The actual origins of the Sinhalese are shrouded in myth. Most believe they came to Sri Lanka from northern India during the 6th century BC. Buddhism arrived from the subcontinent 300 years later and spread rapidly. Buddhism and a sophisticated system of irrigation became the pillars of classical Sinhalese civilization (200 BC-1200 AD) that flourished in the north-central part of the island. Invasions from southern India, combined with internecine strife, pushed Sinhalese kingdoms southward.

The island's contact with the outside world began early. Roman sailors called the island Taprobane. Arab traders knew it as "Serendip," the root of the word "serendipity." Beginning in 1505, Portuguese traders, in search of cinnamon and other spices, seized the island's coastal areas and spread Catholicism. The Dutch supplanted the Portuguese in 1658. Although the British ejected the Dutch in 1796, Dutch law remains an important part of Sri Lankan jurisprudence. In 1815, the British defeated the king of Kandy, last of the native rulers, and created the Crown Colony of Ceylon. They established a plantation economy based on tea, rubber, and coconuts. In 1931, the British granted Ceylon limited self-rule and a universal franchise. Ceylon became independent on February 4, 1948.

Sri Lankan politics since independence have been strongly democratic. Two major parties, the United National Party (UNP) and the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP), have generally alternated rule. The UNP ruled first from 1948-56 under three Prime Ministers--D.S. Senanayake, his son Dudley, and Sir John Kotelawala. The SLFP ruled from 1956-65, with a short hiatus in 1960, first under S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike and then, after his assassination in 1959, under his widow, Sirimavo, the world's first female chief executive in modern times. Dudley Senanayake and the UNP returned to power in 1965. In 1970, Mrs. Bandaranaike again assumed the premiership. A year later, an insurrection by followers of the Maoist "Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna" (JVP, or "People's Liberation Front") broke out. The SLFP government suppressed the revolt and declared a state of emergency that lasted 6 years.

In 1972, Mrs. Bandaranaike's government introduced a new constitution, which changed the country's name from Ceylon to Sri Lanka, declared it a republic, made protection of Buddhism a constitutional principle, and created a weak president appointed by the prime minister. Its economic policies during this period were highly socialist and included the nationalization of large tea and rubber plantations and other private industries. The UNP, under J.R. Jayewardene, returned to power in 1977. The Jayewardene government opened the economy and, in 1978, introduced a new constitution based on the French model, a key element of which was the creation of a strong executive presidency. J.R. Jayewardene was elected President by Parliament in 1978 and by nationwide election in 1982. In 1982, a national referendum extended the life of Parliament another 6 years. The UNP's Ranasinghe Premadasa, Prime Minister in the Jayewardene government, narrowly defeated Mrs. Bandaranaike (SLFP) in the 1988 presidential elections. The UNP also won an absolute majority in the 1989 parliamentary elections. Mr. Premadasa was assassinated on May 1, 1993 by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam ("LTTE" or "Tigers"), and was replaced by then-Prime Minister Dingiri Banda Wijetunga, who appointed Ranil Wickremesinghe Prime Minister. The SLFP, the main party in the People's Alliance (PA) coalition, returned to power in 1994 for the first time in 17 years. The PA won a plurality in the August 1994 parliamentary elections and formed a coalition government with Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga as Prime Minister. Prime Minister Kumaratunga later won the November 1994 presidential elections and appointed her mother (former Prime Minister Sirimavo Bandaranaike) to replace her as Prime Minister. President Kumaratunga won re-election to another 6-year term in December 1999. In August 2000, Mrs. Bandaranaike resigned as Prime Minister for health reasons, and Ratnasiri Wickramanayaka was appointed to take her place. The PA remained the largest political group in the October 2000 parliamentary elections and retained power in a coalition with a Muslim and a Tamil party.

Historical divisions continue to have an impact on Sri Lankan society and politics. From independence, the Tamil minority has been uneasy with the country's unitary form of government and apprehensive that the Sinhalese majority would abuse Tamil rights. Those fears were reinforced when S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike triumphed in the 1956 elections after appealing to Sinhalese nationalism. His declaration that Sinhala was the country's official language--an act felt by Tamils to be a denigration of their own tongue--was the first in a series of steps over the following decades that appeared discriminatory to Tamils. Tamils also were concerned about government agriculture programs that encouraged Sinhalese farmers from the south to move to newly irrigated lands in the east. The decades following 1956 saw intermittent outbreaks of communal violence and growing radicalization among Tamil groups. By the mid-1970s Tamil politicians were moving from support for federalism to a demand for a separate Tamil state--"Tamil Eelam"--in northern and eastern Sri Lanka, areas of traditional Tamil settlement. In the 1977 elections, the Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF) won all the seats in Tamil areas on a platform of separatism. Other groups--particularly the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE or Tamil Tigers)--sought an independent state by force. In 1983, the death of 13 Sinhalese soldiers at the hands of the LTTE unleashed the largest outburst of communal violence in the country's history. Hundreds of Tamils were killed in Colombo and elsewhere, tens of thousands were left homeless, and more than 100,000 fled to south India. Members of the TULF, the official opposition, lost their seats in Parliament when they later refused to swear a loyalty oath in Sinhala, a new constitutional requirement. The north and east became the scene of bloodshed as security forces attempted to suppress the LTTE and other militant groups. Terrorist incidents occurred in Colombo and other cities. Each side in the conflict accused the other of violating human rights. The conflict assumed an international dimension when the Sri Lankan government accused India of supporting the Tamil insurgents.

