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02COLOMBO1993 | 2002-10-24 14:00 | 2011-08-25 00:00 | UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY | Embassy Colombo

`

    This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.

` `

    UNCLAS E F T O SECTION 01 OF 28 COLOMBO 001993

    SIPDIS

    SENSITIVE
    NOFORN

    DEPARTMENT FOR SA, SA/INS, DRL/PHD, DRL/CDA FOR ACTION

    E.O. 12958:  DECL:  N/A
    TAGS: PHUM ELAB PREL KSEP CE
    SUBJECT:  Sri Lanka:  Draft submission for 2002 Annual
    Human Rights Report

    REF:  STATE 151191

    ¶1.  (U) THIS MESSAGE IS SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED,
    PLEASE HANDLE ACCORDINGLY.

    ¶2.  (SBU/NF) THE DRAFT TEXT FOR THE SRI LANKA ANNUAL
    HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT FOR 2002 FOLLOWS:

    Begin Text:

    Sri Lanka is a democratic republic with an active
    multiparty system. Constitutional power is shared between
    the popularly elected president and the 225-member
    Parliament. Violence, including at least 50 deaths, and
    irregularities marred the December 2001 Parliamentary
    elections in which the United National Front (UNF), a
    coalition of parties led by the United National Party
    (UNP), won a majority in Parliament for a 6-year term.
    Chandrika Kumaratunga, head of the People's Alliance (PA)
    coalition, won reelection in 1999 for a second 5-year
    presidential term in a process marked by voting
    irregularities and at least six election-related deaths.
    The Government generally respects constitutional
    provisions for an independent judiciary.
    Due to the peace process, Sri Lanka has experienced a
    dramatically improved atmosphere in 2002. One of the most
    visible signs of the new national climate was the
    profound and positive effect the peace process has had on
    the human rights situation. Beginning in December 2001,
    when the Government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil
    Eelam (LTTE) announced unilateral ceasefires, the peace
    process has picked up considerable momentum. Key events
    included:  in February 2002, the two sides signed a
    formal ceasefire accord; in April, a key road connecting
    Jaffna with the south was reopened; in September, taking
    into account the fast progress of the peace process, the
    government legalized the LTTE; and, also in September,
    the two sides held their first round of peace talks in
    Thailand.  Among many other positive human rights-related
    developments, the peace process also led to a sharp
    reduction in roadblocks and checkpoints around the
    country, the return of approximately 150,000 Internally
    Displaced Persons (IDPs) to their points of origin in the
    north and east, and to the opening of numerous
    investigations into questionable actions by security
    force personnel.

    During 2002, the Government also released over 750 Tamils
    held under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA). Several
    of those released were part of the first Government-LTTE
    prisoner exchange in September.  No arrests have been
    made under the PTA in 2002. Observers claim that the PTA,
    like the Emergency Regulations (ER) repealed in 2001,
    permitted arbitrary arrests of Tamils.

    The past year was one of transition for the security
    forces from an organization actively engaged in an armed
    conflict to one taking part in a peace process.  Although
    some incidents of human rights violations occurred during
    the year, the security forces generally respected the
    rights of others.  Prior to the December 2001 unilateral
    ceasefires, the Government had fought the LTTE, a
    terrorist organization fighting for a separate ethnic
    Tamil state in the north and east of the country, for 18
    years. The conflict claimed more than 64,000 lives. Major
    milestones in the conflict in the recent past included:
    In 2000, the LTTE began a buildup on the Jaffna Peninsula
    and captured the important Elephant Pass military base;
    in April 2001, government troops launched a major
    offensive on the Jaffna Peninsula that resulted in heavy
    casualties for its forces; and in July 2001, the LTTE
    attacked Colombo's main airbase and international
    airport, destroying numerous aircraft and placing
    civilians at the airport at serious risk.

    The Ministry of Interior controls the 60,000-member
    police force, which is responsible for internal security
    in most areas of the country, and has been used in
    military operations against the LTTE. The Ministry of
    Defense controls the 120,000-member Army (which includes
    the Army Volunteer Force), the 17,000-member Navy, and
    the 18,500 member Air Force.  The more than 20,000 member
    Home Guards, an armed force drawn from local communities
    and responsible to the police, provide security for
    Muslim and Sinhalese village communities near LTTE-
    controlled areas.  During the year, the Government
    implemented programs to disarm various anti-LTTE militias
    that previously had been linked with the security forces.

    Sri Lanka is a low-income country with a market economy
    based mainly on the export of textiles, tea, rubber,
    coconuts, and gems. It also earns substantial foreign
    exchange from the repatriated earnings of citizens
    employed abroad, and from tourism. The gross domestic
    product (GDP) per capita is approximately $837 (80,350
    rupees). The population is approximately 18.5 million.
    Real GDP growth was -1.4 percent in 2001. Growth during
    the year is forecast at 2-3 percent. The decline in 2001
    was attributed mainly to the worldwide economic downturn,
    the July LTTE attack on Colombo's international airport,
    and prolonged power outages throughout the country.  The
    economy is expected to recover slowly in 2002, aided by
    economic reform and increased donor assistance.

    The Government generally respected the human rights of
    its citizens in 2002, but there remained problems in some
    areas.  Unlike previous years, there were no credible
    reports of security forces committing extrajudicial
    killings. The military and police, however, reportedly
    tortured detainees.  There was at least one report of a
    death in custody and of a separate case of rape of a
    woman while she was in custody.

    Torture remained a problem and prison conditions remained
    poor. There were no reports of arbitrary arrests.
    The Government infringed on citizens' privacy rights, but
    restrictions on the freedom of the press were eased
    somewhat. In 2001, the Government stopped censoring
    reporting on military and security operations. In
    previous years, the Government had stringent censorship
    regulations and on occasion security forces harassed
    journalists and shut down newspapers critical of the
    government. There were no reports of such harassment
    during the year. The LTTE permitted controlled access to
    uncleared areas of the country to journalists, in effect
    lifting some censorship in the areas it controls. Some
    LTTE-imposed restrictions remained on freedom of
    movement, such as from Vavuniya to Jaffna.

    Violence and discrimination against women, child
    prostitution, child labor, and discrimination against
    persons with disabilities continued to be problems in Sri
    Lanka. Trafficking in women and children for the purpose
    of forced labor occurs, and there is some trafficking of
    women and children for the commercial sex industry. There
    is evidence of a continued though declining international
    interest in the country's children for sex trade. There
    is some discrimination and occasional violence against
    religious minorities, and institutionalized ethnic
    discrimination against Tamils remains a problem.

    In the past few years, the Government has taken steps to
    address human rights concerns. In 2002 the Government
    named a new chairman for the National Human Rights
    Commission (HRC). In 2000, the Government established an
    Interministerial Permanent Standing Committee and an
    Interministerial Working Group on Human Rights Issues,
    chaired by senior officials, to investigate human rights
    abuses. At the same time, the Government established the
    Prosecution of Torture Perpetrators Unit, under the
    direct supervision of the Attorney General. Former Tamil
    terrorist organizations aligned with the former PA
    Government, who are suspected to still be armed have, in
    a departure from previous years, not been implicated in
    cases involving extrajudicial killing, and torture
    although incidents of detention, and extortion were still
    reported during the year.

    The LTTE continued to commit serious human rights abuses
    even after entering into a formal ceasefire accord with
    the Government. The LTTE reportedly committed several
    extrajudicial killings, and was responsible for
    disappearances, torture, arbitrary arrest, detentions,
    and extortion. Through a campaign of intimidation, the
    LTTE continued to undermine the work of elected local
    government bodies in Jaffna. On occasion, the LTTE
    prevented political and governmental activities from
    occurring in the north and east. The LTTE released all of
    the military personnel it reportedly had in its custody
    during the year. The LTTE continued to control large
    sections of the north and east of the country. The LTTE
    denied those under its control the right to change their
    government, infringed on privacy rights, did not provide
    for fair trials, used child soldiers, and discriminated
    against ethnic and religious minorities.
    RESPECT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS

    Section 1  Respect for the Integrity of the Person,
    Including Freedom From:

    a. Arbitrary or Unlawful Deprivation of Life

    Unlike in previous years, there were no credible reports
    of security forces committing extrajudicial killings. On
    July 19, 2001, government security forces killed two
    persons during an opposition party sponsored rally which
    the Government claimed was illegal (see Section 2.b.). On
    January 28, 2001, naval personnel arrested
    Kanapathypillai Udayakumar, a Tamil villager. The
    following day his body was returned to his family. The
    report on his killing states that he was strangled to
    death. The naval personnel accused in connection with his
    killing are in custody awaiting trial. On September 20,
    2001, Sivagnanam Manohari, a Tamil living near
    Batticaloa, apparently was shot and killed by air force
    personnel while fishing. Her nephew, who was with her at
    the time, was injured seriously. No arrests have been
    made to date, but the incident is still under
    investigation.

    The appearance of impunity remains a problem. Between
    April 1995 and December 2001, several hundred persons
    were killed extrajudicially by the security forces or
    have disappeared after being taken into security force
    custody. With the exception of the six security force
    personnel convicted in the 1996 killing of Krishanthi
    Kumaraswamy (a Tamil university student who was raped and
    then killed) there have been no other convictions for
    extrajudicial killings.   Although there were numerous
    cases in which military personnel may have committed
    human rights violations for which they have not been
    identified, the Government has passed indictments against
    security force personnel in a number of high profile
    cases; including the Bindunuwewa massacre and the Ranjani
    rape and murder case (see below).

    In December 2000, nine Tamil civilians were reported
    missing in Mirusuvil after being arrested by the army
    (SLA). One person escaped, and reported the incident to
    police and the local magistrate. The escapee identified
    two SLA soldiers as the perpetrators, and the soldiers
    admitted to torturing nine civilians and murdering eight
    of them. The soldiers identified the place of burial and
    the bodies were exhumed. Nine soldiers later were
    arrested for the torture and killings. The army commander
    administratively punished the soldiers by having their
    salaries withheld (see Sections 1.b. and 1.c.). The case
    was transferred to the Anuradhapura Magistrate's Court
    for adjudication in November 2001.  At the end of
    September 2002, a trial-at-bar was continuing with
    expectations that indictments would be issued prior to
    year's end.

    In November 2000, four mutilated bodies were found in
    Nilaveli. The killings were widely believed to have been
    carried out by naval infantry personnel. The following
    day Tamil civilians protested against the deaths claiming
    that the naval personnel involved attempted to coerce
    statements from relatives of the deceased that the dead
    were members of the LTTE. Later, the bodies of the two
    primary organizers of the demonstration were found. The
    military investigated the incident. The commander of the
    local navy base and other key military personnel were
    transferred in June, but no one has been charged in
    connection with the killings.  No further action is
    anticipated in this case.

    In October 2000, while police allegedly looked on, 27
    young Tamil males held at the Bindunuwewa rehabilitation
    camp for former child soldiers, were killed by local
    villagers; 15 others were injured. Police allegedly took
    part in the killings and did nothing to prevent the
    villagers from entering the detention camp. Violence
    after the killings continued for almost one week before
    police were able to restore order. The HRC stated that
    the police were guilty of "grave dereliction of duty."
    Three of the survivors were able to testify at a
    Presidential Hearing, which met regularly throughout
    ¶2001. Many witnesses at the hearing criticized police
    actions at the scene and during the initial
    investigations. In 2001, all suspects in the case were
    released on bail.  At year's end, 10 police officers and
    41 villagers were indicted and were standing trial.

    In April 2000, gunmen in police uniforms killed the chief
    suspect in the 1993 killing of prominent politician
    Lalith Athulathmudali. There have been no arrests in
    connection with this killing and at year's end none were
    expected.

