'Rock and Radhika' to go on board mid January

Commonsense by Y. King

Reports reaching Colombo have indicated that special UN rapporteur (Allan Rock) to the UN Special Envoy (Radhika Coomaraswamy) is to present his report on the child conscription in the East to the UN Security Council mid January. We have reported in our backdrop drama columns earlier about Ambassador Allan Rock and his misguided mission in the East last month.

This could perhaps be the final episode of a full plot of a UN drama in which Allan Rock and Radhika Coomaraswamy are playing major roles to bring UN intervention in the North East conflict in Sri Lanka. The purpose of the drama obviously is to tell the world that the Sri Lankan Government, as an elected Government is unable to maintain the discipline of its forces whereas some of its elements support the Karuna group to abduct children for weapon training. Therefore it is high time that the UN intervened in the conflict and sends its troops to avoid such untoward incidents. When the elements partial to the LTTE try to plot by painting a wrong picture of such misfortune, it is the duty of the Government to show displeasure over the Allan Rock drama and ask the UN to send a second mission (impartial) to assess the situation again before the Council takes action on Allan Rock findings.

Nobody knows for certain what Ambassador Allan Rock is going to report to the Security Council, but it is obvious by his press conference in Colombo after his visit to the East that he is going to complain against the Government too. Allan Rock, if he works in concurrence with his self consciousness, his remarks that the so-called credible evidence to prove that the forces are involved in child conscription, he would one day realise that he had been misguided by a group of pro Tiger elements by putting him in the wrong bus.

According to military sources, the Area Commanders have already provided two lengthy reports with ample evidence to prove that influential sections of the SLMM and other agencies engaged in missions in the East have been biassed towards the LTTE for some reason or another. These reports have clearly mentioned the origin of 'Allan Rock's credible evidence' and from whom he received evidence and giving them an adjective, credible. The dilemma is that the credibility on the acts of those who originated such evidence has been questionable due to their support to the LTTE openly in the East.

Therefore, it is the responsibility of the relevant Government authorities to forward those reports prepared by the ground Commanders on the Rock's visit and his depending on the SLMM and other pro LTTE evidence to the UN Security Council in time, for the officials to scrutinize the Government submissions in order to count act against the Allan Rock findings. Our officials should follow the proverbial advice, Once bitten twice shy, and should hurry to do so to avoid more repercussions in the hands of the international community. Failure to find out whose who was Allan Rock when he was proposed to visit the East is now history, and it is the bounden duty of all those concerned in this type of sensitive issues is to do their home work properly because even a minor mistake would have grave repercussions on the entire nation.

Whatever Ambassador Rock is going to present, it is the responsibility and fairness of the top UN officials to listen to the affected party. When one party to the conflict opposes certain recommendations, there should be democratic norms by the officials of the Security Council to reconsider the appeal by the affected party, the Sri Lankan Government. Sri Lankans believe that nobody officials sit at the UN Security Council is juvenile to believe that the Rock findings are the Gospel Truth.

President Mahinda Rajapaksa asked Ambassador Rock when the latter called on him to provide him credible evidence - those found by Mr. Rock. Mr. Rock has failed to do so yet is another dilemma. Why he is delaying his duty as a top UN man? All this proves that there is a limited plot among a small clique within the UN to mar the image of the security forces and the Government with hidden agendas to convince the UN Security Council that why it should send UN troops to Sri Lanka. This would certainly create a conducive environment for the LTTE to take the first hassle free step towards Eelam, to function as a separate region in the cover up of the UN troops where they would have no hindrance from the Government security forces. Therefore, the Allan Rock drama could not be taken as a mere ploy, but it could be the result of a long term plan by various pro LTTE elements enjoying power and prestige of the high echelons in local and international offices.

It is also ludicrous to some members of certain international agencies who were working with the security forces in the East to hear the conclusion of the Rock findings, as none of those agencies including the SLMM, ICRC or any other UN agencies had complained about such certain elements of the security forces supporting Karuna to recruit children, and they are shocked to hear Rock's sudden findings which had even embarrassed them while working in harmony with the security forces in the East.

Military authorities confirmed that they meet these area officials frequently to discuss issues relating to the conflict, but never such a complaint of elements of security forces supporting Karuna group to abduct children was made until Mr. Rock found it.

Part of the plot could be to blame the Government too for supporting child conscription and thereby influence the Security Council to limit its action on the LTTE against its heinous act of training children for combat operation. One would ask if the legitimate Government does it, why the Tigers are punished, might be their last aim of this entire episode to save the LTTE from the imminent UN embargo such as the EU ban. And if this is their agenda, how pathetic it would be to support such conspiracy by those who hold international recognition subsequently assigned to fight for child rights?

Tiger conscription in full swing

Meanwhile, newspaper reports confirmed that several children escaped from LTTE child training camps and surrendered to the Army camps in the East during the last few days.

Military authorities confirmed that the LTTE has intensified their recruitment drive in the East in the face of the group heavily losing their trained cadres in the offensive against the Government troops during the last few weeks, especially offensives against the troops in Vakarai.

Intercepted LTTE radio messages confirmed that there were 200 underaged girls captured and sent to a jungle camp for weapon training, and the Karuna group rescued another batch of underaged boys when they attacked another Tiger camp in the Eastern jungles. These are a few incidents reported, and nobody knows how many children are suffering in like manner, being forced to have military training, abused and deprived of their childhood especially medicine and education.

Vigilance prevents disaster

The Friday's terrorist bomb explosion at Pasyala killing five passengers including a child has heralded a new wave of crime unleashed by the LTTE. On Saturday, the second explosion reported from Senigama killing 15 passengers in another Colombo Matara bus. Despite wherever people live or travel, it is again a reminder to the public that they should keep an eye on their surroundings. Today, society is threatened not only by Tiger terrorists but also by a handful of terrorists even within the security forces and the police. So keep track of the movement of suspected person or others, be it your neighbour or stranger to help prevent a human disaster at the end. Tigers have lost many of their major camps especially sea bases, and area leaders in the constant air strikes and other military retaliation by the three security forces. The LTTE is obviously targeting civilians in order to provoke the public expecting communal clashes, which they would be able to use propaganda to gain international sympathy.

With the introduction of the new security strategies, the public has easy access to provide information of National security to the respective authorities through public telephone numbers. The security forces were able to foil several terrorist attempts in the past and save many lives and property by taking prompt action on such tip offs given by the public.