By mid-1987, India intervened in the conflict by air-dropping supplies to prevent what it felt was harsh treatment and starvation of the Tamil population in the Jaffna peninsula caused by an economic blockade by Colombo. Under a July 29, 1987 accord (the Indo-Lanka Accord) signed by Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi and President Jayewardene, the Sri Lankan Government made a number of concessions to Tamil demands, which included devolution of power to the provinces, merger--subject to later referendum--of the northern and eastern provinces, and official status for the Tamil language. India agreed to establish order in the north and east with an Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) and to cease assisting Tamil insurgents. Militant groups, although initially reluctant, agreed to surrender their arms to the IPKF. Within weeks, however, the LTTE declared its intent to continue its armed struggle for an independent Tamil Eelam and refused to disarm. The IPKF found itself engaged in a bloody police action against the LTTE. Further complicating the return to peace was a burgeoning Sinhalese insurgency in the south. The JVP, relatively quiescent since the 1971 insurrection, began to reassert itself in 1987. Capitalizing on opposition to the Indo-Lankan Accord in the Sinhalese community, the JVP launched an intimidation campaign against supporters of the accord. Numerous UNP and other government supporters were assassinated. The government, relieved of its security burden by the IPKF in the north and east, intensified its efforts in the south. The JVP was crushed but at a high cost in human lives. From April 1989 through June 1990, the government engaged in direct communications with the LTTE leadership. In the meantime, fighting between the LTTE and the IPKF escalated in the north. India withdrew the last of its forces from Sri Lanka in May 1990, and fighting between the LTTE and the government resumed. Both the LTTE and government forces committed serious human rights violations. In January 1995, the Sri Lankan Government and the LTTE agreed to a cessation of hostilities as a preliminary step in a government-initiated plan for peace negotiations. After 3 months, however, the LTTE unilaterally resumed hostilities. The government then adopted a policy of military engagement with the Tigers, with government forces liberating Jaffna from LTTE control by mid-1996 and moving against LTTE positions in the northern part of the country called the Vanni. An LTTE counteroffensive begun in October 1999 reversed most government gains and by May 2000 threatened government forces in Jaffna. That offensive was, in turn, also halted. Military operations continue in the north. The fighting has taken thousands of lives on both sides.

Separatist violence is largely confined to the north and eastern provinces, which are 6 to 8 hours by road from the capital. Still, terrorist bombings directed against politicians and civilian targets have occurred in Colombo, Kandy, and elsewhere in the country. In July 2001, an LTTE suicide squad attacked the Bandaranaike International Airport outside of Colombo and destroyed a large number of military and civilain aricraft. In October 1997, the U.S. Government designated the LTTE as a foreign terrorist organization under provisions of the Anti-Terrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996. It was re-designated as a terrorist organization in October 1999 and again in October 2001. Sri Lanka is a democratic republic with an active multiparty system. Constitutional power is shared between the popularly elected President and the 225-member Parliament. Violence, including at least 50 deaths, and irregularities marred the December Parliamentary elections in which the United National Front, a coalition of parties led by the United National Party (UNP), won a majority in Parliament for the next 6-year period. Fearing possible infiltration by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), the Government prohibited more than 40,000 Tamil voters from crossing army checkpoints from LTTE-controlled territories to vote. Chandrika Kumaratunga, head of the governing People's Alliance (PA) coalition, won reelection in 1999 for a second 5-year presidential term in a process marked by voting irregularities and at least six election-related deaths. The President suspended Parliament from July to September after the PA coalition lost its majority. The suspension was lifted after the PA coalition temporarily re-established control through an accord with a small leftist party. However, on October 10, after the coalition suffered more defections, the President dissolved Parliament and called for new elections in December. The Government generally respects constitutional provisions for an independent judiciary. For the past 18 years, the Government has fought the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), a terrorist organization fighting for a separate ethnic Tamil state in the north and east of the country. The conflict has claimed more than 64,000 lives. In 1999, government forces took LTTE-controlled areas north and west of Vavuniya, but counterattacks starting in November 1999 erased most government gains. In 2000 the LTTE began a buildup on the Jaffna peninsula, and captured the important Elephant Pass military base. The clashes left large numbers of civilians dead or injured and displaced more than 150,000 persons. In April, government troops launched a major offensive on the Jaffna Peninsula that resulted in heavy casualties for its forces. In July, the LTTE attacked Colombo's main airbase and international airport, destroying numerous aircraft and placing civilians at the airport at serious risk. At year's end 2001 the Government and the LTTE had each announced unilateral cease-fires.

Following the insurrection of 1971, the judicial system was flooded with thousands of young insurgents who had played varying roles in the attempt to overthrow the government. The established legal channels--holdovers from the colonial era--were clearly insufficient to deal with the crisis. At the same time, the government realized that any significant delay in the trial and settlement of cases would only serve to increase the alienation that had led to the rebellion. As a temporary measure, the parliament passed the Criminal Justice Commissions Act of 1972, providing for the establishment of special commissions outside the normal judicial structure and empowered to conduct cases free from the usual stringent rules of procedure.

The judicial crisis of the early 1970s also served to promote long-term reforms that had been under consideration for more than twenty years. In 1973 the parliament passed the Administration of Justice Law, a bill to reorganize the entire judicial system. Heralded as a major break with inherited British colonial traditions, the new law was intended to simplify the court structure and speed the legal process. It repealed thirteen acts and ordinances, including the Courts Ordinance and the Criminal Procedure Code of 1898, replacing them with five chapters covering the judicature, criminal, testamentary, and appeals procedures and the destruction of court records. The seven levels of the British court structure were replaced with four levels, including a Supreme Court that held only appellate jurisdiction. The high courts, district courts, and magistrate's courts were assigned jurisdiction respectively over the island's sixteen judicial zones and their respective forty districts and eighty divisions.

After Bandaranaike's defeat in the 1977 elections, the new United National Party government moved quickly to revise the workings of the criminal justice system. Of the five chapters of the Administration of Justice Law, two (on criminal procedure and appeals) were replaced by the Code of Criminal Procedure Act of 1979, and a third (on the judiciary) was substantially amended by the 1978 Constitution. These radical changes, coming on the heels of the previous reforms, were motivated by a variety of concerns. First, there were political considerations. Jayewardene's electoral success had been based in part on a popular reaction against the extraordinary legal and judicial powers assumed by the Bandaranaike government; the previous six years had been marked by an unbroken state of emergency, the creation of the highly powerful Criminal Justice Commissions, and a growing constriction of the freedom of the press. In his first year in office, Jayewardene declared an end to emergency rule, repealed the Criminal Justice Commissions Act, and engineered a new constitution with explicit safeguards of fundamental rights. These rights, set forth in Article 13, included free speech, the right to a fair trial, and freedom from arbitrary arrest and detention. Although many of these rights had appeared in the previous constitution, the new document put them under the jurisdiction of the courts for the first time.