    In 2000, the government ordered payment of compensation
    to victims of a 1999 air force bombing that killed 22
    civilians at Puthukkudiyiruppu.

    In the past, some cases of extrajudicial killings were
    reprisals against civilians for LTTE attacks in which
    members of the security forces or civilians were killed
    or injured. In most cases, the security forces claimed
    that the victims were members of the LTTE, but human
    rights monitors believed otherwise. In Thampalakamam,
    near Trincomalee, in February 1998, police and home
    guards allegedly killed eight Tamil civilians, possibly
    in reprisal for the LTTE bombing of the Temple of the
    Tooth a week earlier. The Government arrested police
    officers and home guards, charging 4 with murder and 17
    with unlawful assembly. At year's end 8 police officers
    had been indicted and hearings were ongoing.
    Crucial safeguards built into the Emergency Regulations
    (ER) and the legislation establishing the HRC often were
    ignored in the past by the security forces, especially
    those provisions requiring receipts to be issued for
    arrests and ordering the security forces to notify the
    HRC of any arrest within 48 hours. Although security
    force personnel could have been fined or jailed for
    failure to comply with the ER, none was known to have
    been punished for this while the ER provisions were in
    place.

    Although the courts in 2000 ordered five soldiers
    arrested for the 1999 gang rape and murder of Ida
    Carmelita, a young Tamil girl, the case remained pending
    at year's end. Various witnesses continued to testify at
    hearings held during the year. Court hearings continued
    in 2002.

    At his sentencing for the 1998 rape and murder of
    Krishanthi Kumaraswamy, a Tamil university student,
    former Lance Corporal Somaratne Rajapakse claimed
    knowledge of mass graves at Chemmani in Jaffna containing
    the bodies of up to 400 persons killed by security forces
    in 1996. The other five defendants corroborated his claim
    of mass graves in the Chemmani area, where they allegedly
    had buried between 120 and 140 bodies on the orders of
    their superiors. Exhumations in 1999 yielded 15
    skeletons. Two of the victims were identified as young
    men who had disappeared in 1996. In late 1999, the
    Government submitted its forensic report to a magistrate
    in Jaffna; the report stated that 10 of the remains
    showed signs of physical assault that led to their deaths
    and that physical assault leading to death of the others
    could not be ruled out. At the end of 2001, 13 of the
    bodies had not been identified. Rajapakse and others
    named a total of 20 security force personnel, including
    former policemen, as responsible for the killings. The
    remaining unidentified bodies underwent DNA testing for
    identification purposes. The Attorney General's office
    has indicated that it was not satisfied with the
    inconclusive initial results and is currently searching
    for funds to provide for a more detailed test. At year's
    end, the case was still pending. All suspects in the case
    have been released on bail.
    The case against eight soldiers and one reserve police
    constable arrested in February 1996 in the massacre of 24
    Tamil villagers in Kumarapuram came to trial in September
    ¶1997. In November 1998, six of the soldiers were charged
    with murder. The case continued throughout the year with
    the next court hearing scheduled for February 18, 2003.
    The case of 22 STF members arrested on suspicion of
    killing 23 Tamil youths at Bolgoda Lake in 1995 went to
    trial in June 2000. Three police officers have been
    indicted in connection with the murders, one of whom has
    fled.  As of September 30, 2002, the main witness in the
    case was residing outside of Sri Lanka.  The hearing
    continued at year's end.

    The PA Government came to power in 1994 and promised to
    bring to justice the perpetrators of extrajudicial
    killings from previous years. In 1994, it began
    prosecutions in several extrajudicial killings allegedly
    committed by members of the security forces. The trial of
    21 soldiers accused of massacring 35 Tamil civilians in
    1992 in the village of Mailanthani in Batticaloa district
    was transferred to the Colombo High Court in 1996. A jury
    trial began in January 2002, and was still hearing
    testimony as of September 30, 2002. Many witnesses for
    the case live in displaced persons camps, and they could
    not come to court to give evidence.

    In January 2000, assailants shot and killed Tamil
    politician Kumar Ponnambalam. Police detained four
    persons, two of whom alleged that a local businessman had
    hired them to commit the murder. The investigation into
    the murder has been completed and the information has
    been passed to the Attorney General.  At the end of
    September, a court date was being considered for the
    case.

    Although former terrorist Tamil militant groups armed by
    and aligned with the former PA Government committed
    extrajudicial killings in the past, there were no
    credible reports of such killings in 2002.

    In the past, the military wing of the People's Liberation
    Organization of Tamil Eelam (PLOTE) and the Razeek group
    were responsible for killing a number of persons. The
    security forces had armed and used these militias and a
    number of other Tamil militant organizations to provide
    information, to help identify LTTE terrorists, and, in
    some cases, to fight in military operations against the
    terrorists. The exact size of these militias is
    impossible to ascertain, but they probably total fewer
    than 2,000 persons. These groups were asked to disarm
    following the formal February ceasefire agreement between
    the Government and LTTE.  The militia did hand over some
    weapons to the Government.  Most observers, however,
    believe that the groups kept some arms. Persons killed by
    these militants in the past probably included LTTE
    operatives and civilians who failed to comply with
    extortion demands. Unknown assailants killed Jaffna media
    correspondent Mayilvaganam Nimalarajan in October 2000.
    Nimalarajan's outspoken criticism of paramilitary groups
    in Jaffna led many to believe that one of these groups
    killed him. No one has been prosecuted for his death.
    There have been unconfirmed reports that the LTTE
    continued to commit extrajudicial killings. Due to the
    inaccessibility of LTTE-controlled areas and the LTTE's
    prevention of investigations by outside agencies, the
    exact number and type of killings in LTTE-controlled
    areas is unknown. Observers believe that the amount of
    killings was drastically reduced last year.  Attacks by
    the LTTE killed civilians outside of LTTE-controlled
    areas in the past.  A civilian bus on the way to
    Trincomalee was bombed by the LTTE in August 2001, for
    example, and a trishaw was bombed outside of Jaffna in
    September 2001 (see Section 1.g.).

    In 2001, attacks and counter-attacks between Government
    forces and the LTTE occurred almost daily. There were two
    suicide bombing attacks attributed to the LTTE during
    2001, on September 15 and October 29, in addition to the
    July attack on the airport north of Colombo (see Section
    1.g.). There were no reports of suicide bombings in 2002.
    There were reports that the LTTE committed extrajudicial
    killings, including lamppost killings in 2001. At least
    14 persons found guilty of offenses by the LTTE's self-
    described courts were killed in 1999 by the LTTE in
    public executions; their bodies were tied to lampposts or
    otherwise left for public display. The LTTE has bombed
    civilian targets, killing and injuring civilians, and
    engaged in hostage taking and hijackings. (see Section
    1.g.)
    In March 1999, municipal workers uncovered a pit in
    Jaffna town that contained the skeletal remains of
    several persons. Forensic evidence suggested that these
    remains were approximately 10 years old. This discovery
    potentially implicated the Indian Peacekeeping Force
    (IPKF), which occupied Jaffna at the time.  b.
    Disappearance

    Unlike previous years, there were no credible reports of
    disappearances at the hands of the security forces in Sri
    Lanka during 2002.

    In 2001, the army, navy, police, and paramilitary groups
    were involved in as many as 10 disappearances, primarily
    in Vavuniya. Between January and September 2001, the
    Human Rights Commission received 44 reports of
    disappearances in Vavuniya alone. These cases were not
    confirmed. In December 2000, eight Tamil civilians were
    reported missing in Mirusuvil. Two SLA soldiers were
    identified as perpetrators and admitted to killing eight
    of the civilians.  The soldiers were administratively
    punished by the army (see Sections 1.a. and 1.c.). In
    November 2001, the case was transferred to the
    Anuradhapura Magistrate's Court for adjudication. The
    soldiers have been indicted and a trial-at-bar was
    scheduled to begin by early 2003.

    In February 2000, a fisherman seen arrested by naval
    personnel near Trincomalee disappeared. In 2002, the
    Trincomalee High Court ordered police line up, but the
    witness did not identify any of the suspects.  At year's
    end, the High Court was conducting a habeas corpus
    hearing in conjunction with the case. Those who
    disappeared in 2001 and previous years are usually
    presumed dead. The 2000 U.N. Working Group on Enforced or
    Involuntary Disappearances lists the country as having an
    extremely large number of "nonclarified" disappearances.
    The Commander of the Army and the Inspector General of
    Police both have criticized the disappearances and stated
    that the perpetrators would be called to account.
    Although there have been few prosecutions of security
    force personnel to date, 2002 saw numerous indictments
    and investigations opened into cases which had previously
    been ignored.
    Three regional commissions were set up in November 1994
    to inquire into disappearances that occurred from 1988 to
    ¶1994. The commissions found that 16,742 persons
    disappeared after having been removed involuntarily from
    their homes in most cases by security forces. Based on
    the reports, police created a Disappearances
    Investigations Unit (DIU) in 1998 to examine 1,681 cases
    in which the commissions had evidence against specific
    individuals.

    In 1999, the Attorney General created a Missing Persons
    Commissions Unit to consider institution of criminal
    proceedings based on results of DIU investigations. In
    2000, the Attorney General's office opened over 1,175
    files and referred 262 indictments to the high courts and
    86 complaints to magistrates involving 583 members of the
    security forces on abduction and murder charges. Hearings
    and trials in at least 250 of these cases had begun by
    late 2000. Of these, the Attorney General's office
    successfully prosecuted 4 cases by year's end. The
    Attorney General's office continued to prosecute these
    cases.

    In 1998, a fourth commission was established to look into
    approximately 10,000 cases of disappearance that the
    initial three commissions had been unable to investigate.
    Human rights observers have criticized the Government for
    not extending the mandate of this commission to include
    cases of disappearance that occurred since the
    Kumaratunga Government took office in 1994. The
    commission submitted an interim report to President
    Kumaratunga in December 1999 and a final report in August
    ¶2000. The report has not been made public.
    In 1999, the U.N. Working Group on Enforced or
    Involuntary Disappearances made its third visit to the
    country. Its report, released in December 1999 cited the
    Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) and ER as important
    factors contributing to disappearances and recommended
    the abolition or modification of these laws to bring them
    into conformity with internationally accepted human
    rights standards. The ER was repealed in 2001 and there
    were no arrests under the PTA last year.  Criminal
    arrests were still being made without proper procedures,
    however.
    In past years, Tamil militias aligned with the former PA
    government were responsible for disappearances in past
    years, although there were no reports during the last 2
    years. These militias detained persons at various
    locations that served, in effect, as undeclared detention
    centers. The HRC had no mandate or authority to enforce
    respect for human rights among these militia groups. It
    was impossible to determine the exact number of victims
    because of the secrecy with which these groups operated.
    In early 2002, the Government took steps to disarm these
    militias while guaranteeing their safety as part of the
    peace process.

    The LTTE was responsible for an undetermined number of
    civilian disappearances in the north and east during the
    year. Although the LTTE has previously denied taking any
    prisoners from its battles in January they released 10
    Sri Lankans, including some soldiers, to the ICRC.  On
    September 28 they exchanged a further 7 Sri Lankan
    soldiers for 13 of their cadre.  At year's end, the LTTE
    was not known to be holding any prisoners. (See section
    1.g.)

    c. Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading
    Treatment or Punishment

    Despite legal prohibitions, the security forces and
    police continue to torture and mistreat persons in police
    custody and prisons.The Convention Against Torture Act
    (CATA) made torture a punishable offense. Under the CATA,
    torture is defined as a specific crime, the High Court
    has jurisdiction over violations, and criminal conviction
    carries a 7-year minimum sentence. According to a 1999
    Amnesty International (AI) report, however, the CATA does
    not implement several provisions of the U.N. Convention;
    this results in torture being prohibited under specific
    circumstances but allowed under others. Consequently,
    torture continues. In addition, the PTA makes confessions
    obtained under any circumstance, including by torture,
    sufficient to hold a person until they are brought to
    court.  In some cases, the detention can extend for
    years.

