTTE fire and loosing 5000 Government troops in
the process, HRW's "untold number of rapes of Tamil men and women in
custody" includes just 75 cases. Are these 75 cases the supposed to
be "widespread rape" that has taken place in Sri Lanka?
Widespread rape is what took place in Rwanda in
1994 when upto 250,000 or more women were raped in 3 months, or the
UN agency estimates of more than 60,000 women raped in Sierra Leone
(1991-2002), or the more than 40,000 raped in Liberia (1989-2003),
or the 60,000 women raped in former Yugoslavia (1992-1995) and the
200,000 raped in the Congo.
Sri Lanka's "alleged" 75 cases yet to be even
proved and only accounts without verification are classified as
"widespread" when approximately 295,000 civilians have not accused
any soldier of rape/sexual offence nor have any of the 11,770 former
combatants most of whom are now reintegrated into society. HRW must
understand why some of these allegations are getting more and more
difficult to believe. Creating dramas and using media to the maximum
is anyone's prerogative but the people of Sri Lanka are a lot wiser
and know that our forces carried out a humanitarian rescue cum
military operation. If it provides employment and funds all these
reports can continue to come!
During the World War 2 all sides of the conflict
were accused of mass rapes but neither of the 2 courts set up by the
victorious allied countries to prosecute suspected war crimes in
Tokyo and Nuremberg recognized crime of sexual violence. Rape was
included in 1993 during the International Criminal Tribunal for the
Former Yugoslavia and ICTY became the 1st international court to
accuse a person guilty of rape as a crime against humanity - that
was 60,000 cases of rape!
Leaving aside these unknown, unverified and vague
accounts coming forth by international bodies like HRW against Sri
Lanka - there are internal records as well.
The post and pre-conflict scenario cannot ignore
the fact that the pre-conflict details must take into account that
the LTTE was a terrorist organization. In 2004, 29 January, the HRW
published a report on LTTE's use of child combatants titled "Living
in Fear - Child Soldiers and the Tamil Tigers in Sri Lanka" -
quoting from its report "Throughout 2003 thousands of children were
deployed as combatants, to commit abuses against civilians, as sex
slaves, forced laborer's, messengers, informants and servants in
continuing and newly erupting conflicts. Children were usually used
to perform multiple roles, and girls in particular often acted as
combatants as well as being sexually exploited" (please note
emphasis on sexually exploited - this is HRW referring to LTTE not
GOSL forces).
Accusing fingers pointed at Sri Lanka must take
into account that the LTTE held areas were out of bounds for GOSL
and Sri Lankan troops. It was from these areas that Tamil children
were forcibly taken (former UN officer Benjamin Dix despite 22months
in the UN in Sri Lanka) reveals in a presentation that the schools
were empty because the children were forcibly taken away and anyone
between 17-40 would also be included as well. What must also not be
forgotten is that the bulk if not all these children and women came
from the Mullaitivu/Kilinochchi or Eastern areas where low-caste
Tamils were easy prey? The 11770 former LTTE combatants would
confirm this. These 2 districts had zero electricity coverage
because the LTTE had blown up the grids preferring to keep the
people in the dark - yes, blind to realizing the LTTE were nothing
but killers and extortionists.
It is pointless giving figures recorded during
LTTE rule because an organization that thrives with the gun is
unlikely to be divulging any of its crimes in public and they have
plenty of "friends" to whitewash those crimes internationally and
locally. However, what the Government can prove is that between
2009.05.19 to 2011.12.31 out of a total of 210 cases of rape and
sexual offence only 20 cases have been committed by Sri Lanka armed
forces including police and CDS with cases against these members
already in process and under investigation. However, as against this
between the same period of survey 242 rape and sexual offences have
taken place most of which have committed by close relatives (28),
neighbors(69), as a result of intimate affairs (28) and others
(100). Sexual violence has increased in the post-conflict period but
the perpetrators are not the armed forces inspite of the big noise
made of their military presence in the North. The rapes and sexual
violence recorded on Tamils have been by their very own and the
former GA Mrs. Sukumar will confirm that most of the sexual violence
is now taking place because of fathers/uncles raping the young ones.
Let's not create different versions diverting the truth!
Credibility is of utmost importance for any
organization espousing to be a watchdog for abuses taking place
round the globe. Yet, the ugly reality is that organizations that
start off with a noble vision soon realize that to cover the stories
taking place round the world they need people, they need offices,
they need contacts, they need to do propaganda and for all this they
need funds and when they start taking money from the very sources
that contribute to the world's ills then they lose their shine and
their credibility and once that credibility is compromised people
stop listening to them and so they end up working for their supper
depending on the very people who they ideally should be warning the
world about.
Thus, when Amnesty took 50,000 Canadian dollars
from a pro-LTTE group, the Canadian Tamil Congress (CTC), they lost
credibility. When UK MPs David Miliband (former foreign secretary),
Keith Vaz, Virendra Sharma, Simon Hughes, Siobhain McDonagh and a
long list of other British MPs speak on behalf of the LTTE and on
top of LTTE stages even though LTTE is banned in their nation - in
our eyes they are a laughing stock. When people like US congressman
Danny Davis's trip to Sri Lanka in 2005 is funded by LTTE,
Congressman Brad Sherman, Rush Holt, David Price and even Hillary
takes and returns funds given by pro-LTTE groups - do they have
integrity? When Canadian MPs Bob Rae, Jason Kenney, Paul Martin are
pro-LTTE speakers we can but wonder where Canada is heading. When
pro-LTTE MPs like Australian John Murphy, Senator Lee Rhiannon whose
website is full of anti-Sri Lankan and pro-separatist propaganda
even bordering on pro-Tamil Tiger (LTTE), misinformed the House and
the Australian public runs contrary to what Julie Bishop MP and
Scott Morrison MP - we know an international publicity campaign to
smear Sri Lanka is taking place.
Many others holding important offices have spoken
on behalf of LTTE a banned terrorist organization over the years and
still continue to do so which naturally makes any to wonder what all
these games are about.
As a citizen and what probably the rest of the
citizens all feel is that Sri Lanka's terrorism is now no more. The
terrorists who surrendered are now rehabilitated, reintegrated and
doing something with their lives other than killing. The people that
lived in fear throughout the island especially the Tamil people who
were forced to stay with the LTTE and from amongst whom the LTTE
grabbed children, women and men to turn into killers can now get on
with their lives, schools now have children, teachers have more than
chairs to teach, roads that had seen no improvement since the 1980s
are now a pleasure to travel in, neglected fertile lands are now
lush with vegetation, youth are now going to movies, cycling and
hanging out together - anyone visiting the North sees any of the
depressing pictures being portrayed just because money speaks.
But we do agree on one thing and that is
accountability - the tiger ground force is no more but its
sophisticated tail still remains overseas and wagging. The GOSL
needs to stop being the nice guy and start a thorough investigation
pending legal action on why the LTTE started how it came to make
USD300million profit, who contributed to it - here's where things
get complicated because it would include locals, international
players including INGOs, NGOs, foreign governments and a host of
others. But we now need their names out in the open and links to the
LTTE to emerge officially for that's what we call accountability and
from where real reconciliation starts - with an apology to Sri
Lanka.
As for the local LTTE supporters - The Government
must immediately implement the 6th amendment to Sri Lanka's
constitution and take punitive action against all according to the
law of the country and frame charges for the remaining LTTE
combatants for their crimes as well.
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