YouSaid · the spoken record

Goonatilleke

lines on the record
8
first
2005-02-23
most recent
2005-02-23
sittings or episodes
1
sources
un-security-council

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  1. “Sri Lanka supports the establishment of a monitoring, reporting and compliance mechanism to support the "era of application", focussing on six broad areas of grave violations, including the killing, recruiting and abduction of children. Sri Lanka is also supportive of the View that, whenever possible, task forces on monitoring and reporting should draw from the child protection networks on the ground and, where possible, cooperation of the relevant Government institutions should be harnessed for optimum results. In this context, we are pleased to note that the report has recognized the central role of national Governments and that the United Nations entities and international NGOs at the country level should always support and complement the protection and rehabilitation roles of national authorities.”

    2005-02-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.5129Resumption1 (2005) · source

  2. “Against this background, Sri Lanka is in agreement with the recommendation of the report that the Security Council should take measures against those who fail to cease recruiting child combatants. Paragraph 77 of the report speaks of "levers of influence", such as international accountability as enforced by the International Criminal Court and ad hoc tribunals to bring to justice perpetrators of crimes against vulnerable children. Sri Lanka is of the view that enforcement of these measures on a gradual scale will have a deterrent impact on all those who willingly and deliberately violate the rights of children in situations of armed conflict.”

    2005-02-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.5129Resumption1 (2005) · source

  3. “The solemn undertakings given by the parties concerned have by and large remained unfulfilled, and the practice of naming and shaming offenders does not seem to have yielded the desired results. Sri Lanka expected that there would be a significant change on the ground with the Security Council focussing its attention on the issue. However, despite the passage of several years since the adoption of resolution 1379 (2001), there seems to be little progress. This situation cannot be allowed to continue. It has to be arrested and reversed with all the political will we can muster. Surely, the authority of the Security Council cannot be allowed to be undermined in this manner.”

    2005-02-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.5129Resumption1 (2005) · source

  4. “These figures provided by UNICEF testify to the widespread child recruitment by that organization in utter disregard for the human rights of the victims, as well as for resolutions of the General Assembly and of this Council. We are aware that there has been increased global awareness about this phenomenon, particularly since 1996. The Special Representative of the Secretary- General, despite woefully inadequate resources, has done a commendable job in giving increased visibility and exposure to the issue, with the assistance of UNICEF, other United Nations agencies, national Governments, regional organizations, NGOs and others. Despite this high visibility and increased awareness, there has regrettably been no commensurate improvement in the situation on the ground. The plight of the affected children continues to remain serious.”

    2005-02-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.5129Resumption1 (2005) · source

  5. “In that action plan, the LTTE agreed to halt recruitment of children and release all children within its ranks. Despite those solemn undertakings, the group has continued the practice of recruiting thousands of children, in most cases by force, some of them as young as 11 years old. Moreover, the LTTE has engaged in re-recruiting those who had been released and even those who had escaped from training camps, through threats, intimidation and physical attacks on the children, as well as their family members. According to UNICEF, between 26 December 2004 and 14 February 2005, 60 children either orphaned or affected by the recent tsunami were recruited from transit camps to be used as combatants. As of 31 January 2005, the total number of cases of under-age recruitment by the LTTE stood at 4,811, with 1,452 outstanding cases.”

    2005-02-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.5129Resumption1 (2005) · source

  6. “The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) has been listed in Annex II of the report owing to the fact that the LTTE has for many years been engaged in recruiting children for armed combat. The report before this Council also states that the LTTE has also been responsible for the abduction of children during the reporting period, a fact that has been corroborated by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission, and the University Teachers for Human Rights (Jaffna), a non- governmental organization (NGO) based in Sri Lanka. Such reports are denied by the LTTE. This practice has to be viewed against the undertaking given by that entity to Mr. Olara Otunnu in 1998 and the signing of an action plan for children affected by war by the LTTE in July 2003 under the aegis of UNICEF.”

    2005-02-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.5129Resumption1 (2005) · source

  7. “The continuation of violations of the rights of concerned children, despite the concerted efforts of the international community, has forced the Security Council to take a special interest in the matter, as reflected in resolutions 1379 (2001), 1460 (2003) and 1539 (2004). The report focuses its attention on two groups of countries and entities - first, situations on the agenda of the Security Council and secondly, situations not on the agenda of the Security Council or other situations of concern, as reflected in Annexes I and II. Going through the report, it is clear that progress during the reporting period has been minimal, and atrocities against children have continued relentlessly, with the perpetrators appearing to have nothing but scorn for the efforts of the international community and the United Nations.”

    2005-02-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.5129Resumption1 (2005) · source

  8. “We appreciate the fact that you, the Foreign Minister of Benin, are presiding over this meeting of the Security Council. Your presence at this meeting is certainly an encouragement for those who are grappling with the phenomenon of child soldiers. Sri Lanka commends the Secretary-General for his report on children and armed conflict (S/2005/72), submitted under Security Council resolution 1539 (2004). Since the Graca Machel report of 1996, the attention of the international community has been increasingly focussed on the promotion and protection of the rights of children affected by armed conflict. Following the appointment of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General, the plight of children affected by armed conflict has received high priority from the United Nations.”

    2005-02-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.5129Resumption1 (2005) · source