    Since 2000, the Government has been working on developing
    regulations to prosecute and punish military and police
    personnel responsible for torture. The Attorney General's
    Office and the Criminal Investigation Unit have
    established units to focus on torture complaints; the
    units have forwarded 14 cases for indictments during the
    year. The Interparliamentary Permanent Standing Committee
    and its Interministerial Working Group on Human Rights
    Issues have begun tracking criminal investigations of
    torture. In addition, the Government also ceased paying
    fines incurred by security force personnel found guilty
    of torture. Security force personnel have been fined
    under civil statutes for engaging in torture. According
    to the Attorney General's Office, members of the security
    forces and police have been prosecuted under criminal
    statutes, but none of the cases had come to conclusion.
    The appearance of impunity remains a problem. In the
    majority of cases in which military personnel may have
    committed human rights abuses, the Government has not
    identified those responsible and brought them to justice.

    Members of the security forces continued to torture and
    mistreat detainees and other prisoners, particularly
    during interrogation. Detainees have reported broken
    bones and other serious injuries as a result of their
    mistreatment. There was a report of rape in detention
    during the year. Medical examination of persons arrested
    from 2000 to this year continued to reveal multiple cases
    of torture. In December 2000, the bodies of eight Tamils
    tortured and killed by the army in Mirusuvil were exhumed
    after one person escaped and notified authorities. Nine
    soldiers were arrested, and by year's end, a trial-at-bar
    had begun (see Sections 1.a. and 1.b.). The military also
    conducted its own inquiry; the personnel involved have
    been discharged.

    Thivyan Krishnasamy, a student leader and an outspoken
    critic of the actions of security forces in Jaffna, was
    released from custody on March 15.  He claimed that he
    was tortured while in custody. Human rights observers
    claim that he was arrested because of his political
    activism, but the police stated that he was connected to
    the LTTE. He was arrested on July 2 and when he was
    brought before a court in August he complained of being
    tortured. In response to his allegations of torture, the
    Jaffna Student Union held protests during the fall of
    ¶2001. In response, university administrators temporarily
    closed the university to avoid violence.

    During 2001, there were a number of reports of women
    being raped by security forces while in detention. One
    such case involved two women arrested on March 19 in
    Mannar. The women claim that they were tortured and
    repeatedly raped by naval and police personnel. The women
    were released on bail in April 2001 and have filed
    charges against their assailants. At year's end, the 14
    accused were standing trial for rape, torture or both. A
    fundamental rights case was also opened against the
    accused. Four other cases in which the security forces
    are accused of raping women in detention were still
    pending at year's end.

    Under fundamental rights provisions in the Constitution,
    torture victims may file civil suit for compensation in
    the high courts or Supreme Court. Courts have granted
    awards ranging from approximately $175 (14,200 rupees) to
    $2,280 (182,500 rupees). In February 2001, the Colombo
    high court ordered compensation of $625 (50,000 rupees)
    to a young man beaten in police custody in Vavuniya and
    Colombo in 1999. In August 2001, the Supreme Court
    ordered $1,250 (100,000 rupees) in compensation for a
    Tamil man tortured in December 1999 at an army camp near
    Batticaloa. Most cases take 2 years or more to move
    through the courts, however.

    The appearance of impunity remains a problem. In the
    majority of cases in which military personnel may have
    committed human rights abuses, the Government has not
    identified those responsible and brought them to justice.

    At the invitation of the Government, the United Nations
    Committee on Torture sent a five-person mission to
    Colombo in August 2000 to determine whether a systematic
    pattern of torture exists in the country and, if so, to
    make recommendations for eliminating the practice. By the
    end of 2001, the mission had submitted its confidential
    report to President Kumaratunga.  The report has not been
    released to the public.

    In the past, Tamil militants aligned with the former PA
    government engaged in torture. With the apparent
    knowledge of the security forces, the PLOTE in Vavuniya
    and the EPDP in Jaffna, were criticized for torturing
    their opponents.

    The LTTE reportedly used torture on a routine basis.
    Prison conditions generally are poor and do not meet
    international standards because of overcrowding and lack
    of sanitary facilities. The Government permitted
    representatives from the International Committee of the
    Red Cross (ICRC) to visit approximately 160 places of
    detention. The HRC also visited over 2,000 police
    stations and over 500 detention facilities by year's end
    (see Section 1.d.).

    Conditions also are reportedly poor in LTTE-run detention
    facilities.

    The LTTE permitted the ICRC to visit Sri Lankan soldiers
    detained in the Vavuniya region approximately once every
    6 weeks until their release (see Section 1.g.).  Due to
    the release of detainees in 2000 and the apparent release
    of the remaining Sri Lankan soldiers held by the LTTE,
    ICRC visited fewer LTTE detention centers than in
    previous years (see Section 1.d.).  d. Arbitrary Arrest,
    Detention, or Exile

    Arbitrary arrest and detention are problems. Under the
    law, authorities must inform an arrested person of the
    reason for arrest and bring that person before a
    magistrate within 24 hours. In practice, persons detained
    generally appear before a magistrate within a few days of
    arrest. The magistrate may authorize bail or order
    continued pretrial detention for up to three months or
    longer.  Security forces must issue an arrest receipt at
    the time of arrest, despite some efforts by the
    Government to enforce this standard, arrest receipts are
    rarely issued.  The lack of providing arrest receipts,
    observers believe, prevents adequate tracking of cases.
    The lack of tracking also permits extended detentions and
    torture without making anyone directly responsible for
    those being held.

    Under the ER (which lapsed in July 2001) and the PTA
    (under which there were no arrests in 2002), security
    forces could detain suspects for extended periods of time
    without court approval. The ER, in force periodically
    since 1979 and in force island-wide from August 1998
    until July 2001, gave security forces broad powers to
    arrest and detain without charge or the right to judicial
    review. ER provisions permitted police to hold
    individuals for up to 90 days to investigate suspected
    offenses, although the police had to present detainees to
    a court within 30 days to record the detention. The court
    was able to order a further 6 months' detention.

    In past years, the army generally turned over those that
    it arrested under the ER to the police within 24 hours,
    although the police and the army did not always issue
    arrest receipts or notify the HRC within 48 hours. The
    HRC has a legal mandate to visit those arrested, and
    police generally respected this. Due to censorship and
    infrequent access, observers could not determine the
    state of affairs in LTTE-controlled areas.

    In the past, there were credible reports that the
    military held persons for short amounts of time in
    smaller camps for interrogation before transferring them
    to declared places of detention. This procedure, which
    allegedly occurred on the Jaffna peninsula, in Vavuniya,
    and in the east (see Section 1.c.), did not comply with
    requirements to notify the HRC of arrests and to issue
    arrest receipts. The military maintained the detainees
    were "in transit," and claimed they did not violate the
    detainees' rights.

    Unlike previous years, there were no large-scale arrests
    of Tamils during the year. In the past, many detentions
    occurred during operations against the LTTE. Most
    detentions lasted a maximum of several days although some
    extended to several months. The number of prisoners held
    at any given moment under the ER and the PTA fluctuated
    between 1,500 and 2,000. As of September 1, 222 Tamils
    charged under the PTA remained in detention without bail
    awaiting trial.  As part of the peace process' confidence
    building measures, the Government released over 750
    Tamils arrested under the PTA during the first 8 months
    of 2002.

    Unlike previous years, there were no cordon and search
    operations during 2002.  In previous years, Tamils
    complained that they were abused verbally and held for
    extended periods at security checkpoints throughout
    Colombo. During the week following the July 24, 2001,
    attack on Colombo's main airbase and international
    airport, security forces detained hundreds of Tamils in
    the Colombo region for questioning. In addition, those
    arrested sometimes were held in prisons with convicted
    criminals. The vast majority of checkpoints were removed
    in January and the reports largely ceased (see Section
    1.d.).

    In July 1998, the President established the Committee to
    Inquire into Undue Arrest and Harassment (CIUAH). The
    committee, which includes senior opposition party and
    Tamil representatives, examines complaints of arrest and
    harassment by security forces and takes remedial action
    as needed. The Committee received more than 1,200
    complaints in 2001. Opinions on the effectiveness of the
    CIUAH were mixed. Some human rights observers believed
    that the work of the committee deterred random arrests
    and alleviated problems encountered by detainees and
    their families.  The role of the CIUAH diminished
    drastically during the past year due to peace-process
    related improvements (i.e. removing checkpoints, stopping
    arrests under the PTA, and no cordon and search
    operations).

    The HRC investigated the legality of detention in cases
    referred to it by the Supreme Court and private citizens.
    Although the HRC is legally mandated to exercise
    oversight over arrests and detentions by the security
    forces and to undertake visits to prisons, Members of the
    security forces sometimes violated the regulations and
    failed to cooperate with the HRC in the past.

    The Government continued to give the ICRC unhindered
    access to approximately 160 detention centers, police
    stations, and army camps recognized officially as places
    of detention. Due to the lapsing of the ER in July 2001,
    the total number of persons detained in military bases at
    any one time has been dramatically reduced, with the
    military making fewer arrests and transferring detainees
    to police facilities more quickly than in previous years.
    With the ceasefire agreement, the number of arrests by
    the military has declined to near zero.
    The EPDP reportedly detained its own members for short
    periods in Jaffna as punishment for breaking party
    discipline.

    The LTTE has in the past detained civilians, often
    holding them for ransom. There have been reports of this
    practice during the year, such as the multiple reports of
    kidnapping of Muslim businessmen in Batticaloa area,
    particularly during the first four months of the year.
    Reports indicate that the LTTE demand anywhere from a few
    hundred dollars to upwards of $10,415 (1,000,000 Rupees)
    for their release. In September 1999, the LTTE held three
    businessmen for a ransom of $550,000 (40 million Rupees).
    The businessmen were freed after making partial payment
    and promising to pay the balance. (See Section 1.g.
    regarding prisoner release.)

    The Government does not practice forced exile and there
    are no legal provisions allowing its use.

    e. Denial of Fair Public Trial

    The Constitution provides for an independent judiciary
    and the Government generally respects these provisions in
    practice.

    The President appoints judges to the Supreme Court, the
    courts of appeal, and the high courts. A judicial service
    commission, composed of the Chief Justice and two Supreme
    Court judges, appoints, transfers, and dismisses lower
    court judges. Judges serve until the mandatory retirement
    age of 65 for the Supreme Court and 62 for other courts.
    Judges can be removed for reasons of misbehavior or
    physical or mental incapacity, but only after a legal
    investigation followed by joint action of the President
    and the Parliament.

    In criminal cases, juries try defendants in public.
    Defendants are informed of the charges and evidence
    against them, and may be represented by the counsel of
    their choice, and have the right to appeal. The
    Government provides counsel for indigent persons tried on
    criminal charges in the high courts and the courts of
    appeal, but it does not provide counsel in other cases.
    Private legal aid organizations assist some defendants.
    In addition, the Ministry of Justice operates 11
    community legal aid centers to assist those who cannot
    afford representation and to serve as educational
    resources for local communities. These legal aid centers
    had tried no cases by the end of September, however.
    There are no jury trials in cases brought under the PTA.
    Confessions, obtained by various coercive means,
    including torture, are inadmissible in criminal
    proceedings, but are allowed in PTA cases; most
    convictions under the PTA rely heavily on them.
    Defendants bear the burden of proof to show that their
    confessions were obtained by coercion. Defendants in PTA
    cases have the right to appeal. Subject to judicial
    review in certain cases, defendants can spend up to 18
    months in prison on administrative order waiting for
    their cases to be heard. Once their cases come to trial,
    decisions are made relatively quickly. Over 750 PTA cases
    were dropped by September 1 and the prisoners released.

