2003 HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT FOR SRI LANKA

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 24 COLOMBO 001725



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SUBJECT: 2003 Human Rights Report for Sri Lanka



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1. (U) Sensitive but Unclassified entire text.



2. (U) Following is the 2003 Country Human Rights

report for Sri Lanka.



BEGIN TEXT:



3. (U) Sri Lanka is a democratic republic with an

active multiparty system. The popularly elected

president and 225-member Parliament share constitutional

power. The Government and its agents generally

respected the rule of law. From 1983 until 2001, the

Government fought the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam

(LTTE),a terrorist organization fighting for a separate

ethnic Tamil state in the north and east of the country.

The LTTE is on the U.S.'s list of Foreign Terrorist

Organizations. In December 2001, however, the

Government and the LTTE each announced unilateral cease-

fires. A formal ceasefire accord was signed by the two

sides in February 2002. This historic process of

reconciliation between the Government and the LTTE

continued during 2002-03 in Norwegian-facilitated talks.

After holding six rounds of talks, the LTTE withdrew

from negotiations in April 2003, but the ceasefire

accord continued to be observed by both sides. As a

result of the peace process, there has been a sharp

reduction in roadblocks and checkpoints around the

country. In addition, approximately 300,000 internally

displaced persons (IDPs) have returned to their points

of origin in the north and east, and authorities have

opened investigations into questionable actions by

security force personnel.



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 six-year term.

Stating that it feared possible infiltration by the

LTTE, the Government prohibited more than 40,000 Tamil

voters living in LTTE-controlled territories from

crossing army checkpoints in order to vote. In 2003,

the Supreme Court ruled that this action violated the

fundamental rights of these prospective Tamil voters,

and cited and fined the government for preventing

citizens from exercising their right to vote. The next

parliamentary elections are scheduled for 2007.

President Chandrika Kumaratunga, head of the People's

Alliance (PA) coalition, won reelection in 1999 for a

second six-year term. The next Presidential elections

are scheduled for 2005. The Government generally

respected constitutional provisions for an independent

judiciary.



The Ministry of Interior controls the 60,000-member

police force, which has been used in military operations

against the LTTE and is responsible for internal

security in most areas of the country. In the past, the

police paramilitary Special Task Force (STF) also

engaged in military operations against the LTTE. The

STF is also under Ministry of Interior control. The

Ministry of Defense controls the 112,000-member Army,

the 27,000-member Navy, and the 20,000-member Air Force.

The more than 20,000 member Home Guards, an armed force

drawn from local communities and responsible to the

police, provides security for Muslim and Sinhalese

village communities located near LTTE-controlled areas.



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 population is

approximately 19.4 million. Real GDP growth was 3.2

percent in 2002. Growth for 2003 was forecast at 5.5

percent. Early signs of a peace dividend were visible

throughout the economy -- Sri Lanka has been able to

reduce defense expenditures and begin to focus on

getting its large, public sector debt under control. In

addition, the economy has benefited from lower interest

rates, a recovery in domestic demand, increased tourist

arrivals, a revival of the stock exchange, and increased

foreign direct investment.



The Government generally respected the human rights of

its citizens in 2003, but there were serious problems in

some areas. Continuing the improvement seen last year,

there were no reports of security forces committing

extrajudicial killings and no reports of disappearances.

However, the military and police reportedly tortured

detainees, and there were reports of several deaths in

custody. There were reports of rape while in custody,

and prison conditions remained poor. There were no

reports of arbitrary arrest during the year. During

2002, the Government released more than 750 Tamils held

under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) and no new

arrests under the PTA occurred in 2003. As of September

2003, only 65 Tamils held under the PTA remained in

custody. Observers claim that the PTA, like the

Emergency Regulations (ER) repealed in 2001, permitted

arbitrary arrests of Tamils.



There were no reports that security forces harassed

journalists in 2003. The LTTE permitted some access to

the areas of the country it controlled to journalists.

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. There was some

discrimination and occasional violence against religious

minorities, and institutionalized ethnic discrimination

against Tamils remained a problem. Trafficking in women

and children for the purpose of forced labor occurred,

and there was some trafficking of women and children for

the commercial sex industry. The Government has taken

firm steps against the children for sex trade and

international involvement in the sex trade has declined

significantly.



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.



The LTTE continued to commit serious human rights

abuses. The LTTE was responsible for arbitrary arrest,

torture, harassment, disappearances, extortion, and

detention. 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. Most seriously, there

is overwhelming evidence that the LTTE killed more than

three dozen members of anti-LTTE Tamil political groups

and alleged Tamil military informants during the year.

There were also instances of intimidation of Muslims in

the east by the LTTE, and there was fighting between

LTTE personnel and Muslims that left several Muslims

dead. 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, did not provide for fair trials, infringed

on privacy rights, generally restricted freedom of

movement, 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

that security forces committed extrajudicial killings.



Security force impunity remained a problem. Between

April 1995 and December 2001 when the peace process

began, several hundred persons were killed or

disappeared after being taken into security force

custody. At year's end, the government continued to

investigate five cases of rape, 50 cases of torture, and

approximately 500 cases of disappearance allegedly

committed by security force personnel. The Government

passed indictments against security force personnel in

several high profile cases, including the Bindunuwewa

massacre, in which two security force personnel were

convicted in 2003. Six security force personnel were

convicted in the 1996 killing of university student

Krishanthi Kumaraswamy. In numerous other cases,

military personnel may have committed human rights

violations for which they have not been identified and

brought to justice.

In December 2000, nine Tamil civilians were reported

missing in Mirusuvil after being arrested by the Sri

Lanka 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. 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.

In November 2002, five members of the army were charged

with the murders, and the trial continued in 2003.