A second motive for the changes stemmed from the sudden expansion of the Tamil insurgency in the late 1970s. Faced with a growing number of terrorist activities in the north, the Jayewardene government moved to streamline the judicial system and establish clearer lines of jurisdiction between the various levels of courts. Primary jurisdiction over criminal cases, previously the concurrent right of three levels of the judiciary, was now confined to two levels, the high court and the magistrate's courts, with their respective domains clearly demarcated in the new criminal procedure code.

The liberalizations of the Jayewardene government soon fell prey to the nation's deteriorating security situation. Hampered by the civil liberties embedded in the new laws and codes, the police and armed forces were unable to deal with an insurgent movement that involved a growing portion of the Tamil civilian population. Legal sanctions against terrorism began with the Prevention of Terrorism Act of 1979, followed by further antiterrorist provisions in 1982 and full-scale emergency regulations in 1983. With the consent of Parliament, these regulations were renewed on a monthly basis. By early 1988, the existing criminal justice system was a composite of permanent and provisional legislation. In contrast with the relatively stable Penal Code, the judicial structure and the procedures for criminal cases reflected the complex and sometimes contradictory interweavings of the Administration of Justice Law, the Constitution, the Code of Criminal Procedure, and the emergency and antiterrorist provisions enacted to cope with the Tamil insurgency.

Sri Lanka is a low-income country with a market economy based mainly on the export of textiles, tea, rubber, coconuts, and gems. It also earns substantial foreign exchange from the repatriated earnings of citizens employed abroad, and from tourism. The gross domestic product (GDP) per capita is approximately $850 (79,617 rupees). The population is approximately 18.5 million. Real GDP growth was 6.0 percent in 2000. Growth during the year 2001 is forecast at about 1 percent. This decline is attributed mainly to the worldwide economic downturn, the July LTTE attack on Colombo's international airport, and prolonged power outages throughout the country from July onward.

In the absence of the Buddha, the custodian of his message is the assembly (sangha--see Glossary) of monks who carry on his work. The members of the Buddhist assembly practice the discipline (vinaya) set forth by the Buddha as a system of rules for a monastic order. The discipline calls for strict control over the senses and dedicated meditation by the individual monk (bhikku--see Glossary). Following the Buddha's example, the monk should spend the morning begging for food from the lay community, then abstain from meals after noon. He should shave his head, wear orange (or yellow) robes, and own only his clothes and a begging bowl. He should avoid all sexual contact or any other forms of sensual pleasure. The bhikku should rest in one place for an extended period only during the rainy season, when groups of mendicants may stay together in communal houses (vihara). Elaborate rules evolved for admitting novices to the monastic community and conferring ordination on bhikku who passed through a period of initiation and training. The strict organization of the monastic order created a solid basis for the preservation of the Buddha's message and a readily adaptable institution that was transplanted in a variety of social environments throughout Asia.

Buddhism in Sri Lanka has its roots deep in one of the earliest variants of Buddhism that survives in the world today. The Sinhalese call their beliefs Theravada, or "the doctrine of the elders." Their tradition, frequently described as Hinayana (meaning "lesser vehicle"), preserves a clear understanding of the Buddha as a man who achieved enlightenment and developed monks (arhat) as accomplished followers of his teachings. This tradition differs from the more widespread Mahayana ("great vehicle"), which often treats the Buddha as a superhuman being and fills the universe with a pantheon of enlightened figures (bodhisattvas) who help others achieve enlightenment. In Sri Lanka, people do not officially worship the Buddha, but show reverence to his memory. The most striking expressions of public reverence are dagoba or thupa (stupa), large mounds built over sites where relics of the Buddha or a great monk are buried. The dagoba in Sri Lanka preserve a spherical shape and a style of architectural embellishment that link them directly to the monuments originally erected over the Buddha's remains in ancient India. The traditions of the Sinhalese indicate that their oldest dagoba are at least 2,000 years old, from a period when genuine relics of the Buddha came to Sri Lanka. The conservative nature of Sinhalese Buddhism is strengthened through the preservation and living tradition of ancient scriptures in the Pali language. A dialect related to Sanskrit, the classical language of India, Pali is probably close to the popular language in northeastern India during the Buddha's time. The monks of Sri Lanka have kept alive an unbroken Pali transmission of monastic rules, stories of the Buddha's life, and philosophical treatises that may constitute the oldest body of written Buddhist traditions.

For people who do not become monks, the most effective method of progressing on the road to enlightenment is to accumulate merit (pin) through moral actions. One who performs duties faithfully in this world, who supports the monastic order, and who is compassionate to other living beings may hope to achieve a higher birth in a future life, and from that position accumulate sufficient merit and knowledge to achieve enlightenment. Meritorious activities include social service, reverence of the Buddha at shrines or at dagoba, and pilgrimage to sacred places. Gifts to monks rank among the most beneficial meritmaking activities. Lay devotees invite monks to major events, such as a death in the family or the dedication of a building, and publicly give them food and provisions. In return, the monks perform pirit, the solemn recitation of Pali Buddhist scriptures. Although the average person may not understand a word of the ancient language, simply hearing the words and bestowing presents on the monks accumulates merit for the family or even for deceased family members. Some wealthy donors may hold giftgiving ceremonies simply for the public accumulation of merit. The monks thus perform important roles for the laity at times of crisis or accomplishment, and they serve as a focus for public philanthropy.

Buddhism plays an eminent political role in Sri Lanka and serves as a unifying force for the Sinhalese majority . Although the monks must renounce worldliness, they of necessity maintain close relationships with the lay community, whose members must supply them with food, shelter, and clothing. During the past century, as Sinhalese nationalism fueled lay devotion to Buddhism, there was a proliferation of lay support organizations, such as the All-Ceylon Buddhist Congress, the Colombo Buddhist Theosophical Society, the All-Ceylon Buddhist Women's Association, and the Young Men's Buddhist Association. The state has similarly retained close ties with the sangha. Since the time of Asoka, the first great Indian emperor (third century B.C.), the head of state has been seen by Buddhist thinkers as the official protector of Buddhism, the "turner of the wheel of the law". One of the recurring problems in the history of Sri Lanka has been a definition of the state as the official supporter of Buddhism, which in turn has been the religion of the ethnic Sinhalese. To be successful among the Sinhalese, a government must provide visible signs of its allegiance to the sangha by building or maintaining dagoba, judging disputes among the orders of monks, and fostering education in the Pali Buddhist tradition.