    Most court proceedings in Colombo and the south are
    conducted in English or Sinhala, which due to a shortage
    of court-appointed interpreters has restricted the
    ability of Tamil-speaking defendants to get a fair
    hearing. Trials and hearings in the north and east are in
    Tamil and English, but many serious cases, including
    those having to do with terrorism, are tried in Colombo.
    While Tamil-speaking judges exist at the magistrate
    level, only four high court judges, an appeals court
    judge, and a Supreme Court justice speak fluent Tamil.
    Few legal textbooks and only one law report exist in
    Tamil, and the Government has complied only slowly with
    legislation requiring publishing all laws in English,
    Sinhala, and Tamil.

    In Jaffna, LTTE threats against court officials sometimes
    disrupted normal court operations in the past. Although
    the Jaffna high court suspended activities due to
    security concerns in 2000, it reopened in 2001 and was
    still functioning at year's end.

    The LTTE has its own self-described court system,
    composed of judges with little or no legal training. The
    courts operate without codified or defined legal
    authority and essentially operate as agents of the LTTE
    rather than as an independent judiciary. The courts
    reportedly impose severe punishments, including
    execution.

    The Government claims that all persons held under the PTA
    are suspected members of the LTTE and are, therefore,
    legitimate security threats. Insufficient information
    exists to verify this claim and to determine whether
    these detainees are political prisoners. More than 750
    PTA cases were dismissed by the Attorney General by
    September 1.  The Attorney General's office expected a
    few more of the 222 remaining cases to be dismissed by
    the end of the year.  The Government claims that the
    cases that remain at that point will only be of those
    individuals directly linked to suicide bombings or other
    terrorist and criminal acts. In many cases, human rights
    monitors question the legitimacy of the criminal charges
    brought against these persons.

    The LTTE also reportedly holds a number of political
    prisoners. The number is impossible to determine because
    of the secretive nature of the organization. The LTTE
    refuses to allow the ICRC access to these prisoners.

    f. Arbitrary Interference with Privacy, Family, Home, or
    Correspondence

    The Constitution provides for the right to privacy, and
    the Government generally respects this provision in
    practice; however, it infringes on citizen's privacy
    rights in some areas. The police obtain proper warrants
    for arrests and searches conducted under ordinary law;
    the security forces are not required to obtain warrants
    for searches conducted either under the now lapsed ER or
    the PTA, however. The Secretary of the Ministry of
    Defense is responsible for providing oversight for such
    searches. No judicial review or other means of redress
    existed for alleged illegal searches under the ER. Some
    Tamils complained that their homes were searched as a
    means of general harassment by the security forces (see
    Section 1.d.). The Government is believed to monitor
    telephone conversations and correspondence on a selective
    basis.

    On September 4, taking into account the fast progress of
    the peace process, the Government legalized the LTTE.
    The LTTE was first proscribed in 1998 following the
    suicide bombing of the Temple of the Tooth in Kandy, one
    of Sri Lanka's holiest sites.

    The LTTE routinely invades the privacy of citizens,
    maintaining an effective network of informants. The LTTE
    also forcibly recruited children during the year (see
    Section 6.d.). During August and September, the LTTE
    handed over 85 children to UNICEF, stating that the
    children had volunteered to serve, but that the LTTE does
    not accept children (see Section 6.d.).

    g. Use of Excessive Force and Violations of Humanitarian
    Law in Internal Conflicts

    Hostilities between the Government and the LTTE abated
    with the announcement of unilateral ceasefires in
    December 2001, followed by a formal ceasefire accord
    being agreed to in February 2002.  On October 10, seven
    civilians were killed when security force personnel fired
    into a crowd storming their compound in the east.  Some
    observers claim the security forces used excessive force
    in repelling a peaceful crowd that was demonstrating
    against the alleged harassment of LTTE cadre earlier in
    the day. Others claim the security forces were justified
    in repelling what appeared to be a LTTE-instigated
    attack.  On April 29, in Nilaveli, on the east coast, two
    Tamil women were injured when Sri Lankan Naval personnel
    opened fire.  The circumstances surrounding the incident
    remained unclear at year's end.  The investigation into
    the incident remains open.

    In 2001, an estimated 2000 combatants and 100 civilians
    were killed in conflict-related incidents.  In May 2001,
    a 10-year-old child and the mother were injured near
    Karawetti when the LTTE and SLA exchanged fire; in June,
    two civilians were killed and 16 others were injured
    during a 2-hour confrontation between the LTTE and the
    SLA at Kawatamunai. The Sri Lankan air force carried out
    a bombing campaign in the north and east during the year,
    with particular intensity from June through August. The
    Tamil press regularly reported the death of civilians due
    to air force bombing, but there has been no confirmation
    of these reports.

    In the past, the Government often publicized aspects of
    its planned operations to allow civilians time to vacate
    the probable areas to be affected. In 2001, the armed
    forces did not give public warnings before the
    commencement of operations. During 2002, there were no
    military actions. In May 2000, 23 persons were killed and
    dozens were injured when a bomb exploded at a Buddhist
    temple in Batticaloa in the east, where crowds had
    gathered to celebrate the Buddhist festival of Vesak. The
    Government blamed the LTTE for this bombing, but no one
    claimed responsibility. Investigations into the incident
    concluded in 2001. After the bomb exploded, security
    forces reportedly opened fire, killing four children and
    injuring eight more. The Government maintains that the
    evidence and interviews of witnesses do not support those
    claims. In September 1999, the air force dropped bombs on
    a village near Puthukudiyiruppu in the Vanni, killing 22
    persons (see Section 1.a.). Human rights observers
    alleged that those killed were civilians. Government
    officials acknowledged that the persons were killed by
    air force bombs; they alleged, however, that the air
    force targeted an LTTE training camp, and at first they
    did not admit the possibility that civilians were killed
    in error. The Government later acknowledged quietly that
    the attack was an accident. During 2001, the Government
    held an investigation and authorized compensation for the
    victims' families, admitting that the site had been
    bombed "in error." The Government did not admit formally
    to having killed civilians, however.

    On November 16, 2001, the Sri Lankan Army created the
    Directorate of Human Rights and Humanitarian Law in the
    Sri Lankan Army. The directorate is charged with
    coordinating all human rights activities for the army
    from ICRC training classes (see Section 4) to overseeing
    the Human Rights Cells that are assigned throughout the
    military. The SLA also states that all of its personnel
    have completed the appropriate training and pledged to
    adhere to the "rules of international Humanitarian Law."
    Early in 2002, the air force and navy instituted similar
    programs.  The armed forces operate under written rules
    of engagement that severely restrict the shelling,
    bombardment, or other use of firepower against civilian-
    occupied areas.

    At the end of 2001, the UNHCR reported a minimum of
    800,000 IDP's in Sri Lanka due to the conflict, while the
    Commissioner General for Essential Services states that
    it provides services for over 700,000 persons.  Due to an
    ongoing ceasefire, more than 150,000 IDPs returned to
    their points of origin last year.  The Government did not
    have the resources to support adequately the returnees.
    In addition, many returned to areas suspected of being
    mined.

    The Government continued to provide food relief, through
    the Commissioner General for Essential Services (CGES)
    and the Multi-Purpose Cooperative Societies (MCPS), to
    displaced and other needy citizens, including those in
    areas controlled by the LTTE. Food rations were delivered
    by the Government to the Vanni area through a checkpoint
    that is controlled on one side by the security forces and
    on the other by the LTTE. The border into the territory
    controlled by the LTTE was not closed during the year.

    Prior to 2002, the Government maintained a long list of
    prohibited "war-related" medical items, such as sutures,
    plaster of Paris, intravenous liquid supplies, bandages,
    and some drugs. At the end of the year, however, only
    certain military-related items were prohibited from being
    transported to LTTE controlled areas.  In the past, NGO's
    and other groups that sought to take controlled items to
    LTTE-controlled areas in the Vanni region needed
    permission from local officials as well as from the
    Ministry of Defense. Delays were common and approval
    sometimes was denied. As a result, many medical items in
    the Vanni region and Jaffna were in short supply. This
    shortfall contributed to a deterioration in the quality
    and quantity of medical care furnished to the civilian
    population. Previous restrictions on the transport of
    items such as cement, batteries, and currency into the
    LTTE-controlled areas also had a negative impact on the
    relief work of NGO's in those areas.

    The Ministry of Defense reported capturing several LTTE
    operatives in Government-controlled areas with weapons in
    direct contradiction of the terms of the ceasefire
    agreement.  The Government reportedly returned most LTTE
    personnel thus apprehended directly to the closest LTTE
    checkpoint, but some were detained for longer periods.
    Previously the military  sent the cadre they captured or
    who surrendered to rehabilitation centers. The ICRC
    continued to visit former LTTE members in government
    rehabilitation camps, although the October 2000 massacre
    of more than 20 such detainees at a government-run
    detention facility at Bindunuwewa, near Bandarawella, led
    observers to question the continued security of residents
    of these facilities (see Section 1.a. and 1.g.).

    In view of the scale of hostilities in previous years and
    the large number of LTTE casualties, some observers have
    found the number of prisoners taken under battlefield
    conditions to be low and have concluded that many LTTE
    fighters apparently were killed rather than taken
    prisoner. Some observers believed that, on the government
    side, an unwritten "take-no-prisoners" policy had been in
    effect. The military denied this claim, stating that
    other factors limited the number of prisoners taken, such
    as the LTTE's efforts to remove injured fighters from the
    battlefield, the proclivity of its fighters to choose
    suicide over capture, and the LTTE's occasional practice
    of killing its own badly injured fighters (see Section
    1.a.). There were no reports of security forces personnel
    executing LTTE cadres during the year.

    In previous years, the Government refused to permit
    relief organizations to provide medical attention to
    injured LTTE fighters, although it has offered to treat
    any LTTE injured entrusted to government care. According
    to credible reports, injured LTTE cadres surrendering to
    the Government received appropriate medical care.

    The LTTE admitted that in the past it killed security
    forces personnel rather than take them prisoner. Past
    eyewitness accounts confirm that the LTTE has executed
    injured soldiers on the battlefield. At year's end, the
    LTTE had reportedly released all security force personnel
    they were holding. The LTTE is believed to have killed
    most of the police officers and security force personnel
    captured in the past few years. The LTTE in 1999
    transferred 11 captured SLA members to the ICRC. In
    February 2000, the LTTE released four servicemen and in
    June 2000 released one civilian. In January, the LTTE
    unilaterally released 10 Sri Lankans, including some
    soldiers. On September 28, the LTTE release 7 prisoners
    in exchange for the release of 13 of their cadre.

    The LTTE used excessive force in the war. During the
    year, the LTTE has engaged in hostage taking, hijackings,
    and forcible recruitment.

    In July 2001, the LTTE attacked Colombo's main airbase
    and international airport. During the attack, the LTTE
    destroyed six military and four civilian aircraft. The
    LTTE also damaged the civilian airport.

    In the past, the LTTE was regularly accused of killing
    civilians. For example, the LTTE was accused of killing
    four Sinhalese villagers at Wahalkada village in March
    2001, and killing a Tamil civilian and injuring 15 others
    in Trincomalee in June of the same year (see Section
    1.a.).

    The LTTE uses child soldiers. In October, four children
    ranging in age from 15to 17 years surrendered to a local
    church near Trincomalee after escaping from the LTTE.
    Credible sources reported increased LTTE recruitment,
    including recruitment of children during the year.

