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Peace
moves: Blow hot, blow cold from PA The decision to reach a common stand on the peace process was endorsed by the party's executive committee on Friday and a four-member committee was appointed to work out the common approach to the peace process. Most of the senior members of the party were of the opinion that the PA should back the peace process with reservations about certain clauses in the ceasefire agreement, instead of rejecting it in toto. The common approach
to the peace process comes in the wake of attempts by a group of
PA members to organise countrywide protest campaigns in collaboration
with the JVP against the peace initiative and the UNF government's
other failures. Confirming the participation of these PA members at the JVP rally, JVP Propaganda Secretary Wimal Weerawansa told The Sunday Times the rally was postponed for next week to facilitate the participation of Ms. Ashraff and Mr. Bandaranaike who are oversees. However PA General Secretary, D. M. Jayaratne told The Sunday Times that unlike the JVP who were totally opposed to the cease-fire agreement, many of the members felt that they should object only certain sections of the agreement. Mr. Jayaratne
also ruled out having a common understanding with the JVP aimed
at overthrowing the government, but said they could work together
when dealing with issues such as the cost of living. SLFP General
Secretary Maithripala Sirisena told The Sunday Times the PA's common
stand on the peace process would be announced after President Kumaratunga
returns from an official visit to Rome. US
report cites child sex abuse by LTTE It has for the first time branded the LTTE as an organisation allegedly engaged in the sexual exploitation of children. The report states "the LTTE abducts and holds children against their will for purposes of forced labour, military conscription and in some cases sexual exploitation". The report seeks to serve as an instrument for the US Government to encourage increased prosecution of offenders and provide protection and prevention programmes for those exploited. Sri Lanka has been categorized along with countries like Singapore and South Africa whose Governments have not yet fully complied with the Act's minimum standards but are making significant efforts to comply with them. The Act, sets out as minimum requirements, a government's duty to prohibit and punish acts of trafficking. It further emphasizes that such a punishment should be on par with those prescribed for grave crimes like forcible sexual assault and should adequately reflect the heinous nature of the offence and be sufficiently stringent to deter such offences. The report refers to Sri Lankan women who have gone to West Asia for employment being forced to work in slave-like conditions or being sexually exploited. Further it draws attention to the small number of Thai, Russian and Chinese women brought to Sri Lanka for the purpose of sexual exploitation. Although identifying Sri Lanka as a country of origin and a destination for trafficked persons, the report also acknowledges the significant efforts of the Government to combat trafficking. The report highlights Sri Lanka being a signatory to the SAARC Convention on Prevention and Combating Trafficking in Women and Children for Prostitution, the setting up of the Police Women and Children's Bureau and the National Child Protection Authority and the establishment of the Overseas Employment Bureau by the Government to coordinate with Sri Lankan embassies abroad.
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