Individual monks and entire sects have involved themselves in party politics, but seldom do all families and orders unite behind a coherent policy. When they do unite, they are a potent political force. In 1956, for example, a rare union of monastic opinion gave crucial support to the election of the Sinhalese political leader Solomon West Ridgeway Diaz (S.W.R.D.) Bandaranaike. As of 1988, the sangha controlled extensive estates in the interior of Sri Lanka and retained an independent power base that, combined with high status in the eyes of the Sinhalese population, gave the Buddhist orders influence as molders of public opinion. Monks remained prominent at rallies and demonstrations promoting ethnic Sinhalese issues.

The Penal Code embodies categories of offenses, the punishments to which offenders are liable under the Code and general exceptions to criminal liability.

Crimes a>re divided into two categories: (a) Grave crimes - >crimes that are indictable, and (b) Minor offenses - crimes that are non-indictable. There are 21 listed grave crimes. They are (1) abduction, (2) arson and mischief, (3) burglary, (4) cattle and goat theft, (5) grievous hurt, (6) hurt by knife, (7) homicide, (8) attempted homicide, (9) rape, (10) riot, (11) robbery, (12) unnatural offenses, (13) extortion, (14) cheating, misappropriation and criminal breach of trust over Rs.1,000, (15) theft of bicycles, (16) theft of property over Rs.100, (17) theft of praedial produce, (18) counterfeiting currency, (19) offenses against the state, (20) offenses under Offensive Weapons Act, and (21) exchange control offenses.

The minimum age of criminal responsibility is 6 years. A child under 6 years of age is considered incapable of possessing mens rea. Those over 6 years but under 12 years are not punished unless they have attained sufficient maturity. It is left to the discretion of the magistrate to decide if a youthful offender is mature enough to stand trial. A "child" who is under the age of 14 and a "young person" who has reached the age of 14 and is under the age of 16 may be charged with any offense other than a scheduled offense, but such cases must be heard by a juvenile court.

The Poisons, Opium and Dangerous Drugs Ordinance prohibits the sale and use of certain harmful substances. Drugs which are a crime to sell and use are cannabis, opium, heroin, morphine, hashish, hashish oil, cocaine, L.S.D., and psychotropic substances.

The passage of the Penal Code, Ordinance Number 2 of 1883, marked an important stage in the island's transition from RomanDutch to British law. Despite the wide variety of amendments to the code, from 1887 to as recently as 1986, it remained substantially unchanged, and established a humane and unambiguous foundation for criminal justice. Crimes are divided into eighteen categories that include offenses against the human body, property, and reputation; various types of forgery, counterfeit, and fraud; offenses against public tranquillity, health, safety, justice, and the holding of elections; and offenses against the state and the armed forces. The code provides for six different types of punishment: death by hanging, rigorous imprisonment (with hard labor), simple imprisonment, whipping, forfeiture of property, and fine. For sentences that involve whipping, the provisions of the Penal Code have been modified by the Code of Criminal Procedure, which sets a maximum sentence of twenty-four strokes, and requires that a medical officer be present during the execution of the sentence. Offenders under sixteen are given a maximum of six strokes with a light cane, and the sentence must be carried out in the presence of the court and, optionally, of the parents. In cases of imprisonment, the Penal Code specifies a maximum sentence permissible for each offense, leaving the specific punishment to the discretion of the judge. Imprisonment for any single offense may not exceed twenty years. The death penalty is limited to cases involving offenses against the state (usually of open warfare), murder, abetment of suicide, mutiny, and giving false evidence that leads to the conviction and execution of an innocent person. If the offender is under eighteen years of age or pregnant, extended imprisonment is substituted for a death sentence.

An attempt by the government to eliminate capital punishment received mixed reactions. In April 1956, the Bandaranaike government proposed the suspension of the death penalty for murder and abetment of suicide for a trial period of three years; this experiment was to be reviewed thereafter with the aim of abolishing capital punishment from the statute book. Parliament passed the Suspension of Death Penalty Bill in May 1956.

In October 1958, the government appointed a commission on capital punishment to examine the question of whether the suspension had contributed to any increase in the incidence of murder. The commission released a provisional report shortly before Prime Minister S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike was assassinated in September 1959. Concluding that there was no immediate evidence to support a resumption of capital punishment, the commission recommended that the suspension be continued until April 1961 to permit a more extensive and conclusive study. As a result of the assassination, however, the commission's recommendation was set aside. In October 1959, the government decided to restore the death penalty, and a bill to this effect was passed in November 1959.

The crime rate in Sri Lanka is very low compared to industrialized countries. An analysis was done using INTERPOL data for Sri Lanka. For purpose of comparison, data were drawn for the seven offenses used to compute the United States FBI's index of crime. Index offenses include murder, forcible rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny, and motor vehicle theft. The combined total of these offenses constitutes the Index used for trend calculation purposes. Sri Lanka will be compared with Japan (country with a low crime rate) and USA (country with a high crime rate). According to the INTERPOL data, for murder, the rate in 1998 was 10.22 per 100,000 population for Sri Lanka, 1.10 for Japan, and 6.3 for USA. For rape, the rate in 1998 was 5.73 for Sri Lanka, compared with 1.48 for Japan and 34.4 for USA. For robbery, the rate in 1998 was 25.45 for Sri Lanka, 2.71 for Japan, and 165.2 for USA. For aggravated assault, the rate in 1998 was 46.26 for Sri Lanka, 15.40 for Japan, and 360.5 for USA. For burglary, the rate in 1998 was 66.61 for Sri Lanka, 187.93 for Japan, and 862.0 for USA. The rate of larceny for 1998 was 91.99 for Sri Lanka, 1198.13 for Japan, and 2728.1 for USA. The rate for motor vehicle theft in 1998 was 4.69 for Sri Lanka, compared with 28.37 for Japan and 459.0 for USA. The rate for all index offenses combined was 250.95 for Sri Lanka, compared with 1709.88 for Japan and 4615.5 for USA. (Note: data were not reported to INTERPOL by the USA for 1998, but were derived from the Uniform Crime Report for 1998)

Between 1995 and 1998, according to INTERPOL data, the rate of murder increased from 8.92 to 10.22 per 100,000 population, an increase of 14.6%. The rate for rape increased from 2.99 to 5.73, an increase of 91.6%. The rate of robbery increased from 20.43 to 25.45, an increase of 24.6%. The rate for aggravated assault increased from 10.9 to 46.26, an increase of 324.4%. The rate for burglary increased from 58.98 to 66.61, an increase of 12.9%. The rate of larceny increased from 73.82 to 91.99, an increase of 24.6%. The rate of motor vehicle theft increased from 3.38 to 4.69, an increase of 38.8%. The rate of total index offenses increased from 179.42 to 250.95, an increase of 39.9%.