    The LTTE expropriates food, fuel, and other items meant
    for IDP's, thus exacerbating the plight of such persons
    in LTTE-controlled areas. Malnutrition remained a problem
    in LTTE-controlled areas as well as in other parts of the
    Vanni region, with nutrition levels falling below the
    national average. Experts have reported a high rate of
    anemia and a low birth rate, both of which indicate lower
    levels of nutrition. Confirmed cases of malnutrition
    included hundreds of children. A survey completed by
    Medecins Sans Frontieres in 1999 found malnutrition
    levels in the war-affected areas at about the same level
    as in the war-free south of the country, however.

    Landmines were a problem in Jaffna and the Vanni and to
    some extent in the east. Landmines, booby traps, and
    unexploded ordnance pose a problem to resettlement of
    displaced persons and rebuilding. A U.N. landmine team
    tasked with locating and mapping LTTE and army mines in
    the Jaffna peninsula suspended its mission in April 2000
    stating that it was impossible to continue as long as
    hostilities continued.  At year's end, a UN team was
    again in Jaffna coordinating the process of mapping the
    mined areas and establishing oversite for a mine removal
    program.  The Sri Lankan Military and the LTTE are
    removing mines in areas they control. The government was
    reporting in excess of four mine-related casualties among
    civilians per month for 2002.  In August 2001, a civilian
    bus travelling to Trincomalee hit a land mine injuring 30
    of its passengers. In September 2001, a vehicle carrying
    a family hit a mine approximately 5 kilometers north of
    Jaffna, killing all six passengers and the driver.

    Section 2  Respect for Civil Liberties, Including:

    a. Freedom of Speech and Press

    The Constitution provides for freedom of speech and
    expression.  In the past, the Government restricted these
    rights in practice, often using national security grounds
    permitted by law. The Government reissued censorship
    orders, on all ongoing and future military operations, in
    November 1999 after the military suffered setbacks in the
    field. The Government officially lifted the censorship on
    war reporting in June 2001. However, even when no
    specific government censorship is exercised, private
    television stations impose their own, informal censorship
    on international television news rebroadcast in the
    country.

    During 2002, criminal defamation laws, which were often
    used by the Government to intimidate independent media
    outlets, were eliminated and all pending cases dropped.
    The cases for which a decision had already been made
    still stand.

    The Government controls the country's largest newspaper
    chain, two major television stations, and the Sri Lanka
    Broadcasting Corporation (SLBC, a radio station). There
    are a variety of independent, privately owned newspapers,
    journals and radio and television stations, most of which
    freely criticize the Government and its policies. The
    Government imposes no political restrictions on the
    establishment of new media enterprises.

    The president officially eased censorship restrictions on
    foreign journalists in a circular published in June 2000;
    material for publication or broadcast within the country,
    regardless of author, remained subject to government
    approval until the repeal of censorship laws in June
    2001, however. Claims of harassment and intimidation of
    private media by the government continue.

    Human rights observers commented that in the past Tamils
    from the north or east who criticized the Sri Lankan
    military and Government were often harassed and sometimes
    arrested. They cite the case of Thiviyan Krishnasamy, a
    student leader in Jaffna and critic of the military in
    the Jaffna area. He was arrested in July 2001 and
    released in March 2002 (see Section 1.c).

    In September 2000, police arrested a young man for
    criticizing the president on a radio call-in show. Police
    traced the call to discover the caller's address. The
    young man's parents alleged that he had a mental illness
    and could not be held responsible for his comments. The
    young man remained in prison at year's end.

    In 2000, police detained two persons for questioning in
    connection with the 1999 murder of Rohana Kumara, editor
    of a Sinhala-language newspaper which had been critical
    of leading figures in the ruling coalition. The case
    remained open at year's end.

    In February 1998, armed men attacked a journalist who
    regularly reported on defense matters, including
    corruption in military procurements. The Government
    criticized the attack; it subsequently arrested and
    indicted two air force personnel in the case, including
    the bodyguard of a former Commander of the Air Force. A
    formal indictment was handed down in 1999. Courts
    postponed the hearings several times during the past two
    years.  On February 9, the assailants were given lengthy
    jail sentences.

    The Supreme Court appeal of the editor of a leading
    national newspaper who was convicted of defaming the
    president in 1997 was pending at the end of 2001. Other
    defamation cases filed by the President against editors
    of major newspapers who either had criticized the
    Government or supported the opposition remained pending.
    Threats of further complaints to be filed by the
    Government or president continued through 2001.
    Journalists viewed these cases as frivolous and intended
    only to intimidate and harass the media.  In 2002, the
    defamation laws permitting these cases was repealed and
    the cases dropped.

    The Sri Lanka Tamil Media Alliance (SLTMA) was formed in
    1999 to protect the interests of Tamil journalists, who
    allege that they are subject to harassment and
    intimidation by Tamil paramilitary groups and Sri Lankan
    security forces. Regional Tamil correspondents working in
    the war zones have complained of arbitrary arrest and
    detention in the past and difficulty in obtaining press
    accreditation. The SLTMA has filed cases on behalf of
    Tamil journalists, but its cases have not yet succeeded
    in the courts.
    Prior to 2002, travel by local and foreign journalists to
    conflict areas was restricted, as they were required to
    obtain advance permission from the Ministry of Defense to
    visit such areas. The Foreign Ministry also must approve
    visits to conflict areas by foreign journalists. The LTTE
    does not tolerate freedom of expression. It tightly
    restricts the print and broadcast media in areas under
    its control. The LTTE has killed those reporting and
    publishing on human rights.

    The Government does not restrict access to the Internet.

    The Government generally respects academic freedom.

    The LTTE does not respect academic freedom, and it has
    repressed and killed intellectuals who criticize it, most
    notably the moderate and widely respected Tamil
    politician and academic, Dr. Neelan Tiruchelvam, who was
    killed by a suicide bomber in July 1999. The LTTE also
    has severely repressed members of human rights
    organizations, such as the University Teachers for Human
    Rights (UTHR), and other groups. Many former members of
    the UTHR have been killed.

    b. Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association

    The law provides for freedom of assembly and the
    Government generally respects this right in practice.
    Although the PTA may be used to restrict this freedom,
    the Government did not use the act for that purpose
    during the last two years. The ER, which lapsed in July
    2001, also restricted the right of assembly.  Numerous
    peaceful political and nonpolitical rallies were held
    throughout Sri Lanka during the year.

    On July 19, 2001, the opposition held a rally that the
    Government claimed was illegal under the 1981 Referendum
    Act, which essentially states that rallies and
    demonstrations of a political nature cannot be held when
    a referendum is scheduled. Security forces killed two
    persons when the government confronted the rally with
    force, prompting further demonstrations. The Government
    generally grants permits for demonstrations, however,
    including those by opposition parties and minority
    groups.

    On April 30, 2001, a violent clash between the Sinhalese
    and Muslim communities occurred in Mawanella. The Muslim
    community protested alleged police inaction concerning
    the assault on a Muslim store clerk. In response, a group
    of Sinhalese attacked the Muslim protesters. As the
    conflict escalated, two Muslims were killed and scores of
    buildings and a few vehicles were destroyed. Police
    reportedly did nothing to stop the destruction of Muslim
    property. The investigation into the Mawanella incident
    remained open at year's end.

    The law provides for freedom of association and the
    Government respects this right in practice. Although the
    PTA may restrict this right, the Government did not use
    the act for that purpose during the previous two years.

    The LTTE does not allow freedom of association in the
    areas that it controls. The LTTE has reportedly used
    coercion to make people attend rallies it sponsors.  On
    the Jaffna Peninsula, the LTTE occasionally has posted in
    public places the names of Tamil civilians accused of
    associating with security forces and other Government
    entities. The LTTE has killed Tamil civilians who have
    cooperated with the security forces in establishing a
    civil administration in Jaffna under a political
    leadership elected freely and fairly in January 1998.

    c. Freedom of Religion

    The Constitution gives Buddhism a foremost position, but
    it also provides for the right of members of other faiths
    to practice their religions freely, and the Government
    respects this right in practice. Despite the special
    status afforded by the Constitution to Buddhism, major
    religious festivals of all faiths are celebrated as
    public holidays.
    Foreign clergy may work in the country, but for the last
    30 years, the Government has sought to limit the number
    of foreign religious workers given temporary work
    permits. Permission usually is restricted to
    denominations registered with the Government. The
    Government has prohibited the entry of new foreign clergy
    on a permanent basis. It permitted those already in the
    country to remain.

    Some evangelical Christians have expressed concern that
    their efforts at proselytizing often meet with hostility
    and harassment from the local Buddhist clergy and others
    opposed to their work. During the summer, at least one
    couple was physically assaulted by Buddhist clergy.
    Evangelicals sometimes complain that the Government
    tacitly condones such harassment, but there is no
    evidence to support this claim.

    The LTTE expelled virtually the entire Muslim population
    from their homes in the northern part of the island in
    ¶1990. Most of these persons remain displaced. In the
    past, the LTTE expropriated Muslim homes, lands, and
    businesses and threatened Muslim families with death if
    they attempted to return (see Section 2.d.).  In the past
    year, the LTTE leadership has met with the leaders of the
    Muslim community on their incorporation into the peace
    process.  The LTTE has made some conciliatory statements
    to the Muslim community, but the statements are viewed
    with skepticism by Muslims.

    The LTTE attacked Buddhist sites, most notably the
    historic Dalada Maligawa or "Temple of the Tooth," the
    holiest Buddhist shrine in the country, in Kandy in
    January 1998. In May 2000, an LTTE bombing near a temple
    at the Buddhist Vesak festival in Batticaloa killed 23
    persons and injured dozens of others (see Section 1.a.).

    The LTTE has been accused in the past of using church and
    temple compounds, where civilians were instructed by the
    Government to congregate in the event of hostilities, as
    shields for the storage of munitions.

    d. Freedom of Movement Within the Country, Foreign
    Travel, Emigration, and Repatriation

    The Constitution grants every citizen "freedom of
    movement and of choosing his residence" and "freedom to
    return to [the country]," and the Government generally
    respects the right to domestic and foreign travel.  In
    the past, however, the war with the LTTE prompted the
    Government to impose more stringent checks on travelers
    from the north and the east and on movement in Colombo,
    particularly after dark. Tamils had to obtain police
    passes in order to move freely in the north and east, and
    frequently they were harassed at checkpoints throughout
    the country (see Section 1.d.). These security measures
    had the effect of restricting the movement of Tamils.

    The government has lifted most travel restrictions within
    the country.  Areas near military bases and so-called
    high security zones still have limited access.  Some
    observers claim the high security zones are excessive and
    unfairly claim Tamil lands, particularly in Jaffna.  In
    April, the A-9 road connecting Jaffna in the north to the
    rest of Sri Lanka was reopened.  The LTTE still puts some
    limitation on travel on the road, including tolls, but
    the government has lifted all of its past restrictions on
    travel to Jaffna.

    The armed forces initially prevented more than 1,000
    civilians from vacating conflict areas on the Jaffna
    peninsula during fighting in April and May 2000; however,
    the military quickly decided to permit civilians to
    evacuate the area after intense pressure by human rights
    groups. Fighting between Government and the LTTE has
    displaced hundreds of thousands of persons, with many
    displaced multiple times as front lines shifted. Since
    September 2000, 172,000 IDP's have been living in welfare
    centers ranging from camps, where conditions vary
    considerably, to settlements with a full range of
    government social services and food aid. By the end of
    2001, an estimated 500,000 to 800,000 IDP's, including
    those in the Vanni, had registered for government food
    aid, and were receiving medicine and other essential
    supplies from the Government.  By year's end, more than
    150,000 of these IDP's had returned home.