In October 2000, local villagers killed 27 Tamil men and

15 others were injured at the Bindunuwewa rehabilitation

camp for former child soldiers. The HRC stated that the

police were guilty of "grave dereliction of duty."

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. 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. Due to the failure to show at the

scheduled hearing in November 2002, the court remanded

all suspects until completion of the trial. At the end

of 2002, 10 police officers and 41 villagers were

indicted and were standing trial. Twenty-three of the

accused were acquitted on January 4, 2003. Five of the

accused, including two police officers, were convicted

and sentenced to death in July 2003. The sentences were

immediately commuted to rigorous imprisonment, which is

normal practice in Sri Lanka, of 23 years.



In previous years, 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 1998, police and

home guards allegedly killed eight Tamil civilians,

apparently in reprisal for the LTTE bombing of the

Temple of the Tooth a week earlier. The Government

arrested police officers and home guards, charging four

with murder and 17 with unlawful assembly. At the end of

2002, eight police officers had been indicted and

hearings continued in 2003.



A court in 2000 ordered five soldiers arrested for the

1999 gang rape and murder of Ida Carmelita, a young

Tamil girl. Court hearings into the case continued

during 2003.



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 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 reportedly was

searching for funds to provide for a more detailed test.

All suspects in the case have been released on bail.

The case remains pending in 2003.

In 1994, the PA Government 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. Many witnesses for the

case live in displaced persons camps, and could not come

to court to give evidence. A jury trial, which began in

January 2002, ended in November 2002 when the security

forces were acquitted. In 2003, representatives of the

victims requested that the Attorney General appeal the

jury's decision.



In the January 2000 killing of Tamil politician Kumar

Ponnambalam, two key suspects were killed by unknown

assailants in early 2003. Judicial proceedings

continued with the remaining suspect in late 2003.



Although former paramilitary Tamil groups armed by and

aligned with the former PA Government committed

extrajudicial killings in the past, there were no

credible reports of such killings during the year.



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; however, there were no reports of such killings

during the year. 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 was impossible to ascertain, but

they probably totaled fewer than 2,000 persons. These

groups were asked to disarm following the formal

February 2002 ceasefire agreement between the Government

and LTTE. The militia did hand over some weapons to the

Government; however, most observers 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.



There is overwhelming evidence that the LTTE killed more

than three dozen members of anti-LTTE Tamil political

groups and alleged Tamil informants for the security

forces during the year, mainly in the north and east of

the country. Both current and former members of anti-

LTTE Tamil political parties were targeted by the LTTE.

In one high-profile case, the deputy leader of the Eelam

People's Revolutionary Liberation Front (EPRLF) was shot

and killed in Jaffna in June. The LTTE also targeted

alleged Tamil informants to the military, killing

several during the year. One Sri Lankan police officer

was also killed in Colombo in an apparent LTTE attack.



Unlike in previous years, there were no attacks and

counter-attacks between government forces and the LTTE

during the year, although in two incidents in March and

June 2003, the Sri Lankan Navy sank LTTE ships allegedly

carrying weapons and ammunition. Several LTTE personnel

were killed in each of the incidents. There were no

reports of suicide bombings during the year.



Disappearance



There were no credible reports of disappearances at the

hands of the security forces in 2003.



In 2001, the army, navy, police, and paramilitary groups

were implicated in as many as 10 disappearances,

primarily in Vavuniya. 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 punished administratively

by the army (see Sections 1.a. and 1.c.).



In February 2000, a fisherman seen arrested by naval

personnel near Trincomalee disappeared. In 2002, the

Trincomalee High Court ordered a police line up;

however, the witness did not identify any of the

suspects. At the end of 2002, the High Court was

conducting a habeas corpus hearing in conjunction with

the case. There were no further developments in this

case in 2003.

Those who disappeared in 2001 and previous years usually

were 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 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, during

the year there were indictments and investigations,

including the case against the security forces involved

in the Bindunuwewa massacre and the killings in

Mirusuvil.



The Attorney General's office successfully prosecuted

four cases in 2002 involving members of the security

forces on abduction and murder charges. In November

2002 the Government formed a new commission to

investigate disappearances in Jaffna area during 1996

and 1997. The commission was expected to begin work in

2003, but did not take any action during the year.



A U.N. Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary

Disappearances report, released in December 1999, cited

the 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 in 2002 or 2003; however, some arrests

were being made without proper procedures and the

Government had not released all persons detained under

the PTA in previous years at year's end (see Section

1.d.). The reviewing process for some cases continued

in 2003.



Tamil militias aligned with the former PA government

also were responsible for disappearances in past years;

however, there were no reports during the year. 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. These

militias were largely disarmed by the Government in

2002.



The LTTE released 10 people in 2002, including some

soldiers, to the International Committee of the Red

Cross (ICRC). At year's end, the LTTE was not known to

be holding any prisoners, but many observers believe

that they are (see Section 1.g.).



Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment

or Punishment



Despite legal prohibitions, the security forces and

police continued 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

which criminal conviction of carries a 7-year minimum

sentence. The High Court has jurisdiction over

violations. However, according to a recent Amnesty

International (AI) report and press release, 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 continued with relative impunity.

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 forwarded 50 cases for indictments

during the year, of which 20 resulted in indictments.

The Interparliamentary Permanent Standing Committee and

its Interministerial Working Group on Human Rights

Issues continued to track 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 had been prosecuted under

criminal statutes, but none of the cases had come to

conclusion.

