Refuge camps: concern for the fate of Tamil child soldiers
Children are the main victims of the humanitarian crisis. Many of them have been seen the bodies of their dead parents, left unburied on the road side, attacked by dogs.
Anonymous sources told AsiaNews that in the 4th zone of the Vanni camp children are “traumatised and need counselling and [. . .] education.” They are suffering “from malnutrition, and diarrhoea” and none live with their family; “older children look after the young ones.”
Despite government policy in favour of family reunification, the fate of boys between 14 and 16 is a real concern.
The military is so worried by the presence of child soldiers inside the camps—forced into military action by the LTTE—that they are keeping them under close surveillance. According to military sources, at least 300 of them have been identified.
“The military will not allow them [humanitarian workers] to move the children to facilities where their rehabilitation can start. In fact children are not allowed to leave a 20-kilometre zone around the camp. They are de facto detained in Vanni,” the source said.
For the latter child advocacy groups “should investigate the abuse and disappearance of boys. International organisations should put pressure on the government to give access to the camps so that what happens inside can be monitored.
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