    The Government has sought to resettle the displaced where
    possible and has arranged for a number of those from
    Jaffna to return to their homes. Over the years, the
    Government, in cooperation with the UNHCR, built
    permanent housing for 18,000 Muslims in the Puttalam
    area. An additional one-time resettlement program
    relocated 1000 families by end of 2001. Many of those
    resettled later were displaced by subsequent fighting,
    including those who returned to their homes north and
    east of Vavuniya in 1999, but were forced to flee again
    when the LTTE retook the area starting in November, 1999.
    The current return of IDP's exceeds the capacity of the
    Government to provide adequate assistance.  The IDP's
    are, in some cases, returning to areas that are still
    mined.

    The LTTE has discriminated against Muslims, and in 1990
    expelled some 46,000 Muslim inhabitants--virtually the
    entire Muslim population--from their homes in areas under
    LTTE control in the northern part of the island. Most of
    these persons remained displaced and live in or near
    welfare centers at year's end. There are credible reports
    that the LTTE has warned thousands of Muslims displaced
    from the Mannar area not to return to their homes until
    the conflict is over. In the past, the LTTE has
    expropriated Muslim homes, land, and businesses and
    threatened Muslim families with death if they attempt to
    return. It appears that those attacks by the LTTE are not
    targeted against persons due to their religious beliefs,
    however; rather, it appears that they are part of an
    overall strategy to clear the north and east of persons
    not sympathetic to the cause of an independent Tamil
    state.  For its part, the LTTE has invited the Muslim
    IDPs to return home, asserting they will not be harmed.
    Although some Muslim IDPs have begun returning home, the
    vast majority still do not trust the LTTE and are waiting
    for a firm settlement or guarantees from the government
    or international community as to their safety in LTTE-
    controlled areas.

    Between October 1996 and the end of 1999, over 150,000
    persons moved out of LTTE-controlled regions through
    Vavuniya and other transit points into government
    controlled regions. Of these, over 100,000 reached Jaffna
    and other Tamil-majority areas. Many had left the Vanni
    region with the intention of proceeding south; they opted
    for other destinations only after learning that they
    would have to remain in transit camps until security
    clearances for southward travel were obtained. Obtaining
    a clearance could take up to 4 months in some cases, and
    some human rights groups alleged that the procedures were
    arbitrary and unreasonably strict. The Government
    restricted the movement of displaced Tamils due to
    possible security, economic, and social concerns. These
    restrictions have basically been lifted with the onset of
    the peace process.

    Prior to 2002, and following the Government's capture of
    Jaffna in 1995, the LTTE began to allow persons to move
    more freely into government-controlled areas, although it
    still extracted a small fee for "travel passes" to leave
    the Vanni, and it rarely allowed entire families to leave
    at once. The LTTE occasionally disrupted the flow of
    persons exiting the Vanni region through the one
    established and legal checkpoint. In the past, the LTTE
    disrupted the movement of IDP's from Trincomalee to
    Jaffna by hijacking or attacking civilian shipping,
    although there were no such reports this year.
    Humanitarian groups estimate that more than 200,000 IDP's
    live in LTTE-controlled areas (see Section 1.g.).

    Several thousand Tamils fled LTTE-controlled areas to
    Tamil Nadu in southern India in 1998. An estimated 65,000
    Tamil refugees live in camps there. Approximately 100,000
    refugees may have integrated into Tamil society in India
    over the years. A small number returned from India during
    the year.

    The Government cooperates with the UNHCR and other
    humanitarian organizations in assisting refugees. The
    issue of the provision of first asylum did not arise
    during the year. The Government does not permit the entry
    of refugees into the country or grant first asylum, nor
    does it aid those who manage to enter to seek permanent
    residence elsewhere. The law does not include provisions
    for granting refugee or asylee status in accordance with
    the 1951 U.N. Convention Relating to the Status of
    Refugees and its 1967 Protocol. There were no reported
    instances of forcible repatriation of persons to a
    country where they feared persecution.

    Section 3  Respect for Political Rights: The Right of
    Citizens to Change Their Government

    Citizens have the right to change their government
    through periodic multiparty elections based on universal
    adult suffrage; however, recent elections have been
    marred by violence and irregularities. The country is a
    longstanding democratic republic with an active
    multiparty system. Power is shared between the popularly
    elected President and the 225-member Parliament. The
    right to change the government was last exercised in the
    December 2001 parliamentary elections in which the United
    National Front, a coalition of parties led by the United
    National Party (UNP), won a majority in Parliament for
    the next 6-year period. The December 2001 and November
    2000 parliamentary elections were marred by voting
    irregularities and violence.

    Following the December 2001 elections, the UNP and its
    allies formed the new Government. The president's party,
    the People's Alliance (PA), is now the opposition in
    Parliament.  The UNP, led by Prime Minister Ranil
    Wickremesinghe, has formed the new Government and filled
    the positions in the cabinet.  Cohabitation ties between
    the president and prime minister have been difficult.

    The president suspended Parliament from July to September
    ¶2001. The suspension of Parliament angered opposition
    parties, which sponsored numerous demonstrations. One of
    these demonstrations, on July 19, ended with the deaths
    of two marchers killed by security forces (see Section
    2.b.). After further defections from her coalition, the
    President dissolved Parliament on October 10 and called
    for elections to take place on December 5.
    On December 5, 2001, 12 supporters of the Sri Lankan
    Muslim Congress were killed, apparently by hired thugs of
    a PA candidate. Former PA MP Anuruddha Ratwatte and his
    two sons have been indicted for conspiracy.  In addition,
    15 others, including security force personnel, were also
    indicted for their alleged involvement in the murders.
    The trial was still ongoing at year's end.  Despite an
    extremely violent campaign, including credible reports on
    the use of intimidation by both of the major parties,
    voter turnout exceeded 70 percent. The People's Alliance
    for Free and Fair Elections (PAFFREL) reported 755
    incidents of violence and 49 deaths; The Center for
    Monitoring Election Violence (CMEV) reported 4,208
    incidents, and 73 deaths; and the police reported 2,247
    incidents, and 45 deaths during the year.

    In September 2001, the Parliament passed the 17th
    Amendment, which established an independent Commission on
    Elections (among other commissions), which is to be
    tasked with ensuring free and fair elections.

    A delegation from the European Union monitoring the
    election expressed concern about violence and
    irregularities in the voting, but concluded that the
    election "did to a reasonable degree reflect the will of
    the electorate."

    The Commissioner of Elections recognized 46 parties at
    the time of general elections in October 2000; only 13
    parties actually held seats in the 225-member Parliament
    elected during 2001.  The two most influential parties,
    the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (the principal component
    party of the governing PA coalition) and the UNP,
    generally draw their support from the majority Sinhalese
    community. These two parties have alternated in power
    since independence.
    Although there are no legal impediments to the
    participation of women in politics or government, the
    social mores in some communities limit women's activities
    outside the home, and the percentage of women in
    government and politics does not correspond to their
    percentage of the population. In November 1994, a woman
    was elected President for the first time; she was
    reelected in December 1999 for a second term. Eleven
    women held seats in the Parliament that completed its
    term in August 2000. In addition to the Prime Minister,
    the Minister for Women's Affairs, and the Minister of
    Social Services, a number of women held posts as deputy
    ministers in the last parliament. Of the 5,000 candidates
    for the October 2000 parliamentary elections, 116 were
    women and 7 of them won seats in the October elections.
    Only one woman (Minister of Women's Affairs) was
    appointed to the new cabinet formed after the December 5
    elections.

    The Parliament elected in October 2000 had 23 Tamil and
    22 Muslim members.  The Parliament elected in December
    2001 had 28 Tamil, 21 Muslim, and 9 women members.

    The LTTE refuses to allow elections in areas under its
    control, although it did not oppose campaigning by
    certain Tamil parties in the east during the December
    2001 parliamentary elections. In previous years the LTTE
    effectively undermined the functioning of local
    government bodies in Jaffna through a campaign of killing
    and intimidation. This campaign included the killing of 2
    of Jaffna's mayors and death threats against members of
    the 17 local councils. Throughout the period of the
    conflict, the LTTE has killed popularly elected
    politicians, including those elected by Tamils in areas
    the LTTE claimed as part of a Tamil homeland.

    Section 4  Governmental Attitude Regarding International
    and Nongovernmental Investigation of Alleged Violations
    of Human Rights

    Several domestic human rights NGO's, including the
    Consortium of Humanitarian Agencies (CHA), the University
    Teachers for Human Rights, Jaffna (UTHR-J), the Civil
    Rights Movement (CRM), and the Law and Society Trust
    (LST), monitor civil and political liberties. There are
    no adverse regulations governing the activities of local
    and foreign NGO's, although the Government officially
    requires NGO's to include action plans and detailed
    descriptions of funding sources as part of its
    registration process. Some NGO workers have seen this as
    an attempt by the Government to exert greater control
    over the NGO sector after previous human rights groups
    criticisms. Few NGO's complied with these new reporting
    requirements. The Government generally cooperated with
    NGO's, members of Parliament, and other officials
    participating in seminars and other events concerning
    human rights and humanitarian affairs.

    The Government allowed the ICRC unrestricted access to
    detention facilities (see Sections 1.c. and 1.d.). The
    ICRC provides international humanitarian law training
    materials and training to the security forces. The UNHCR,
    the ICRC, and a variety of international NGO's assisted
    in the delivery of medical and other essential supplies
    to the Vanni area (see Section 1.g.).

    In the first 6 months of the year, the HRC conducted over
    600 visits to police stations and over 300 visits to
    detention facilities. The HRC has over 4,500 cases of
    alleged human rights abuse pending. The Commission's
    investigation into the allegations by former Lance
    Corporal Rajapakse about mass graves at Chemmani in
    Jaffna resulted in exhumations in 1999 that provided the
    basis for the ongoing case (see Section 1.a.). Some
    observers still complain that the HRC is hampered by the
    lack of a strong leader.  Over the past year, however,
    many observers of commented positively on the new
    leader's implementation of standardized procedures and
    willingness to confront other government branches on
    human rights issues. The new commissioners were appointed
    in March 2000 and stayed in place until early 2002.
    Activists have expressed some satisfaction with the new
    leadership's prompt investigation into the November 2000
    Bindunuwewu massacre.

    Section 5  Discrimination Based on Race, Sex, Religion,
    Disability, Language, or Social Status

    The Constitution provides for equal rights under the law
    for all citizens, and the Government generally respects
    these rights. The Supreme Court regularly upholds court
    rulings in cases in which individuals file suit over the
    abridgment of their fundamental civil rights. The HRC and
    the CIUAH are other mechanisms that the Government has
    established to ensure enforcement of constitutional
    provisions in addition to access to the courts (see
    Section 1.d.).

    Women

    Sexual assault, rape, and spousal abuse (often associated
    with alcohol abuse) continued to be serious and pervasive
    problems.

    Amendments to the Penal Code introduced in 1995
    specifically addressed sexual abuse and exploitation and
    modified rape laws to create a more equitable burden of
    proof and to make punishments more stringent. Marital
    rape is considered an offense in cases of spouses living
    under judicial separation, and laws govern sexual
    molestation and sexual harassment in the workplace. While
    the Penal Code may ease some of the problems faced by
    victims of sexual assault, many women's organizations
    believe that greater sensitization of police and judicial
    officials is required. The Government set up the Bureau
    for the Protection of Children and Women within the
    police in 1994 to respond to calls for greater awareness
    and attention; however, there was no information on any
    actions taken by the Bureau nor on the number of crimes
    against women.

    Although laws against procuring and trafficking were
    strengthened in 1995, trafficking in women for the
    purpose of forced labor occurs (see Sections 6.c. and
    6.f.).

    During 2001, police reported 500 rape case
    investigations.  In 2001, there were a number of reports
    of security forces raping women in custody (see Section
    1.c.). In 2002, there was one such report. There have
    been no convictions in the cases involving security force
    personnel.