Members of the security forces continued to torture and

mistreat detainees and other prisoners, particularly

during interrogation. Methods of torture included

electric shock, beatings, suspension by the wrists or

feet in contorted positions, burning, slamming testicles

in desk drawers, and near drowning. In other cases,

victims must remain in unnatural positions for extended

periods or have bags laced with insecticide, chili

powder, or gasoline placed over their heads. Detainees

have reported broken bones and other serious injuries as

a result of their mistreatment. There were reports of

rape in detention during the year. Medical examination

of persons arrested since 2000 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

an individual escaped and notified authorities. Nine

soldiers were arrested, and by year's end, a trial had

begun (see Sections 1.a. and 1.b.). The military also

conducted its own inquiry, but the accused were

discharged. Five soldiers were indicted in court,

however, and were standing trial in 2003.



On March 15, 2002, Thivyan Krishnasamy, a student leader

and an outspoken critic of the actions of security

forces in Jaffna, was released from 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 had been arrested in July

2001 and, when he was brought before a court in August,

he complained of being tortured. In support of 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. There were no

developments in this case in 2003.



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 in March 2001 in

Mannar who claimed that they were tortured and

repeatedly raped by naval and police personnel. The

women were released on bail in April 2001 and filed

charges against their assailants. At the end of 2002,

the 14 accused were standing trial for rape, torture, or

both. Two of the perpetrators in this case were

acquitted in 2003. A fundamental rights case (see next

paragraph) also was opened against the accused. Four

other cases in which the security forces are accused of

raping women in detention were still pending in 2003.



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 $150 (14,200 rupees)

to $1,940 (182,500 rupees). However, most cases take

two years or more to move through the courts.



Impunity remained a problem. In the majority of cases

in which military personnel may have committed human

rights abuses, the Government has not identified those

responsible or brought them to justice.



At the invitation of the Government, the U.N. Committee

on Torture sent a five-person mission to Colombo in 2000

to determine whether a systematic pattern of torture

existed in the country and, if so, to make

recommendations for eliminating the practice. In 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; however, there were no

such reports in 2003.



The LTTE used torture on a routine basis.



Prison conditions generally were poor and did not meet

international standards because of overcrowding and lack

of sanitary facilities; however, the Government

permitted visits by independent human rights observers.

The Government permitted representatives from the ICRC

to visit places of detention. The ICRC conducted 69

visits to 33 government detention facilities, including

prisons and military jails in 2003. The HRC also

visited 690 police stations and 96 detention facilities

from January to September 2003 (see Section 1.d.).



Conditions also reportedly were poor in LTTE-run

detention facilities. The ICRC conducted eight visits

in LTTE-controlled detention facilities. Due to the

release of detainees in 2000 and the apparent release of

the remaining soldiers held by the LTTE in 2002, ICRC

visited fewer LTTE detention centers than in previous

years (see Section 1.d.).



Arbitrary Arrest, Detention, or Exile



There were no reports of arbitrary arrest and detention

during the year. 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, who 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, and

despite some efforts by the Government to enforce this

standard, arrest receipts rarely were issued in previous

years. Observers believed that the lack of arrest

receipts in the past prevented adequate tracking of

cases, which permitted extended detentions and torture

without making any persons directly responsible for

those detainees.



Under the ER and the PTA, 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 six months' detention.



In past years, the army generally turned over those 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 had 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.



There was an instance of large-scale arrests of Tamils

in Colombo in June 2003, however, the vast majority of

those arrested were released shortly thereafter. In the

past, many detentions occurred during operations against

the LTTE. Most detentions lasted a maximum of several

days, but some extended to several months. As of

September 1, 65 Tamils charged under the PTA remained in

detention without bail awaiting trial. The Government

released more than 750 Tamils arrested under the PTA

during 2002.



Unlike in previous years, there were no reports of

arbitrary arrests or searches of residents. In previous

years, Tamils complained that they were abused verbally

and held for extended periods at security checkpoints

throughout Colombo. The vast majority of checkpoints

were removed in 2002 and the reports of regular

mistreatment by security forces largely ceased.



The Committee to Inquire into Undue Arrest and

Harassment (CIUAH),which includes senior opposition

party and Tamil representatives, examines complaints of

arrest and harassment by security forces and takes

remedial action as needed. Opinions on the

effectiveness of the CIUAH were mixed. Some human

rights observers believe that the work of the committee

deterred random arrests and alleviated problems

encountered by detainees and their families. Others

felt that although the CIUAH continued to meet in 2003,

it took no action during the year.

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.



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 reduced dramatically,

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 dramatically

declined.



The LTTE in the past has detained civilians, often

holding them for ransom. There were reports of this

practice during the year, particularly the multiple

reports of kidnaping of Muslims in the east. The

Muslims were usually released soon after being kidnapped

and often after ransom was paid. At year's end, there

were no reports of the LTTE holding Muslims in custody.



The Government does not practice forced exile, and there

are no legal provisions allowing its use.



Denial of Fair Public Trial



The Constitution provides for an independent judiciary,

and the Government generally respected this provision in

practice.



The President appoints judges to the Supreme Court, the

high court, and the courts of appeal. A judicial

service commission, composed of the Chief Justice and

two Supreme Court judges, appointed, transferred, and

dismissed 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 may be represented by the counsel of their

choice, are informed of the charges and evidence against

them, 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 assisted some defendants. In

addition, the Ministry of Justice operated 11 community

legal aid centers to assist those who cannot afford

representation and to serve as educational resources for

local communities. However, these legal aid centers had

tried no cases by the end of September 2003. 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. 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. In 2002, more than 750 PTA

cases were dropped and the prisoners released.



Most court proceedings in Colombo and the south were

conducted in English or Sinhala, which, due to a

shortage of court-appointed interpreters, restricted the

ability of Tamil-speaking defendants to get a fair

hearing. Trials and hearings in the north and east were

in Tamil and English, but many serious cases, including

those having to do with terrorism, were tried in

Colombo. While Tamil-speaking judges existed at the

magistrate level, only four high court judges, an

appeals court judge, and a Supreme Court justice spoke

fluent Tamil. Few legal textbooks and only one law

report existed in Tamil, and the Government has complied

only slowly with legislation requiring that all laws be

published in English, Sinhala, and Tamil.