The legal system of Sri Lanka is a highly complex mixture of English common law, Roman-Dutch law, Muslim law, and customary laws. The basis of criminal law and procedure is the English common law. After Sri Lanka was colonized by the British Empire, British laws were gradually applied throughout the nation.

Sri Lanka has an adversarial system of justice. The Attorney-General is the principal law officer of the state. The District Attorney and state counsels in his department conduct prosecutions. However, the bulk of prosecutions in minor cases are instituted in the Magistrates' Courts by the officer in charge of a police station.

Sri Lanka, known as Ceylon until 1972, is a teardrop shaped tropical island nation in the Indian Ocean lying 29 kilometers off the southeast coast of peninsular India. It has a total land area of 65,610 square kilometers with a total population of 17.4 million as of 1991. Sri Lanka's socio-economic indicators are better than average for developing countries, with an annual population growth rate estimated at 1.3%, a literacy rate of 89%, and an infant mortality rate of 18 per 1,000. Sri Lanka's annual gross domestic product growth rate averaged 5% between 1990-92, and was 5.7% in 1993.

Sri Lanka is a former British colony that gained independence from the British in 1948. It is now an independent republic within the commonwealth of nations.

Due to the unsatisfactory nature of the existing criminal laws, which led to a state of uncertainty, the Penal Code of Sri Lanka was first enacted in 1883. It was based on the corresponding Indian law. The Criminal Procedure Code of 1898 was established and then replaced by the Administration of Justice Law of 1973. This was later replaced by the Code of Criminal Procedure Act of 1979 and the Judicature Act of 1978 as amended by the Judicature (Amendment) Act of 1979.

The Sri Lankan criminal justice system underwent major changes in the 1970s as the government attempted to cope with the challenges posed by both Sinhalese and Tamil insurgencies. Through a series of new laws, constitutional provisions, and emergency regulations, Sri Lanka acted to enlarge the legal powers of the police and armed forces and to increase the capacity of the courts to deal with the growing number of cases. These changes were at the expense of individual civil liberties, and the new powers of the state evoked strong criticism from all ethnic communities. The most significant changes affected the rules of search, arrest, and seizure and the procedures by which criminal cases were investigated and tried. Through all this flux, the one element that remained relatively constant was the Penal Code, established in the late nineteenth century by the British colonial government. Although various individual provisions were amended to suit changing social conditions, in 1988 the general classification and definition of crime and punishment set forth in the code remained the basis of criminal law.

The Sri Lankan National Police is an integral part of the nation's security forces, with primary responsibility for internal security. Specially trained commando units of the police are regularly deployed in joint operations with the armed forces, and the police command structure in Northern and Eastern provinces is closely integrated with the other security organizations under the authority of the Joint Operations Command. The police is headed by an inspector general of police who reports to the minister of defense.

In 1988 the police force was divided into three geographic commands--known as ranges--covering the northern, central, and southern sectors of the island. The ranges were subdivided into divisions, districts, and stations, and Colombo was designated as a special division. In 1974 there were a total of 260 police stations throughout the country. In more remote rural areas beyond the immediate range of existing police stations, law enforcement functions are carried out by locally elected village headmen (grama seva niladhari, literally "village service officers"). In addition to its regular forces, the national police operated a small reserve contingent and a number of specialized units responsible for investigative and paramilitary functions. Routine criminal activity was handled by the Criminal Investigation Department under the command of an assistant superintendent of police. More coordinated threats to internal security, such as that posed by the radical Sinhalese Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna were the responsibility of the Countersubversive Division, which was primarily an investigative division. Special operational units included the Commando Squad of the Colombo police and the Special Task Force. The former, a 200-strong riot control force, was established following the anti-Tamil riots of 1983. The Special Task Force is a police field force. It was set up in 1984 with the assistance of foreign advisers (primarily former British Special Air Service personnel under the auspices of Keeny Meeny Services, see Foreign Military Relations , this ch.). Its 1,100-member force was organized into 7 companies and trained in counterinsurgency techniques. It played a major role in the government's combined force operations against the Tamil Tigers in Eastern Province before July 1987. Following the signing of the Indo-Sri Lankan Accord, the Special Task Force was redesignated the Police Special Force, and deployed in Southern Province, where it immediately went into action against the JVP terrorists. Companies of the force also served in rotation as part of the presidential security guard.

Until 1984 the police were responsible for national intelligence functions, first under the Special Branch, and later under the Intelligence Services Division. The perceived failure of the Intelligence Services Division during the riots of July 1983 led the Jayewardene government to reevaluate the nation's intelligence network, and in 1984 the president set up a National Intelligence Bureau. The new organization combined intelligence units from the army, navy, air force, and police. It was headed by a deputy inspector general of police who reported directly to the Ministry of Defence.

By late 1987, the police had an estimated total strength of 21,000 personnel, with plans to increase to 28,000. The force expanded most rapidly in the years following the 1971 uprising, an event that constituted the nation's first major challenge to internal security; between 1969 and 1974, the police grew from 11,300 to 16,100, an increase of over 42 percent. According to the United States Department of State's Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, the force was less than 5 percent Tamil.

