SITUATION REPORTS

MONARAGALA

In 2019, the National Child Protection Authority (NCPA) had received as many as 221 complaints of child abuse from the Monaragala District. Several incidents were reported this year as well. When inquired, a source at the Monaragala Police who spoke on conditions of anonymity said that children are by themselves when parents leave to the paddy fields early in the morning. “These are remote areas and even houses are located in isolated areas. Children take shortcuts to go to school, and these are less populated routes. There are some children who don’t go to school due to various reasons and we have identified them with the assistance of the Divisional Secretariat. Plans are underway to provide financial assistance to families that face difficulties and are therefore not sending their children to school.”

The source further said that in most instances its consensual rape that takes place as most of them are young couples. “Children also get raped by relatives. But when compared to last year, we see a reduction in numbers this year. It could also be that most incidents go unreported because victims are reluctant to come to the Police and relate their experience. But once an underage victim is referred to us, we produce the matter to courts and the courts would decide whether the victim’s family is fit to provide further protection or whether the victim would be safe at a care home. This depends on the probation officer’s observations,” the source added.

HILL COUNTRY PLANTATION SECTOR

The situation remains grim in Hill Country estates as well. A recent survey done by Save the Children – a charity focused on education, child protection, child rights governance, healthy and nutrition, livelihoods and humanitarian aspects revealed that 79.9% parents in the estate sector agree to the fact that the community/neighbourhood is not safe for their children. The survey further revealed that 73.5% children who are no longer in school have previously attended pre-school or school while 26.5% have never gone to school. According to Nadesan Suresh, Chairman of Uva Shakthi Foundation – a voluntary organisation established in 1996 to voice for the rights of communities living in tea/rubber plantations, rural villages and residential settlements, the school dropout rates are high in the estate sector. “If you take the Badulla District, there are around 145 primary schools and only a few schools have classes till A/LS. Therefore parents think that studying upto Grade 5 would suffice. In order to go to another school they usually have to shift to an urban centre. There’s a lot of exploitation and trafficking that takes place in estates. Brokers would come and take children for child labour or domestic work. It is mainly underaged boys who work as helpers in garages, textile shops and the informal sector in metropolitan areas such as Kandy and Colombo.”

“But this is just one aspect,” he continued. “The reasons for most incidents of child abuse, rape and domestic violence are manifold. If you take a look at their settlements, they still live in line rooms. This was a concept introduced by the European planters back in 1823. Until 1932 most managers in these plantations were military officers. They constructed workers’ quarters similarly to barracks and this is how line rooms came into being. There’s one room with a partition where two families would live. So people have no privacy. Young couples would marry and return to the same line room. The elders and the rest of the family also lives in the same vicinity. This adds to the problem.”

According to Suresh it was only in 2003 that education and healthcare facilities were introduced to the estate sector. “This was also the year that they got citizenship. When countries such as South Africa, Uganda and Kenya have moved away from the ‘indentured labour system’, Sri Lanka’s plantation workers are still victims of it. If they want to move away from the plantation they have to get permission from the management. Therefore they only have the rights to vote but are deprived of any other rights. But this time a few women in the estate sector have gotten a quota in the local authorities but they still have a long way to go. They still don’t have a say in the trade unions and other governing bodies. Women need to be included at the decision-making level.”

He also said that administrative officers in local government authorities are reluctant to step into the plantations due to the language issue. “Most plantations are also governed by the Companies Act and there are administrative problems. Therefore many of these issues have worsened over the years. We see slight improvements in certain aspects but there’s still a long way to go.”