In the past in Jaffna, LTTE threats against court

officials sometimes disrupted normal court operations.

Although the Jaffna court suspended activities due to

security concerns in 2000, it reopened in 2001 and

functioned continuously throughout 2003. During the

year, the LTTE expanded the operations of its court

system into areas previously under the Government's

judicial system in the north and east. With the

expansion, the LTTE demanded all Tamil civilians stop

using the Government's judicial system and only rely on

the LTTE's legal system. Credible reports indicated

that the LTTE has implemented the change through the

threat of force.



The LTTE has its own self-described legal system,

composed of judges with little or no legal training.

LTTE 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 claimed that all persons held under the

PTA are suspected members of the LTTE and therefore are

legitimate security threats. Insufficient information

existed to verify this claim and to determine whether

these detainees are political prisoners. In many cases,

human rights monitors questioned the legitimacy of the

criminal charges brought against these persons. More

than 750 PTA cases were dismissed by the Attorney

General in 2002. The Attorney General's office expected

a few more of the 65 remaining cases to be dismissed at

year's end. The Government claimed that the cases that

remained will be of those individuals directly linked to

suicide bombings or other terrorist and criminal acts

only.



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.



Arbitrary Interference with Privacy, Family, Home, or

Correspondence



The Constitution provides for the right to privacy, and

the Government generally respected this provision in

practice; however, it infringed on citizen's privacy

rights in some areas. The police generally obtained

proper warrants for arrests and searches conducted under

ordinary law; however, the security forces were not

required to obtain warrants for searches conducted

either under the now-lapsed ER or the PTA. The

Secretary of the Ministry of Defense was responsible for



SIPDIS

providing oversight for such searches. The Government

was believed to monitor telephone conversations and

correspondence on a selective basis. However, there

were no reports of such activity by security forces

during the year.



The Government removed the LTTE from proscription on

September 4, 2002. This action by the Government meant

members of the LTTE were no longer subject to arrest

simply because of their status.



The LTTE routinely invaded the privacy of citizens by

maintaining an effective network of informants. The

LTTE also forcibly recruited children during the year

(see Section 6.d). In 2003, the LTTE released 141

children. In late 2002, 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). Unlike in previous years,

there were no reports that the LTTE expelled Muslims

from their homes.



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

agreed to in February 2002. Subsequently, a number of

prisoners were released by both sides and the key road

connecting Jaffna with the rest of the island was

opened. The abatement of hostilities also led to a

sharp reduction in roadblocks and checkpoints around the

country, to the return of approximately 300,000 IDPs to

their points of origin in the north and east, and to the

opening of investigations into actions by security force

personnel.



In April 2002, in Nilaveli, on the east coast, naval

personnel opened fire and injured two Tamil women. The

circumstances surrounding the incident remained unclear,

and the investigation into the incident remained open at

year's end. On October 10, 2002, seven civilians were

killed when security force personnel fired into a crowd

storming their compound in the east. Some observers

claimed 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 an LTTE-

instigated attack.



In November 2001, the Sri Lanka Army created the

Directorate of Human Rights and Humanitarian Law in the

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 operated under written rules

of engagement that severely restricted the shelling,

bombardment, or other use of firepower against civilian-

occupied areas. In 2003, the army instituted further

mandatory human rights training programs for officers

and enlisted personnel.



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. The Government delivered

food rations to the Vanni area, an LTTE-controlled area

in northern Sri Lanka, 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 remained open during the year.



In previous years, NGOs and other groups that sought to

take assistance-related items to the LTTE-controlled

Vanni region needed permission from the Government.

With the onset of the peace process, NGOs and assistance

groups could move nearly all items into the LTTE-

controlled areas without extensive Government oversight.



During 2002, the Ministry of Defense reported capturing

several LTTE personnel with weapons in government-

controlled areas in direct contradiction of the terms of

the ceasefire agreement. The Government reportedly

returned most LTTE personnel directly to the closest

LTTE checkpoint. Some, however, were detained for longer

periods. Previously the military sent the LTTE cadre it

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 Sections

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. There were no reports of security

forces personnel executing LTTE personnel 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 executed

injured soldiers on the battlefield. At year's end, the

LTTE reportedly had released all security force

personnel they were holding. The LTTE is believed to

have killed most of the police officers and security

force personnel it captured in past few years.



The LTTE routinely used excessive force in the war,

including by targeting civilians. Since the peace

process began in December 2001, the LTTE has engaged in

kidnaping, hijackings of truck shipments, and forcible

recruitment, including of children. The LTTE was widely

believed by credible sources to have increased its

recruitment during the year. There were intermittent

reports through the year of children ranging in age from

13 to 17 escaping from LTTE camps. During 2003, the

LTTE released 141 children (see Section 1.f). The Sri

Lanka Monitoring Mission received approximately 130

complaints about child abductions since January 2003,

and credible sources say those children are recruited to

be child soldiers. High LTTE officials have alleged to

foreign officials that child soldiers were "volunteers."

In 2003, the LTTE and UNICEF reached an agreement on the

demobilization and rehabilitation of child soldiers, and

began work on an action plan which would address issues

relating to child labor, including underage recruitment.



The LTTE expropriates food, fuel, and other items meant

for IDPs, 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.



Landmines were a serious problem in Jaffna and the Vanni

and to some extent in the east (see Section 5).