Following the British tradition, Sri Lankan police were customarily unarmed during routine patrol duty in the years following independence. With the growth of ethnic tensions in the late 1970s and the increasing tendency of both Sinhalese and Tamil extremist groups to target the police, the government decided in 1982 to issue handguns to all sergeants and constables. Chinese copies of Soviet pistols formed an important component of the police arsenal, and included the 7.62mm Type 54 (modeled on the Soviet TT-M1933) and the 9mm Type 59 (based on the Soviet PM). For emergencies, the police also used the British Lee Enfield .303 carbine. The Commando Squadron was equipped with Sterling submachineguns, repeater shotguns, revolvers, and tear gas.

Regular force training in the 1980s was conducted at the Police College in Katukurunda, Western Province. Separate training facilities for the Special Task Force have been established in Kalutara, 96 kilometers south of Colombo. Starting in 1984, foreign trainers affiliated with Keeny Meeny Services offered counterinsurgency pilot training in the use of Bell 212 and 412 helicopter gunships.

As the Tamil insurgents accelerated their campaign for a separate state in the early 1980s, they turned increasingly against those Sinhalese settlers who, through governmentsponsored resettlement programs, had "infringed" on traditional Tamil areas in the north and east. In response, the government authorized the formation and arming of small militias for local self-defense. These armed groups, known as Home Guards, were generally composed of poorly educated Sinhalese villagers with little or no military training. Armed with shotguns that had been provided by the government, they frequently exceeded their original mandate of self-defense, avenging terrorist attacks with indiscriminate killings of Tamil civilians. This violence was an important factor in the increasing radicalization of the Tamil population. By April 1987, there were reportedly 12,000 Home Guards throughout the country, and the National Security Council, a consultative body that meets on defense matters, had announced its intention of increasing the number to 20,000. With the successful negotiation of the Indo-Sri Lankan Accord in July, however, the government moved to dismantle this poorly disciplined paramilitary force. The Home Guards in Northern and Eastern provinces were ordered to surrender their weapons to the authorities, and by August the police claimed to have collected 8,000 of the more than 10,000 shotguns that had been issued 3 years earlier. When the Tamil terrorist attacks resumed in late 1987, however, the government reportedly reversed its decision and allowed a partial rearming of the force. At the same time that it was acting to limit the Home Guards in the north, the government authorized an expansion of local and private militias in the south. The signing of the accord had unleashed a wave of violence among militant Sinhalese groups who opposed both the accommodation with the Tamil separatists and the presence of Indian troops on Sri Lankan soil. As Jayewardene moved to force passage of the provisions of the accord in Parliament, the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna launched a campaign against members of the ruling United National Party who supported the pact. In the second half of 1987, the party chairman and more than seventy United National Party legislators were killed by Sinhalese extremists. The government responded by allocating 150 Home Guards to each Member of Parliament, leaving the legislators themselves responsible for the arming and training of these personal militias. At the same time, the press reported that progovernment gangs of thugs known as Green Tigers (named for the colors of the ruling party) had begun to attack opponents of the accord.

Today, the Ministry of Defense controls all security forces (armed forces and police). The 60,000-member police force is responsible for internal security in most areas of the country, and has been used in military operations against the LTTE. The 120,000-member army (which includes the Army Volunteer Force), the 17,000-member navy, and the 18,500 member air force bear principal responsibility for conducting operations against LTTE terrorists. The police paramilitary Special Task Force (STF) also battled the LTTE. The more than 20,000 member Home Guards, an armed force drawn from local communities and responsible to the police, provide security for Muslim and Sinhalese village communities in or near the war zone. The Government also arms and appears to direct various anti-LTTE Tamil militias, although at times these groups seemed to act independently of government authority. During the year 2001, some members of the security forces committed serious human rights abuses.

Security forces committed extrajudicial killings, including the killing of civilians in connection with the conflict with the LTTE. On July 19, government security forces killed two persons during an opposition party sponsored rally which the Government claimed was illegal. On January 28, naval personnel arrested Kanapathypillai Udayakumar. The following day his body was returned to his family. The report on his killing states that he was strangled to death. The naval personnel accused in connection with his killing are in custody awaiting trial. On September 20, Sivagnanam Manohari, living near Batticaloa, apparently was shot and killed by air force personnel while fishing. Her nephew, who was with her at the time, was injured seriously. No arrests have been made to date, but the incident is still under investigation.

Impunity remains a problem. Since April 1995, several hundred persons have been killed extrajudicially by the security forces or have disappeared after being taken into security force custody. With the exception of the six security force personnel convicted in the 1996 killing of Krishanthi Kumaraswamy and the 4 convictions for abduction involving 88 security force personnel, no member of the security forces has been convicted for these crimes. In the vast majority of cases where military personnel may have committed human rights violations, the Government has not identified those responsible and brought them to justice. At year's end 2001, the government of Sri Lanka was investigating 597 Security Force personnel for possible human rights violations.

In December 2000, nine Tamil civilians were reported missing in Mirusuvil after being arrested by the army (SLA). One person escaped, and reported the incident to police and the local magistrate. The magistrate took the person to the site where he and the other eight had been detained and tortured. The escapee identified two SLA soldiers as the perpetrators, and the soldiers admitted to torturing nine civilians and murdering eight of them. The soldiers identified the place of burial and the bodies were exhumed. Nine soldiers later were arrested for the torture and killings. The army commander is monitoring the matter and has ordered a separate inquiry into the incident; the soldiers were administratively punished by having their salaries withheld by the SLA. The case was transferred to the Anuradhapura Magistrate's Court for adjudication in November; it had not come to trial by year's end 2001.

In November 2000, four mutilated bodies were found in Nilaveli. The killings widely were believed to have been carried out by naval infantry personnel. The following day Tamil civilians protested against the deaths claiming that the naval personnel involved attempted to coerce statements from relatives of the deceased that the dead were members of the LTTE. Later, the bodies of the two primary organizers of the demonstration were found. The military investigated the incident. The commander of the local navy base and other key military personnel were transferred in June, but no one has been charged in connection with the killings.

In October 2000, while police allegedly looked on, 27 young Tamil males held at the Bindunuwewa rehabilitation camp for former child soldiers, were hacked and clubbed to death by local villagers; 15 others were injured. Police allegedly took part in the killings and did nothing to prevent the villagers from entering the detention camp. Violence after the killings continued for almost 1 week before police were able to restore order. During that time, at least 14 other persons died. The HRC stated that the police were guilty of "grave dereliction of duty," and it did not believe that the mobs could have overpowered the police present. The President initiated a hearing into the matter, which met regularly throughout the year. Three of the survivors were able to testify at the Presidential Hearing. Some human rights organizations complained that the magistrate in charge of the hearing limited any questions critical of the Government. Many witnesses at the hearing criticized police actions at the scene and during the initial investigations. All suspects in the case have been released on bail.

