Military forces perpetrated sexual violence against minority Tamils during the island’s protracted separatist conflict, and victims continue to await justice 17 years after the hostilities ceased, according to a UN report.
Troops crushed the separatists following a no-holds-barred offensive and declared an end to the war by May 2009. The spectacular military success also drew allegations of widespread war crimes.
Sexual assaults were used as a tool to extract information, intimidate individuals and communities, and instil a pervasive climate of fear and humiliation, the paper by the UN Human Rights Office said.
“Despite it being a longstanding matter of record, successive Sri Lankan governments have failed to adequately investigate or prosecute cases of conflict-related sexual violence,” the report, released yesterday, said.
UN human rights chief Volker Turk urged the new government of President Anura Kumara Dissanayake to address the issue of impunity in the South Asian nation.
“Recognition, truth, accountability and reparations are critical to restoring dignity to survivors, and advancing reconciliation and healing in Sri Lanka,” Turk said at the launch of the report in Geneva.
The report calls on Colombo to take immediate steps to acknowledge past sexual violence committed by state forces and others, and to issue a formal apology.
“It should also implement survivor-centred reforms across the security sector, judiciary and legal framework, establish an independent prosecution office, and ensure access to psychological and social support,” it added.
The 30-page report is based on a decade of monitoring and reporting by the UN Human Rights Office, and extensive consultations with survivors, local experts, civil society and others.
Beyond the shocking cruelty of the abuses – including rape, sexual mutilation, forced nudity and public degradation – many survivors said the attacks were intended to cause lasting trauma and break down communities.
The report quoted one survivor as saying: “Sexual violence is a torture that never stops”.
Many victims continue to suffer chronic physical injuries, infertility, psychological breakdowns and suicidal thoughts, the report noted.
Successive governments in Colombo have denied allegations that the Sinhalese-dominated military killed at least 40,000 Tamil civilians in the final months of the conflict.
They have also resisted international calls for independent investigations. — AFP