Landmines, booby traps, and unexploded ordnance pose a

problem to resettlement of displaced persons and

rebuilding. At the end of 2002, a U.N. team had begun

coordinating the process of mapping the mined areas in

the country and established oversight for a mine removal

program. In 2003, a U.N team established a landmine map

database, which was shared throughout the 12 demining

agencies that worked in Sri Lanka in 2003. During the

year, the Sri Lankan Military and the LTTE removed mines

in areas they controlled. State Department-sponsored

humanitarian demining programs were active in clearing

landmines in 2002 and 2003, and a major USG-funded

demining training program for the Sri Lanka Army began

in late 2003. The Government reported as many as 15

mine-related casualties among civilians per month during

the year.



Section 2 Respect for Civil Liberties, Including:



a. Freedom of Speech and Press



The Constitution provides for freedom of speech and of

the press, and the Government generally respected these

rights in practice in 2003. In the past, the Government

restricted these rights, often using national security

grounds permitted by law. In 2002, criminal defamation

laws, which had often been used by the Government to

intimidate independent media outlets, were eliminated.

In 2001, the Government officially lifted the censorship

on war reporting. 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.

Although the Government owns the country's largest

newspaper chain, two major television stations, and a

radio station, a variety of independent, privately owned

newspapers, journals, and radio and television stations

dominate the media. Most independent media houses

freely criticized 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; however, 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.



Human rights observers commented that in the past Tamils

from the north or east who criticized the Sri Lankan

military and Government often were 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.).



During the year, the defamation laws were repealed and

all cases pertaining to the defamation laws were

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.



The Press Complaints Commission of Sri Lanka was

established during 2003 and is designed to provide a

venue for citizens to bring complaints against media

outlets. The Commission is set to begin full operations

later this year.



Unlike in the previous year, travel by local and foreign

journalists to conflict areas was not restricted. 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.



In 2002, two air force personnel were convicted of

forcibly entering the home of a well-known journalist

who reported regularly on defense matters and

threatening him. The two received nine year sentences,

were released on bail and continued to appeal the charge

in 2003.



The Government did not restrict access to the Internet.



The Government did not restrict academic freedom.



The LTTE restricted 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 and others are in hiding.



Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association



The law provides for freedom of assembly and

association, and the Government generally respected

these rights in practice. Although the PTA may be used

to restrict this freedom, the Government did not use the

act for that purpose during the year. Numerous peaceful

political and nonpolitical rallies were held throughout

the country during the year.



In July 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. However, the

Government generally grants permits for demonstrations,

including those by opposition parties and minority

groups.



On October 9, 2002, special task force police killed

eight Tamil civilians during a protest in Akkaraipattu.

Police and the commission tasked with investigating the

incident claim that the crowd was trying to forcefully

enter the police compound and the police were defending

themselves. Tamils have disputed this finding,

asserting that the protest was peaceful. In April 2001,

a violent clash between the Sinhalese and Muslim

communities occurred in Mawanella. The Muslim community

protested alleged police inaction concerning an 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

buildings and a few vehicles were destroyed. Police

reportedly did nothing to stop the destruction of Muslim

property. There were no further developments in the

case during the year.



The LTTE does not allow freedom of association in the

areas that it controls. The LTTE reportedly has used

coercion to make persons attend rallies that 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 Jaffna

Library, destroyed during the war, was reconstructed and

was set to reopen in 2003, however, the LTTE prevented

its reopening. 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.



Freedom of Religion



The Constitution accords Buddhism a foremost position,

but it also provides for the right of members of other

faiths to practice their religions freely, and the

Government generally respected 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 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 year, there were

unconfirmed reports of assault on members of evangelical

Christian groups by Buddhists. Evangelicals sometimes

complain that the Government tacitly condones such

harassment, but there is no evidence to support this

claim.



Two developments in 2003 raised religious freedom

concerns. In July 2003, the Supreme Court issued a

ruling that the Constitution supports the right to

practice religion, but does not support the right to

proselytize. The Government is also reviewing a draft

law that would prevent the forced conversion of Hindus.

Christian groups have expressed deep concerns about

these developments, asserting that the prevention of

conversion is an effort to impinge on their religious

right to proselytize.



In April 2001, four Sinhalese attacked a Muslim cashier.

When the Muslim community protested police inaction,

rioting Sinhalese confronted the Muslim persons, and two

Muslims were killed. The police investigation into this

incident remains open and no arrests have been reported.

There were no developments in this case in 2003.



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. During

the year, the LTTE leadership has met with the leaders

of the Muslim community to discuss the peace process.

In the past, the LTTE has expropriated Muslim homes,

land, and businesses and threatened Muslim families with

death if they attempt to return. The LTTE has made some

conciliatory statements to the Muslim community, but

most Muslims view the statements with skepticism. There

were also instances of intimidation of Muslims in the

east by the LTTE in 2003, and there was fighting between

LTTE personnel and Muslims that left several Muslims

dead.



There continue to be reports of vandalism of buildings

used by evangelical Christian groups, and members of

these groups have reported incidents of harassment.



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.



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.



For a more detailed discussion see the 2003

International Religious Freedom Report.



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

respected the right to domestic and foreign travel.

However, in the past, 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 to move freely in the north and east, and

frequently they were harassed at checkpoints throughout

the country. These security measures had the effect of

restricting the movement of Tamils.



Starting in December 2001, most travel restrictions were

lifted by the Government and this situation continued

into 2003. Areas near military bases and high security

zones still have limited access. Some observers claim

the high security zones are excessive and unfairly claim

Tamil lands, particularly in Jaffna. The LTTE limited

travel on the road connecting Jaffna in the north to the

rest of the country; however, in April 2002 the

Government lifted all of its restrictions on travel to

Jaffna.



By late 2001, there were over 800,000 IDPs in Sri Lanka.