In April 2000, gunmen in police uniforms killed the chief suspect in the 1993 killing of prominent politician Lalith Athulathmudali. There have been no arrests in connection with this killing.

In 2000 the government ordered payment of compensation to victims of a 1999 air force bombing that killed 22 civilians at Puthukkudiyiruppu.

In some cases, extrajudicial killings were reprisals against civilians for LTTE attacks in which members of the security forces or civilians were killed or injured. In most cases, the security forces claimed that the victims were members of the LTTE, but human rights monitors believe otherwise. In Thampalakamam, near Trincomalee, in February 1998, police and home guards allegedly killed eight Tamil civilians, possibly in reprisal for the LTTE bombing of the Temple of the Tooth a week earlier. The Government arrested police officers and home guards, charging 4 with murder and 17 with unlawful assembly. The case remained active during the year 2001, but there were no convictions.

Crucial safeguards built into the Emergency Regulations (ER) and the legislation establishing the HRC often were ignored by the security forces-especially those provisions requiring receipts to be issued for arrests and ordering the security forces to notify the HRC of any arrest within 48 hours. Although security force personnel can be fined or jailed for failure to comply with the ER, none were known to have been punished for this during the year 2001.

Although the courts in 2000 ordered five soldiers arrested for the 1999 gang rape and murder of Ida Carmelita, a young Tamil girl, the case remained pending at year's end 2001. Various witnesses continued to testify at hearings held during the year 2001. Court hearings are scheduled to continue in 2002.

At his sentencing for the 1998 rape and murder of Krishanthi Kumaraswamy, a Tamil schoolgirl, former Lance Corporal Somaratne Rajapakse claimed knowledge of mass graves at Chemmani in Jaffna containing the bodies of up to 400 persons killed by security forces in 1996. The other five defendants convicted in the Kumaraswamy killing later also claimed knowledge of mass graves in the Chemmani area, where they allegedly had buried between 120 and 140 bodies on the orders of their superiors. Exhumations in 1999 in the presence of international observers and forensic experts yielded 15 skeletons. Two of the victims provisionally were identified as young men who had disappeared in 1996. In late 1999, the Government submitted its forensic report to a magistrate in Jaffna; the report stated that 10 of the remains, including a skeleton that was bound and blindfolded, showed signs of physical assault that led to their deaths. The cause of death was not determined for the remaining bodies; however, the report stated that physical assault leading to death could not be ruled out in these cases. By year's end 2001, 13 of the bodies had not been identified. Rajapakse and others named a total of 20 security personnel, including former policemen, as responsible for the killings. The remaining unidentified bodies were undergoing DNA testing for identification purposes at year's end 2001. At year's end 2001, the case still was pending, but continued disturbances on the Jaffna Peninsula have displaced key witnesses and delayed proceedings. All suspects in the case have been released on bail.

The case against eight soldiers and one reserve police constable arrested in February 1996 in the massacre of 24 Tamil villagers in Kumarapuram came to trial in September 1997. In November 1998, six of the soldiers were charged with murder. The case still was pending at year's end 2001. The case of 22 STF members arrested on suspicion of killing 23 Tamil youths at Bolgoda Lake in 1995 went to trial in June 2000. Because key witnesses did not appear, the prosecution asked for the case to be rescheduled to October 2000 when another hearing was held. The next hearing was scheduled for March, but was rescheduled once again. The hearing is scheduled to take place in 2002.

The PA Government came to power in 1994 and promised to bring to justice the perpetrators of extrajudicial killings from previous years. In 1994, it began prosecutions in several extrajudicial killings allegedly committed by members of the security forces. The trial of 21 soldiers accused of massacring 35 Tamil civilians in 1992 in the village of Mailanthani in Batticaloa district was transferred to the Colombo High Court in 1996. The High Court held another hearing in the summer of 2000 before scheduling the case for a jury trial beginning in January 2002. Many witnesses for the case live in refugee camps, and they cannot come to court to give evidence; observers believe that the case likely will be protracted.

In January 2000, assailants shot and killed pro-LTTE Tamil politician Kumar Ponnambalam. Police detained four persons, two of whom alleged that a local businessman had hired them to commit the murder. The investigation continued at year's end 2001.

Former terrorist Tamil militant groups armed by and aligned with the former PA Government committed extrajudicial killings in the eastern province and in the Vavuniya area in the north.

The military wing of the People's Liberation Organization of Tamil Eelam (PLOTE) and the Razeek group were responsible for killing a number of persons. The security forces arm and use these militias and a number of other Tamil militant organizations to provide information, to help identify LTTE terrorists, and, in some cases, to fight in military operations against the terrorists. The exact size of these militias is impossible to ascertain, but they probably total fewer than 2,000 persons. Although the army in some instances took steps to convert Tamil militia groups into regular army units, military oversight of these groups remained inadequate, and complaints about them continued, especially in Batticaloa and in transit camps for internally displaced person (IDP's) in Vavuniya. The militias gain access to these camps through a variety of means, including bribery and threats. It was impossible to determine the number of victims because of the secrecy with which these groups operated. Persons killed by these militants probably included both LTTE operatives and civilians who failed to comply with extortion demands. Unknown assailants killed Jaffna media correspondent Mayilvaganam Nimalarajan in October 2000. Nimalarajan's outspoken criticism of paramilitary groups in Jaffna led many to believe that one of these groups killed him. No one has been prosecuted for his death. In 1999 the Government forbade these groups from carrying arms and from stockpiling weapons, but these prohibitions have generally not been effective.

The LTTE continued to commit extrajudicial killings. Due to the inaccessibility of LTTE controlled areas and the LTTE's prevention of investigations by outside agencies, the exact number and type of killings in LTTE-controlled areas is unknown. Attacks by the LTTE continued to kill civilians outside of LTTE-controlled areas. For example, a civilian bus on the way to Trincomalee was bombed by the LTTE in August, and a trishaw was bombed outside of Jaffna in September.

