Article 24: Everyone has the right to rest and leisure, including reasonable limitation of working hours and periodic holidays with pay.
Click here to watch video on Article 25, Right to Play
As I was growing up, I often felt nostalgic, and yearned to be a child once again. Why? Because to me, early childhood was a time of fun and games; I could play until I became tired of playing, and there were no problems in the world (at least that’s what I thought).
However, for the Tamil children in the camps in Sri-Lanka, they have been robbed of their innocence, and childhood. Children are not meant to witness the murders of their parents, children are not meant to witness so much violence and bloodshed. Children shouldn’t have to ‘grow-up’ and become parents to their younger siblings.
“ Redd Barna from Save the Children, and an aid worker from Norway, Vidar Strøm, has said that there are over one hundred thousand children who have been traumatised, to a greater or lesser degree, after being exposed to the war and then for the internment camps in the North.”
Children who do witness such violent atrocities suffer from many forms of psychological abuse as they grow: they experience greater emotional instability, they become more socially withdrawn, depressed, insecure, and suffer from many behavioral problems. When suffering from psychological abuse, children are unable to play and enjoy their childhood. Many children also suffer from injuries, malnourishment and disease in the camps that prevent them from living as children and playing.
Three months ago, the rape of a 9-year old Tamil girl by the Sri-Lankan army was brought to light. Abuse against children is nothing new to the Sri-Lankan military, in 2008 Sri-Lankan ‘peacekeeping’ soldiers were charged with sexual exploitation and abuse against children by the UN. The UN Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS) concluded that “acts of sexual exploitation and abuse [against children] were frequent and occurred usually at night, and at virtually every location where the [Sri Lankan] contingent personnel were deployed.” When such young children are raped, they will undoubtedly suffer from emotional and physical abuse.
By inflicting so much violence against children, mentally, physically, and sexually, by caging up children in ill-equipped camps, where not even their basic needs are met, by separating children from their families, and by killing off the able-bodied Tamils who can care for these children, the Tamil children in the camps will not be able to play.
Children have become the unfortunate victims in this genocide; with their childhood, innocence and families taken away from them at a young age, they have and continue to suffer immensely. When will the day come where Tamil children will be allowed to be just children, and enjoy the joys childhood has to offer?
How can you play when you do not have limbs? How can you play when you haven’t been fed? How can you play when you have witnessed the killing of your parents? How can you play when you now have to care for your younger siblings? How can you play when you have been raped at 9-years old? Play?
Credits:
http://tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=13&artid=31298
http://tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=13&artid=31278
Tags: Speak Out