With the advent of the peace process, however, UNHCR

reports that 310,000 IDPs have returned to their places

of origin, leaving roughly 500,000 IDPs in the country.

An estimated 65,000 Tamil refugees live in camps in

Tamil Nadu in Southern India. Approximately 100,000

refugees may have integrated into Tamil society in India

over the years. UNHCR reports that a small number may

have returned from India during the year.



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 remain displaced and live in or

near welfare centers. There were 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. However, it appeared that these

attacks by the LTTE were not targeted against persons

due to their religious beliefs, rather, it appeared that

they were part of an overall strategy to clear the north

and east of persons not sympathetic to the cause of an

independent Tamil state. During the year, 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 have not and

were instead waiting for a guarantee from the Government

for their safety in LTTE-controlled areas.

The LTTE occasionally disrupts the flow of persons

exiting the Vanni region through the two established

checkpoints. In particular the LTTE taxes civilians

traveling through areas it controls. In the past, the

LTTE disrupted the movement of IDPs 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 IDPs

live in LTTE-controlled areas (see Section 1.g.).



The law does not provide for the granting of asylum or

refugee status in accordance with the 1951 U.N.

Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and its

1967 Protocol. The Government cooperated with the

office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees 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. There were no

reports of the forced return of persons to a country

where they feared persecution.



Section 3 Respect for Political Rights: The Right of

Citizens to Change Their Government



The Constitution provides citizens with the right to

change their government peacefully. Citizens exercised

this right in practice through multiparty, periodic,

free and fair elections. Elections were held on the

basis of universal suffrage; however, recent elections

have been marred by violence and some 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

exercised in the December 2001 parliamentary elections

in which the United National Front, a coalition of

parties led by the UNP, won a majority in Parliament for

the next 6-year period. Stating that it feared possible

infiltration by the LTTE, the Government prohibited more

than 40,000 Tamil voters living in LTTE-controlled

territories from crossing army checkpoints in order to

vote. In 2003, the Supreme Court ruled that this action

violated the fundamental rights of these prospective

Tamil voters. The Supreme Court ruling cited and fined

the commander of the Sri Lankan Army, the then-

Commissioner of Elections, and the government for

preventing citizens from exercising their right to vote.

The commander of the Sri Lankan Army claimed he was

following orders from the government based on

information that the LTTE was planning to infiltrate

government-controlled areas on election day.



Following elections held in December 2001, the UNP and

its allies formed the new Government. The President's

party, the PA, now leads the opposition in Parliament.

Cohabitation ties between the President and Prime

Minister have been difficult.



The President suspended Parliament from July to

September 2001 out of concern that her coalition had

lost its majority in Parliament because of defections.

The suspension of Parliament angered opposition parties,

which sponsored numerous demonstrations. One of these

demonstrations, 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 in October 2001, and called for

elections to take place in December 2001.



On election day, December 5, 2001, 12 supporters of the

Sri Lankan Muslim Congress were killed, allegedly by

hired thugs of a PA candidate. Former PA MP Anuruddha

Ratwatte and his two sons have been indicted for

conspiring in the killings. In addition, 15 others,

including security force personnel, were indicted for

their alleged involvement in the murders. In June 2003,

Ratwatte and 14 others were granted bail by a five-judge

bench of the Supreme Court, setting aside the majority

order of the High-Court-Trial-at-Bar. Despite an

extremely violent campaign, including credible reports

of 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 connected to the 2001

elections.



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; however,

implementing legislation has yet to be passed.



A delegation from the European Union monitoring the 2001

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.



There are 10 women in the 225-member Parliament. There

was one in the Cabinet and two sat on the Supreme Court.

In December 1999, a woman, Chandrika Kumaratunga, was

elected President for a second term.



There are 28 Tamil and 24 Muslim persons in the 225

member Parliament elected in December 2001. The

Parliament elected in October 2000 had 23 Tamil and 22

Muslim members.



The LTTE continued to refuse 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 had undermined the

functioning of local government bodies in Jaffna through

a campaign of killing and intimidation. This campaign

included the killing of two of Jaffna's mayors and death

threats against members of the 17 local councils.

During the period of the conflict, the LTTE 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 NGOs, 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 were no adverse regulations governing the

activities of local and foreign NGOs, although the

Government officially requires NGOs 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 NGOs complied with these

new reporting requirements. A number of domestic and

international human rights groups generally operate

without government restriction, investigating and

publishing their findings on human rights cases.

Government officials are cooperative and responsive to

their views.



The Government continued to allow 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 NGOs

assisted in the delivery of medical and other essential

supplies to the Vanni area (see Section 1.g.).



In the first six months of 2003, the HRC conducted 690

visits to police stations and 96 visits to detention

facilities. The HRC has 2500 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.). Many human rights

observers recognized in 2003 that the new leader of the

HRC was willing to confront other branches of the

Government on human rights problems and new standard

procedures. Activists have expressed some satisfaction

with the HRC's leadership's prompt investigation into

the November 2000 Bindunuwewa massacre.



Section 5 Discrimination Based on Race, Sex, Disability,

Language, or Social Status



The Constitution provides for equal rights under the law

for all citizens, and the Government generally respected

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.



In 2003, the police have reported a total of 294 rape

investigations in the country, and there were no reports

of cases involving security force personnel. In the

previous year, the police reported a total of 865 rape

investigations in the country. 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.



Although laws against procuring and trafficking were

strengthened in 1995, trafficking in women for the

purpose of forced labor occurs (see Section 6.f.).



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

was 18 years, except in the case of Muslims, who

continue to follow their customary marriage practices.

Different religious and ethnic practices often resulted

in uneven treatment of women, including discrimination.



