Article 26: (1) Everyone has the right to education. Education shall be free, at least in the elementary and fundamental stages. Elementary education shall be compulsory. Technical and professional education shall be made generally available and higher education shall be equally accessible to all on the basis of merit. (2) Education shall be directed to the full development of the human personality and to the strengthening of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms. It shall promote understanding, tolerance and friendship among all nations, racial or religious groups, and shall further the activities of the United Nations for the maintenance of peace. (3) Parents have a prior right to choose the kind of education that shall be given to their children.
At least sixty thousand children are deprived of their education after the genocide of the Tamils. 106 schools in Ki’linochchi, Mullaiththeevu, Thu’nukkaai, Vavuniyaa North and Mannaar were closed as a result of the violence. The children deprived of this education will fall behind in their schooling because their right to education is not given. The Tamil children in the camps are mentally affected, and by keeping them locked up in camps, and not providing rehabilitation, the Sri-Lankan Government is further isolating them, and turning them into members of society who are dependent. Knowledge is power, and by not educating Tamil children, the Sri-Lankan Government can continue to dominate the powerful positions in society.
Schools provide an outlet for many students, many of the Tamils who have been orphaned, may find comfort in being with peers; if you continue to detain children, they cannot heal, through education; they will grow and find solace in their peers. Education is a way out for many of these children, a mental outlet, and an economic tool – by denying children in the camps of a proper education, the Tamil children detained in the camps will lag behind their peers in other areas.
Also, when Sri-Lanka gained independence, to restrict the number of Tamils that could enter university, the Sri-Lankan government enacted the Policy of Standardization. District quotas were set; meaning that a large number of Tamil students who qualified for university admission were unable to do so because quotas were set on how many Tamil students could enter. Requirements were also significantly lowered to areas occupied by Sinhalese people; this was an attempt to introduce large number of Sinhalese students into post-education. The upward mobility of the Tamils that was created by the British system led to Tamils being more dependent on the civil sector for employment, however with the new Policy of Standardization, less Tamils were able to access post-secondary education. Regardless of being more qualified for university admissions than their Sinhalese counterparts, Tamil students were denied education, and were thus prevented from attaining positions in high level sectors such as engineering, medicine and government. This downward adjustment of educated Tamils resulted in a higher unemployment rate among the Tamils.
Education is a right that the Sinhalese Government has continually stripped from the Tamils, both yesterday and today.
Credits:
http://tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=13&artid=31793
http://tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=13&artid=29081
Bose, Sumatra (2006). Contested Lands. United States: Harvard University Press.
Little, David. (1994). Sri-Lanka: The Invention of Enmity. Washington: United States of PeacePress.
Ponnambalam, Satchi. (1983) Sri-Lanka: National Conflict and the Tamil Liberation Struggle. New Jersey: Zed Books
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