    The Constitution provides for equal employment
    opportunities in the public sector. However, women have
    no legal protection against discrimination in the private
    sector where they sometimes are paid less than men for
    equal work, often experience difficulty in rising to
    supervisory positions, and face sexual harassment. Women
    constitute approximately one-half of the formal work
    force.

    Women have equal rights under national, civil, and
    criminal law. However, questions related to family law,
    including divorce, child custody, and inheritance, are
    adjudicated by the customary law of each ethnic or
    religious group. The minimum age of marriage for women is
    18 years, except in the case of Muslims, who continue to
    follow their customary marriage practices. The
    application of different legal practices based on
    membership in a religious or ethnic group often results
    in discrimination against women.

    Children

    The Government is committed to protecting the welfare and
    rights of children, but is constrained by a lack of
    resources. The Government demonstrates this commitment
    through its extensive systems of public education and
    medical care. The law requires children between the ages
    of 5 and 14 to attend school. Approximately 85 percent of
    children under the age of 16 attend school. Education is
    free through the university level. Health care, including
    immunization, also is free.

    In the period from January 1 to June 30, 2000, the police
    recorded 680 cases of crimes against children, compared
    with 767 cases for January 1 to the end of August. Many
    NGO's attribute the problem of exploitation of children
    to the lack of law enforcement rather than adequate
    legislation. In the past many law enforcement resources
    were diverted to the conflict with the LTTE, although the
    police's Bureau for the Protection of Children and Women
    conducts investigations into crimes against these two
    groups.  In September, the Police also opened an office
    to work directly with the National Child Protection
    Authority (NCPA) on children's issues.

    There is a problem of child prostitution in certain
    coastal resort areas. The Government estimates that there
    are more than 2,000 active child prostitutes in the
    country, but private groups claim that the number is much
    higher (see Section 6.f.). The bulk of child sexual abuse
    in the form of child prostitution is committed by
    citizens; however, some child prostitutes are boys who
    cater to foreign tourists. Some of these children are
    forced into prostitution (see Section 6.f.). The
    Government has pushed for greater international
    cooperation to bring those guilty of pedophilia to
    justice. The penalty for pedophilia is not less than 5
    years and up to 20 years as well as an unspecified fine.
    Four cases of pedophilia were brought to court in 2000,
    one involving a foreigner. At least two cases were
    brought to court in 2002 but the accused fled the country
    in each case.  There was at least one reported arrest for
    pedophilia during the year, but no convictions.

    Regular employment of children also occurs in the
    informal sector and in family enterprises (see Section
    6.d.). Government inspections have been unable to
    eliminate these forms of child labor, although an
    awareness campaign coupled with the establishment of hot
    lines for reporting child labor has led to an increase in
    the prosecutions by the Labor Department regarding child
    labor violations. However, many thousands of children are
    believed to be employed in domestic service, although
    this situation is not regulated or documented. Many child
    domestics are reportedly subjected to physical, sexual
    and emotional abuse. Internal trafficking in male
    children for the purpose of prostitution is a problem
    (see Sections 6.d. and 6.f.).

    The Government created the National Child Protection
    Authority (NCPA) in 1998. The law establishing the NCPA
    consolidated existing legislation and defined a child as
    anyone under age 18. Under the law, the definition of
    child abuse includes all acts of sexual violence against,
    trafficking in, and cruelty to children. The law also
    prohibits the use of children in exploitative labor or
    illegal activities or in any act contrary to compulsory
    education regulations. The legislation further widened
    the definition of child abuse to include the involvement
    of children in war. The NCPA is comprised of
    representatives from the education, medical, retired
    police, and legal professions; it reports directly to the
    President. The police also created an office in September
    to work directly with the NCPA, particularly in
    investigations of incidents the NCPA reports to them.  In
    the past, the LTTE used child soldiers and recruits
    children, sometimes forcibly, for use in battlefield
    support functions and in combat. LTTE recruits, some as
    young as 13, have surrendered to the military, and
    credible reports indicate the LTTE has stepped up
    recruiting efforts (see Section 1.g.). In May 1998, the
    LTTE gave assurances to the Special Representative of the
    U.N. Secretary General for Children in Armed Combat that
    it would not recruit children under the age of 17. The
    LTTE has not honored this pledge, even after the
    ceasefire agreement there were multiple credible reports
    of the LTTE forcibly recruiting children (see Section
    6.d.).

    Persons with Disabilities

    The law does not mandate accessibility to buildings or
    government services for persons with disabilities. The
    World Health Organization estimates that 7 percent of the
    population is persons with disabilities. Most persons
    with disabilities, who are unable to work, are cared for
    by their families. The Department of Social Services
    operates eight vocational training schools for persons
    with physical and mental disabilities and sponsors a
    program of job training and placement for graduates. The
    Government also provides some financial support to NGO's
    that assist persons with disabilities; subsidizes
    prosthetic devices and other medical aids for persons
    with disabilities; makes some purchases from suppliers
    with disabilities; and has registered 74 schools and
    training institutions for persons with disabilities run
    by NGO's. The Social Services Ministry has selected job
    placement officers to help the estimated 200,000 work-
    eligible persons with disabilities find jobs. In spite of
    these efforts, persons with disabilities still face
    difficulties because of negative attitudes and societal
    discrimination. In 1996 Parliament passed legislation
    forbidding discrimination against any person on the
    grounds of disability. No cases are known to have been
    filed under this law.

    Indigenous People

    The country's indigenous people, known as Veddas, number
    fewer than l,000. Some prefer to maintain their isolated
    traditional way of life, and they are protected by the
    Constitution. There are no legal restrictions on their
    participation in the political or economic life of the
    nation. In August 1998, the Government fulfilled a long-
    standing Vedda demand when the president issued an order
    granting Veddas the right to hunt and gather in specific
    protected forest areas. The executive order granted the
    Veddas the freedom to protect their culture and to carry
    on their traditional way of life without hindrance. Under
    a pilot program, Veddas received special identity cards
    to enable their use of these forest areas. Some Veddas
    still complain that they are being pushed off of their
    land.

    Religious Minorities

    Discrimination based on religious differences seems much
    less common than discrimination based on ethnicity or
    caste. In general, the members of the various faiths tend
    to be tolerant of each other's religious beliefs.
    However, on occasion, Christians have been harassed by
    Buddhist monks for their alleged attempts to convert
    Buddhists to Christianity. Catholic clergy, for example,
    have reported non-violent incidents of this sort in the
    south during the year.  Evangelical Christians were
    physically assaulted on at least one occasion. In the
    past, evangelical Christians have reported similar
    incidents (see Section 2.c.).

    There are reports that members of various religious
    groups give preference in hiring in the private sector to
    members of their own group or denomination. This practice
    likely is linked to the country's ongoing ethnic problems
    and does not appear to be based principally on religion.
    There is no indication of preference in employment in the
    public sector on the basis of religion.

    In April 2001, three Sinhalese men attacked a Muslim
    cashier in Mawanella. The Muslim community protested
    police inaction regarding the attack. In response
    approximately 2,000 Sinhalese, including Buddhist monks,
    rioted in the Muslim section of town and confronted the
    Muslim protesters. Two Muslims were killed, and a number
    of buildings and vehicles were destroyed. The Muslim
    community throughout the western portion of the country
    staged a number of protests claiming the police did
    nothing to prevent the riot. Some of the protests
    resulted in clashes between the Muslim and Sinhalese
    communities.
    The LTTE has attacked notable Buddhist sites. In May
    2000, 23 persons were killed and dozens injured when an
    LTTE bomb exploded near a temple at the Buddhist Vesak
    festival.

    In 2002, the LTTE allowed Roman Catholics unlimited
    access to a shrine at Madhu in the north. Thousands of
    pilgrims took the opportunity to visit the shrine.

    National/Racial/Ethnic Minorities

    There are approximately one million Tamils of
    comparatively recent Indian origin, the so-called "tea
    estate" Tamils or "Indian" Tamils, whose ancestors
    originally were brought to the country in the 19th
    century to work on plantations. Approximately 75,000 of
    these persons do not qualify for either Indian or Sri
    Lankan citizenship and face discrimination, especially in
    the allocation of government funds for education. Without
    national identity cards, they also are vulnerable to
    arrest by the security forces. However, the Government
    has stated that none of these persons would be forced to
    depart the country. During 1999, the Government
    introduced a program to begin registering these
    individuals; 15,300 tea estate Tamils received identity
    cards between January and September 30, 2001. Some
    critics charged that the program did not progress fast
    enough.

    Both Sri Lankan and tea estate Tamils maintain that they
    have long suffered systematic discrimination in
    university education, government employment, and in other
    matters controlled by the Government. Section 6  Worker
    Rights

    a. The Right of Association

    The Government respects the constitutional right of
    workers to establish unions, and the country has a strong
    trade union tradition. Any seven workers may form a
    union, adopt a charter, elect leaders, and publicize
    their views; however, in practice, such rights can be
    subject to administrative delays, and are unofficially
    discouraged. Nonetheless, approximately 25 percent of the
    6.7 million person work force nationwide and more than 70
    percent of the plantation work force, which is
    overwhelmingly Hill Tamil, is unionized. In total there
    are more than 1,000,000 union members, 650,000 of whom
    are women. Approximately 20 percent of the
    nonagricultural work force in the private sector is
    unionized. Unions represent most workers in large private
    firms, but those in small-scale agriculture and small
    businesses usually do not belong to unions. Public sector
    employees are unionized at very high rates and are highly
    politicized.

    Most large unions are affiliated with political parties
    and play a prominent role in the political process,
    though major unions in the public sector are politically
    independent. More than 30 labor unions have political
    affiliations, but there are also a small number of
    unaffiliated unions, some of which have active leaders
    and a relatively large membership. In 2000 the most
    recent year for which data is available, the Department
    of Labor registered 183 new unions and canceled the
    registration of 132 others, bringing the total number of
    functioning unions to 1,604. The Ministry of Labor is
    authorized by law to cancel the registration of any union
    that does not submit an annual report. This requirement
    is the only legal grounds for cancellation of
    registration.

    All workers, other than civil servants and workers in
    "essential" services, have the right to strike. By law
    workers may lodge complaints with the Commissioner of
    Labor, a labor tribunal, or the Supreme Court to protect
    their rights. These mechanisms are effective; however,
    there can be lengthy delays in the resolution of cases.
    New reforms put limits on the amount of time allowed to
    resolve arbitration cases, though there is a substantial
    backlog to clear.  The Government periodically has
    controlled strikes by declaring some industries essential
    under the ER (which lapsed in July 2000). The President
    retains the power to designate any industry as an
    essential service. The ILO has pointed out to the
    Government that essential services should be limited to
    services where an interruption would endanger the life,
    personal safety, or health of the population.

    Civil servants collectively may submit labor grievances
    to the Public Service Commission, but they have no legal
    grounds to strike. Nonetheless, government workers in the
    transportation, medical, educational, power generation,
    financial, and port sectors have staged brief strikes and
    other work actions in the past few years. There were
    numerous public sector strikes during the year.

    The law prohibits retribution against strikers in
    nonessential sectors. Employers may dismiss workers only
    for disciplinary reasons, mainly misconduct. Incompetence
    or low productivity are not grounds for dismissal.
    Dismissed employees have a right to appeal their
    termination before a labor tribunal.