There are 10 women in the 225-member Parliament. There

was one in the Cabinet and two sat on the Supreme Court.

In December 1999, a woman, Chandrika Kumaratunga, was

elected President for a second term.



Children



The Government is committed to protecting the welfare

and rights of children, but is constrained by a lack of

resources. The Government demonstrated 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 was free through the university level. Health

care, including immunization, also was free.



In the period from January 1 to September 2003, the

police recorded 214 cases of crimes against children,

compared to 613 cases of crimes against children in

2002. Many NGOs attribute the problem of exploitation

of children to the lack of law enforcement rather than

adequate legislation. 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

children and women. In September 2002 the police opened

an office to work directly with the National Child

Protection Authority (NCPA) on children's issues to

support NCPA investigations into crimes against children

and to arrest suspects based on those investigations.



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 Government has pushed for greater international

cooperation to bring those guilty of pedophilia to

justice. The penalty for pedophilia is not less than

five years and up to 20 years as well as an unspecified

fine. Eleven cases of pedophilia were brought to court

in 2003. There were no convictions for pedophilia

during the year.



Child prostitution is a problem 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 LTTE uses 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



SIPDIS

would not recruit children under the age of 17. The

LTTE has not honored this pledge, and even after the

ceasefire agreement there were multiple credible reports

of the LTTE forcibly recruiting children (see Section

6.d.).



Persons with Disabilities



There was some discrimination against persons with

disabilities in employment, education, or in the

provision of other state services. The law does not

mandate access to buildings for persons with

disabilities. The World Health Organization estimates

that 7 percent of the population consisted of persons

with disabilities. The Department of Social Services

operated eight vocational training schools for persons

with physical and mental disabilities and sponsored a

program of job training and placement for graduates.

The Government also provided some financial support to

NGOs that assist persons with disabilities; subsidized

prosthetic devices and other medical aids for persons

with disabilities; made some purchases from suppliers

with disabilities; and has registered 74 schools and

training institutions for persons with disabilities run

by NGOs. The Department of Social Services 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. The law forbids discrimination

against any person on the grounds of disability. No

cases were 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 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.



National/Racial/Ethnic Minorities



There were 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 were

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 2001. Some

critics charged that the program did not progress fast

enough. In 2003, legislation was pending in the

Parliament that would grant citizenship to a large

number of these "tea estate" Tamils.



Both Sri Lankan and "tea estate" Tamils maintained that

they long have 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

unofficially are discouraged. Nonetheless,

approximately 20 percent of the 6.4 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 were about more

than 1,000,000 union members. Approximately 15-20

percent of the nonagricultural work force in the private

sector was unionized. Trade union membership data

reported by the Sri Lankan Department of Labor of was

incomplete. 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.



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. The Ministry of

Labor registered 154 new unions and canceled the

registration of 154 others, bringing the total number of

functioning unions to 1,513. About 500 unions are

considered to be active. The Ministry of Labor is

authorized by law to cancel the registration of any

union that does not submit an annual report. This

requirement was the only legal grounds for cancellation

of registration.



In 1999 Parliament passed an amendment to the Industrial

Disputes Act (IDA),which required 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 discrimination must reinstate workers fired for union

activities but may transfer them to different locations.

Anti-union discrimination is a punishable offense liable

for a fine of Rs 20,000 (approx $200).



In 2002 the AFL-CIO unsuccessfully petitioned USTR to

withdraw Generalized System of Preferences (GSP)

privileges, based on violations of Freedom of

Association. In 2003, a complaint was filed in the ILO

Freedom of Association Committee by the International

Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU),based upon a

flawed referendum in an Export Processing Zone (EPZ)

facility. 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 ICFTU, although a new trade union in the

Biyagama EPZ is affiliated with the Youth Forum of the

ICFTU. No national trade union center exists to

centralize or facilitate contact with international

groups.



The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively



The law provides for the right to collective bargaining;

however, very few companies practice it. Currently,

about 50 companies belonging to the Employers'

Federation of Ceylon have collective agreements. All

collective agreements have to be registered at the

Department of Labor. Between 2000 and 2002, 121

collective agreements were registered.



In 1999 Parliament passed an amendment to the IDA which

requires employers to recognize trade union activities

and the right to collective bargaining. The law

prohibits anti-union discrimination. Only about seven

unions are active in EPZs, partially because of severe

restrictions on access by union organizers to the zones.

In order to give effect to the IDA and ILO conventions

on collective bargaining and trade union activity, the

Board of Investment (BOI) issued a new labor standards

manual in October 2002 instructing BOI companies,

including those in EPZs, to recognize Trade Union

activities and the right to collective bargaining.

According to the manual, where both a recognized trade

union with bargaining power and a non-union worker

council exist in an enterprise, the trade union will

represent the employees in collective bargaining.



Following these developments, three companies in BOI-

managed EPZs have recognized trade unions.



In BOI enterprises without unions, including those in

the EPZs, worker councils--composed of employees,

employers and often a public sector representative--

generally provide the forums for labor and management

negotiation. According to the new BOI labor manual and

BOI sources, the councils have the power to negotiate

binding collective bargaining contracts, although no

such contracts have been signed to date. Labor

advocates have criticized the employees' councils as

ineffective worker representatives.



All workers, other than police, armed forces, prison

service 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

were effective and new reforms placed limits on the

amount of time allowed to resolve arbitration cases;

however, there continued to be substantial backlogs in

the resolution of cases. In the past, the Government

periodically has controlled strikes by declaring some

industries essential under the ER (which lapsed in

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 may submit labor grievances to the Public

Service Commission (PSC). If not satisfied with PSC

decisions, they may appeal to the Administrative Appeals

Commission set up in July 2003, under the 17th Amendment

to the Sri Lanka Constitution. They can also seek

protection under fundamental rights protection

provisions in the Constitution and make submission to

the Supreme Court. 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 were not grounds for

dismissal. Dismissed employees have a right to appeal

their termination before a labor tribunal.



