http://www.dailynews.lk/2012/08/14/fea01.asp
National rejuvenation getting into top gear’ - Part IV:
Reintegration with the focus on multiple choices
Text of the keynote speech at the defence seminar, ‘Towards Lasting Peace And Stability’ delivered by Defence and Urban Development Ministry Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa on August 8
 Defence and Urban Development Ministry Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa delivering the keynote speech at the defence seminar, ‘Towards Lasting Peace And Stability’ in Colombo last week. Picture by Wasitha Patabendige |
A number of programmes were created to support beneficiaries who wished to set up their own businesses, with courses being conducted on self-employment, entrepreneurship and micro enterprise development. A special loan scheme for self-employment was also launched.
It is important to note that steps have also been taken to recruit a large number of these rehabilitated ex-LTTE combatants to the Civil Defence Force. They will be used for development activities in their areas of residence.
The Reintegration of the rehabilitees to society took place only after trained counsellors assessed their preparedness to adapt to society and resume normal lives. Reintegration programmes were conducted at various stages, including a large ceremony that was held at Temple Trees in September 2011 in the presence of the President. In all, 10,965 rehabilitees have been reintegrated to society as of now. 121 were released in 2009; 5,227 were reintegrated in 2010 and 5,027 were reintegrated last year. So far this year, 590 beneficiaries of the rehabilitation programme have been reintegrated to society.
Only 636 beneficiaries still remain in rehabilitation, at four centres located at Maramadu, Welikanda, Kandakadu and Poonthottam. These rehabilitees are not yet ready to be reintegrated to society, and require more time to recover from the LTTE’s indoctrination and regain full capability to lead normal lives. It should be noted that a further 383 ex-combatants who were in the rehabilitation programme have been identified and detained for further investigations and legal action. It should also be mentioned that many of the LTTE cadres who were detained during the course of the war have also been sent for rehabilitation, with only the cadres most involved in LTTE activities being selected for prosecution.
Rehabilitation programme
The primary focus of the rehabilitation and reintegration programme was to equip the former LTTE cadres with alternative means to a meaningful existence. It was felt that the best way to deradicalise these individuals was by granting them the chance to become productive members of society who had no reason to feel marginalised or insignificant.A preliminary report on research conducted about the rehabilitation programme by Dr. Kruglanski and Dr. Gelfland of the University of Maryland, College Park, in the USA, has indicated that even hard-core ex-LTTE cadres have undergone a significant reduction in their support for violence. The more the beneficiaries built up a rapport with the staff members and guards at the rehabilitation centres, the less likely they were to support the violence they believed in while they were with the LTTE.
These findings are not only very encouraging from the point of view of restoring normalcy in Sri Lanka, but they also vindicate the approach adopted by the government towards rehabilitation and reintegration. This approach has been extremely generous. Most of these cadres who were beneficiaries of rehabilitation and reintegration were involved in attacks against Armed Forces personnel on the field of battle.
Some may have also participated in atrocities against civilians. As a result, the normal response by the state would have been to keep them in detention and prosecute them. Indeed, this has been the practice in most post-conflict situations.
However, the President had a very different view. Instead of prosecuting the majority of the cadres, he insisted that they be rehabilitated and reintegrated to society as fast as possible. He understood that these former cadres had been misled by the LTTE, and that they needed an opportunity to be guided onto the correct path. As a result of this vision, the vast majority of cadres were rehabilitated and released to society in just two years. That is a truly remarkable achievement.
Dividends of peace
Nowhere else in the world have enemy combatants been treated with such generosity and rehabilitated at such speed. The sincere commitment of the President and the government of Sri Lanka to reconciliation can be gauged through this fact.Considering the indisputable progress that has been achieved on demining, Reconstruction, Resettlement, Rehabilitation and Reintegration, Reconciliation has become the only issue on which those who wish to criticise Sri Lanka can dwell. Yet this too is an unfounded criticism. Over the past three years, a great deal of work has been done to improve the opportunities and access to state services of all Sri Lankans, irrespective of their ethnicity, religion, caste, or place of origin. The focus has been to empower all sections of our society, and most particularly those who were under the LTTE for so many years, so that they can fully benefit from the dividends of peace.
Restoring normalcy to the North and East as quickly as possible after the dawn of peace was an essential first step in this regard. Disarming the Armed Groups that had stood against the LTTE in these areas during the war was very important. Members of groups such as the EPDP, EPRLF, PLOTE and TMVP had carried arms for self-protection against LTTE attacks. After the LTTE’s defeat, and the full re-establishment of government control in those areas, immediate steps were taken to disarm these groups.
To be continued
No comments:
Post a Comment