    Unions may affiliate with international bodies, and some
    have done so. The Ceylon Workers Congress, composed
    exclusively of Hill Tamil plantation workers, is the only
    trade union organization affiliated with the
    International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU),
    although a new trade union in the Biyagama export
    processing zone (EPZ) is affiliated with the Youth Forum
    of the ICFTU. No national trade union center exists to
    centralize or facilitate contact with international
    groups.

    b. The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively

    The law provides for the right to collective bargaining,
    but fewer than 100 companies rely on it. Large firms may
    have employees in as many as 60 different unions. In
    enterprises without unions, including those in the EPZ's,
    worker councils--composed of employees, employers and
    often a public sector representative--generally provide
    the forums for labor and management negotiation. The
    councils do not have the power to negotiate binding
    contracts, and labor advocates have criticized them as
    ineffective.

    In December 1999, Parliament passed an amendment to the
    Industrial Disputes Act to require employers to recognize
    trade unions and the right to collective bargaining. The
    law prohibits antiunion discrimination. This law is being
    implemented. Employers found guilty of such
    discrimination must reinstate workers fired for union
    activities but may transfer them to different locations.

    There are approximately 110,000 workers employed in three
    EPZ's, a large percentage of them women. Under the law,
    workers in the EPZ's have the same rights to join unions
    as other workers. Few unions have formed in the EPZs,
    partially because of severe restrictions on access by
    union organizers to the zones. While the unionization
    rate in the rest of the country is approximately 25
    percent, the rate within the EPZs is only 10 percent.
    Labor representatives allege that the Government's Board
    of Investment, which manages the EPZs, including setting
    wages and working conditions in the EPZs, has discouraged
    union activity. The short-term nature of employment and
    relatively young workforce in the zones makes it
    difficult to organize.  Work councils in the EPZs are
    chaired by the Government's Board of Investment (BOI) and
    only have the power to make recommendations. Labor
    representatives also allege that the Labor Commissioner,
    under BOI pressure, has failed to prosecute employers who
    refuse to recognize or enter into collective bargaining
    with trade unions. While employers in the EPZs offer
    generally higher wages and better working conditions than
    employers elsewhere, workers face other concerns, such as
    security, expensive but low quality boarding houses, and
    sexual harassment. In most instances, wage boards
    establish minimum wages and conditions of employment,
    except in the EPZs, where wages and work conditions are
    set by the BOI.

    c. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor

    Forced or compulsory labor is prohibited under the law;
    however, there were reports of the use of forced or
    compulsory labor. ILO Convention 105 was not ratified yet
    by the end of September.  There are reports of women
    being trafficked to the country for the purpose of
    prostitution (see Section 6.f.). Some children reportedly
    were trafficked and forced into prostitution (see
    Sections 5 and 6.f.). The law does not prohibit forced or
    bonded labor by children specifically, but government
    officials interpret it as applying to persons of all
    ages. There were credible reports that some rural
    children were employed in debt bondage as domestic
    servants in urban households.  There were many reports
    that some of these children had been abused.

    There are credible reports that some soldiers attached to
    an army camp north of Batticaloa forced local villagers
    to build a wall around the camp during 2000, and that
    they beat individuals who refused to comply. The military
    apparently transferred the officer responsible for the
    forced labor when the abuse was publicized.

    d. Status of Child Labor Practices and Minimum Age for
    Employment

    The law prohibits labor by children under 14 years of
    age, but child labor is a problem and still exists in the
    informal sectors. The National Child Protection Authority
    Act (NCPA) combats the problem of child abuse, including
    unlawful child labor. The act consolidated existing
    legislation that established what types of employment are
    restricted for children, which age groups are affected.
    The Ministry of Labor is the competent authority to set
    regulations, carry out implementation, and monitoring.
    The minimum age for employment is 14, although the law
    permits the employment of younger children by their
    parents or guardians in limited work. In January 2000,
    Parliament repealed a regulation that permitted domestic
    employment for children as young as age 12. The law
    permits the employment of persons from the age of 14 for
    not more than one hour on any day before school. The
    Trade Union Ordinance of 1935 allows membership only from
    the age of 16, however.  The law also permits employment
    in any school or institution for training purposes. The
    Compulsory Attendance at Schools Act, which requires
    children between the ages of 5 and 14 to attend school,
    has been in effect since January 1998, although it still
    is being implemented. Despite legislation, child labor
    still exists in the informal sector. A child activity
    survey carried out in 1998 and 1999 by the Department of
    Census and Statistics found almost 11,000 children
    between the ages of 5 and 14 working full time and
    another 15,000 engaged in both economic activity and
    housekeeping. The survey found 450,000 children employed
    by their families in seasonal agricultural work.

    Persons under age 16 may not be employed in any public
    enterprise in which life or limb is endangered. There are
    no reports that children are employed in the EPZs, the
    garment industry, or any other export industry, although
    children sometimes are employed during harvest periods in
    the plantation sectors and in nonplantation agriculture.
    A 1995 labor survey of the plantations indicated that
    half of all children in plantations drop out of school
    after the fourth grade, leaving a large pool of children
    between the ages of 10 and 15 available to pursue
    employment.  The primary school retention rate has been
    increasing in recent years.

    Many thousands of children are believed to be employed in
    domestic service, although this situation is not
    regulated or documented. A 1997 study reported that child
    domestic servants are employed in 8.6 percent of homes in
    the Southern Province. The same study reported that child
    laborers in the domestic service sector often are
    deprived of an education. Many child domestics are
    reportedly subjected to physical, sexual, and emotional
    abuse.

    Regular employment of children also occurs in the
    informal sector and in family enterprises such as family
    farms, crafts, small trade establishments, restaurants,
    and repair shops. Government inspections have been unable
    to eliminate these forms of child labor (see Section 5),
    although an awareness campaign coupled with the
    establishment of hot lines for reporting child labor has
    led to an increase in the prosecutions regarding child
    labor violations by the Labor Department. The Labor
    Department reported 194 complaints regarding child labor
    in 2000, with 79 of these cases withdrawn due to lack of
    evidence or faulty complaints. The Department prosecuted
    7 cases in 2000. In the first eight months of the year,
    the Labor Department reported 199 complaints, with 48
    cases withdrawn and 40 prosecuted. According to the
    Ministry of Labor, there were 10 prosecutions for child
    labor (below the age of 14) during 2000. Under
    legislation dating from 1956, the maximum penalty for
    employing minors is about $12 (1,000 rupees), with a
    maximum jail term of 6 months.

    Internal trafficking in male children for the purpose of
    prostitution is a problem (see Sections 5 and 6.f.).
    Estimates of the number of child prostitutes range from
    2,000 to 30,000; however, there are no reliable
    statistics. Although forced or bonded labor by persons of
    any age is prohibited by law, some rural children
    reportedly have served in debt bondage (see Sections 5
    and 6.c.). The Government ratified ILO Convention 182 on
    the Worst Forms of Child Labor on March 1, 2001.

    The LTTE continued to use high school-age children for
    work as cooks, messengers, and clerks. In some cases, the
    children reportedly help build fortifications. In the
    past, children as young as age 10 were said to be
    recruited and placed for 2 to 4 years in special schools
    that provided them with a mixture of LTTE ideology and
    formal education. The LTTE uses children as young as 13
    years of age in battle, and children sometimes are
    recruited forcibly into the LTTE (see Section 5). In May
    1999, the LTTE began a program of compulsory physical
    training, including mock military drills, for most of the
    population of the areas that it controls, including for
    schoolchildren and the aged. This LTTE program reportedly
    still functions. According to LTTE spokesmen, this work
    is meant to keep the population fit; however, it is
    believed widely that the training was established in
    order to gain tighter control over the population and to
    provide a base for recruiting fighters.  Despite repeated
    claims to the contrary by the LTTE, there were credible
    reports that the LTTE continued to forcibly recruit
    children throughout the year.  Individuals or small
    groups of children intermittently turned themselves over
    to security forces or religious leaders saying they had
    escaped LTTE training camps throughout the year.  During
    August and September, the LTTE handed over 85 children to
    UNICEF, stating that the children had volunteered to
    serve, but that the LTTE does not accept children.

    e. Acceptable Conditions of Work

    The Ministry of Labor effectively enforces the minimum
    wage law for large companies through routine inspections;
    however, staffing shortages prevent the department from
    effectively monitoring the informal sector. While there
    is no universal national minimum wage, approximately 40
    wage boards set minimum wages and working conditions by
    sector and industry. In 2001, minimum wage rates averaged
    approximately $29.38 (2,625 rupees) per month in
    industry, commerce, and the service sector. The rate was
    approximately $1.38 (104.53 rupees) per day in
    agriculture. The minimum wage in the garment industry was
    $25.73 (2,300 rupees) per month. These minimum wages are
    insufficient to provide a decent standard of living for a
    worker and the standard family of five, but the vast
    majority of families have more than one breadwinner.

    Most permanent full-time workers are covered by laws that
    prohibit them from regularly working more than 45 hours
    per week (a 5 1/2-day workweek). Overtime is limited to
    60 hours per month under a recent ruling.  Labor
    organizers are concerned that the new legislation does
    not include a provision for overtime to be done with the
    consent of the worker.  Such workers also receive 14 days
    of annual leave, 14 to 21 days of medical leave, and
    approximately 20 local holidays each year. Maternity
    leave is available for permanent and seasonal or part-
    time female workers. Several laws protect the safety and
    health of industrial workers, but the Ministry of Labor's
    small staff of inspectors is inadequate to enforce
    compliance with the laws. Workers have the statutory
    right to remove themselves from situations that endanger
    their health, but many workers are unaware of, or
    indifferent to, health risks, and fear that they would
    lose their jobs if they removed themselves. Health and
    safety regulations do not meet international standards.
    f. Trafficking in Persons

    The law prohibits trafficking in persons; however, Sri
    Lanka is a country of origin and destination for
    trafficked persons, primarily women and children for the
    purposes of forced labor, and possibly for sexual
    exploitation. Sri Lankan women travel to Middle Eastern
    countries to work as domestics and some have reported
    being forced into domestic servitude and sexual
    exploitation. Some Sri Lankan children are trafficked
    internally to work as domestics and in some cases for
    sexual exploitation. There were unconfirmed reports that
    boys were trafficked to the Middle East as camel jockeys.
    According to police reports, there has been a floating
    pool of approximately 200 foreign female sex workers in
    the country who may have been trafficked from the former
    Soviet Union, Thailand, and China.

    Internal trafficking in male children is also a problem,
    especially from areas bordering the northern and eastern
    provinces. Protecting Environment and Children Everywhere
    (PEACE), a domestic NGO, estimates that in 2001 there
    were at least 5,000 male children between the ages of 8
    and 15 years who are engaged as sex workers both at beach
    and mountain resorts. Some of these children are forced
    into prostitution by their parents or by organized crime
    (see Section 5). PEACE also reports that an additional
    7,000 young men aged 15 to 18 years are self-employed
    prostitutes.  Many organizations believe the PEACE
    numbers to be inflated.

    On October 1, the Police opened an office to work as part
    of the NCPA in children's issues, including trafficking
    in children.

    Penal Code amendments enacted in 1995 provide for
    penalties for trafficking in women including imprisonment
    for 2 to 20 years, and a fine. For trafficking in
    children, the law allows imprisonment of 5 to 20 years,
    and a fine.

    The Government took action during 2001 to prepare a
    national plan to combat the trafficking of children. The
    project was part of a regional project funded by the ILO.

    The country has a reputation as a destination for foreign
    pedophiles. Officials believe that approximately 30
    percent of the clients are tourists and 70 percent are
    locals. The Government occasionally prosecuted foreign
    pedophiles, and there have been some convictions; however
    there were no such convictions during the year. Many
    NGO's attribute the problem of child exploitation to a
    lack of law enforcement. There is evidence of continuing,
    but reduced, international interest in Sri Lankan
    children for the sex trade as evidenced in tourism by
    foreign pedophiles, and in Internet sites featuring child
    pornography involving the country's children.
    End Text.

    ¶3.  (U) Minimized considered.

    WILLS

`