There were approximately 125,000 workers employed in 12

EPZs/Industrial Parks run by the BOI, a large percentage

of them women. Under the law, workers in the EPZs 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 was under 10 percent. Labor representatives

alleged that the Government's BOI, 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. Labor

representatives alleged that worker councils in the EPZs

only have the power to make recommendations. The recent

BOI manual stated Employees' Councils could represent

workers in collective bargaining and industrial

disputes. Labor representatives alleged that the Labor

Commissioner, under BOI pressure, had failed to

prosecute employers who refuse to recognize or enter

into collective bargaining with trade unions. While

employers in the EPZs generally offer 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.

Some employers in the EPZs and factories located outside

the Western Province have established boarding houses

and provide transport. 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.



Prohibition of Forced or Bonded Labor



The law prohibits forced or bonded labor; however, there

were reports that such practices occurred. ILO

Convention 105 was ratified in 2003. The law does not

prohibit forced or bonded labor by children

specifically, but government officials interpret it as

applying to persons of all ages (see Section 6.d.).

There were credible reports that some rural children

were employed in debt bondage as domestic servants in

urban households, and there were numerous reports that

some of these children had been abused.





Status of Child Labor Practices and Minimum Age for

Employment



The law prohibits labor by children under 14 years of

age, but child labor still exists in the informal

sectors. The NCPA combats the problem of child abuse,

including unlawful child labor. The Ministry of Labor

is the competent authority to set regulations and 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 family agriculture work or to

engage in technical training. A recent amendment to the

Employment of Women and Youth Act (EWYC) prohibited all

other forms of family employment of children below 14.

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. 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.



The EWYC and the Factories Ordinance govern employment

of young person between 14 and 18 years of age. Persons

under age 18 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 non-plantation

agriculture. The Trade Union Ordinance of 1935 allows

membership only from the age of 16.



Many thousands of children were 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

reportedly are subjected to physical, sexual, and

emotional abuse.



Regular employment of children also occurs 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 161

complaints regarding child labor in 2002, with 72 of

these cases withdrawn due to lack of evidence or faulty

complaints. The Department prosecuted 23 cases during

the year. In the first 7 months of 2003, the Labor

Department reported 102 complaints, with 14 cases

withdrawn and 23 prosecuted. According to the Ministry

of Labor, there were 26 prosecutions for child labor

(below the age of 14) during 2002. Penalties for

employing minors were increased from about $11 (1,000

rupees) and/or 6 months imprisonment to $100 (Rs.

10,000) and/or 12 months imprisonment.



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 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). 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 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 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 recruit forcibly 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. In 2003, the LTTE

released 141 children. In late 2002, the LTTE handed

over 85 children to UNICEF, stating that the children

had volunteered to serve, but that the LTTE does not

accept children.

Acceptable Conditions of Work



While there is no universal national minimum wage,

approximately 40 wage boards set up by the Department of

Labor set minimum wages and working conditions by sector

and industry. These minimum wages do not provide a

decent standard of living for a worker and family, but

the vast majority of families have more than one

breadwinner. 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. The Department of Labor did not report average

minimum wage rates for 2002. The minimum wage in the

garment industry was approximately $27 (Rs. 2,800) per

month. The minimum wage in the hotel industry was

approximately $20 (Rs. 2,100).



In July 2002, the daily wage rate (fixed by a collective

agreement) in the tea plantations managed by plantation

management companies was increased from Rs. 121 to Rs.

147. In the rubber sector, the daily wage was raised

from Rs. 112 to Rs. 131.



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 has

been increased to 100 hours per year from 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. These 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. Health and safety

regulations do not meet international standards.

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.



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 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. A

small number of Thai, Russian, and Chinese women have

been trafficked to Sri Lanka for purposes of sexual

exploitation. Some Sri Lankan children are trafficked

internally to work as domestics and for sexual

exploitation.



The Government has ratified ILO Convention 182 on the

elimination of the worst forms of child labor. Sri

Lanka was in the process of identifying these forms of

child labor that existed in the country during the year.



The law provides for penalties for trafficking in women

including imprisonment for two to 20 years, and a fine.

For trafficking in children, the law allows imprisonment

of five to 20 years, and a fine.



Internal trafficking in male children was also a

problem, especially from areas bordering the northern

and eastern provinces. Protecting Environment and

Children Everywhere (PEACE),a domestic NGO, estimated

that in 2003 there were 6,000 male children between the

ages of 8 and 15 years who were engaged as sex workers

both at beach and mountain resorts. Some of these

children were 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; however, some

organizations believe the PEACE numbers to be inflated.



The NCPA has adopted comprehensive national policy and a

national plan to combat the trafficking of children for

exploitative employment. The project was part of a

regional project funded by the ILO. On a local level,

in October 2002, the police opened an office to work as

part of the NCPA in children's issues, including

trafficking in children.

The country had a reputation in the past as a

destination for foreign pedophiles. This problem

appears to have declined significantly because of

improved law enforcement by the Government. In

addition, increased publicity on the issue seems to have

worked to scare off foreign pedophiles. Child sexual

exploitation by locals and by foreign pedophiles still

continued, however.



The Government has undertaken several initiatives to

provide protection and services to victims of internal

trafficking, including supporting rehabilitation camps

for victims. In addition, the Government has initiated

some awareness campaigns to educate women about the

dangers of trafficking; however, most of the campaigns

are through local and international NGOs and somewhat

through the Bureau of Foreign employment.



END TEXT.



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SIPDIS

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