Attacks and counter-attacks between Government forces and the LTTE occurred almost daily, although there was a significant reduction in the number of civilians killed by suicide attacks. There were two suicide bombing attacks attributed to the LTTE during the year 2001, on September 15 and October 29, in addition to the July attack on the airport north of Colombo. There were reports that the LTTE continued to commit extrajudicial killings, including lamppost killings. Due to inaccessibility of LTTE controlled areas and its forestalling investigations by outside agencies, the number and type of extrajudicial killings are unknown. At least 14 persons found guilty of offenses by the LTTE's self-described courts were killed in 1999 by the LTTE in public executions; their bodies were tied to lampposts or otherwise left for public display. The LTTE has bombed civilian targets, killing and injuring civilians, and engaged in hostage taking and hijackings. The LTTE reportedly sometimes kills its own injured troops to avoid their capture.

There was no further progress in the investigation into the murder of Ramesh Nadarajah, a Tamil Member of Parliament who was killed in November 1999. Nadarajah was a member of the Eelam People's Democratic Party (EPDP) and an editor of a weekly Tamil-language newspaper.

During the year 2001, no arrests were made in connection with a grenade explosion in November 1999 that killed a person and injured 35 others at a political rally held by the United National Party (UNP).

In March 1999, municipal workers uncovered a pit near the Durraipa Stadium in Jaffna that contained the skeletal remains of several persons. Forensic evidence suggested that these remains were approximately 10 years old. This discovery potentially implicated the Indian Peacekeeping Force (IPKF), which occupied Jaffna at the time. Critics contrasted the prompt investigation of the Durraipa stadium graves with the slow investigation of the Chemmani mass graves.

Disappearances at the hands of the security forces continued in the north and east. There were also reports of disappearance in Colombo and Jaffna. The army, navy, police, and paramilitary groups were involved in as many as 10 disappearances, primarily in Vavuniya. Between January and September, the Human Rights Commission received 44 reports of disappearances in Vavuniya alone. These cases have not yet been confirmed. In December 2000, eight Tamil civilians were reported missing in Mirusuvil after being arrested and tortured by the SLA. Two SLA soldiers were identified as perpetrators and admitted to killing eight of the civilians. The bodies were exhumed. One SLA commissioned officer and six additional SLA soldiers were arrested later. At year's end 2001, the army commander ordered an inquiry into the incident; the soldiers were administratively punished by having their salaries withheld by the SLA. In November the case was transferred to the Anuradhapura Magistrate's Court for adjudication. It had not come to trial at year's end 2001. In February 2000, a fisherman seen arrested by naval personnel near Trincomalee disappeared. At year's end 2001, the case still was pending. As with extrajudicial killings, the exact number of disappearances was impossible to ascertain due to lack of reliable news about security force operations and infrequent access to the north and east. Those who disappeared during the year 2001 and in previous years are presumed dead. The 2000 U.N. Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances lists the country as having an extremely large number of "nonclarified" disappearances. The Commander of the Army and the Inspector General of Police both have criticized the disappearances and stated that the perpetrators would be called to account. Nonetheless there have been very few prosecutions of security force personnel to date.

Three regional commissions were set up in November 1994 to inquire into disappearances that occurred from 1988 to 1994, most during the 1988-89 period of the Janantha Vimukthi Peramuna (People's Liberation Front-JVP) uprising. The commissions found that 16,742 persons disappeared after having been removed involuntarily from their homes, in most cases by security forces. In other cases, antigovernment elements--in particular the leftist JVP--were determined to be responsible for the disappearances. After the reports were presented to the President in 1997, the police created a Disappearances Investigations Unit (DIU) in 1998 to examine 1,681 cases in which the commissions had evidence against specific individuals.

In 1999, the Attorney General created a Missing Persons Commissions Unit to consider institution of criminal proceedings based on results of DIU investigations. In 2000, the Attorney General's office opened over 1,175 files and referred 262 indictments to the high courts and 86 complaints to magistrates involving 583 members of the security forces on abduction and murder charges. Hearings and trials in at least 250 of these cases had begun by late 2000. Of these, the Attorney General's office successfully prosecuted 4 cases by year's end 2001. The Attorney General's office continued to prosecute other cases, as evidence became available.

In 1998, a fourth commission was established to look into approximately 10,000 cases of disappearance that the initial three commissions had been unable to investigate before their mandates expired. Human rights observers have criticized the Government for not extending the mandate of this commission to include cases of disappearance that occurred since the Kumaratunga Government took office in 1994. The commission is charged with investigating and reporting on possible human rights cases in order to forward the appropriate cases, with recommendations, to the Attorney Generals office for further investigation and prosecution. The commission submitted an interim report to President Kumaratunga in December 1999 and a final report in August 2000; however, by year's end 2001, the report still had not been made public.

During the year 2001, there were no developments in the Vantharamulle case, in which army troops allegedly abducted 158 Tamils from a refugee camp in the Batticaloa district in 1990. Observers maintain that there is credible evidence identifying the alleged perpetrators.

In 1999 the U.N. Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances made its third visit to the country. Its report, released in December 1999, cited the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) and ER as important factors contributing to disappearances and recommended the abolition or modification of these laws to bring them into conformity with internationally accepted human rights standards. The Working Group criticized the country's slow progress in resolving disappearances and noted the lack of implementation of its recommendations from visits in 1991 and 1992, including the creation of a central register of detainees. The report encouraged the establishment of an independent body to investigate disappearances that occurred after the Kumaratunga Government took office in 1994. In November the Government, in response to continuing and widespread criticism of unreported arrests, standardized and simplified regulations under the existing law and established a registry for all those arrested under the PTA or ER. However, human rights organizations and families of detainees continued to complain that arrests were being made without proper procedures.

Tamil militias aligned with the former PA government also were responsible for disappearances in past years, although there were no reports during the year 2001. These militias detained persons at various locations that serve, in effect, as undeclared detention centers. Human rights observers believed that the PLOTE was a major offender in the case of disappearances. The HRC has no mandate or authority to enforce respect for human rights among these militia groups, and when the HRC office director for Vavuniya complained about PLOTE activity, he received death threats. The office director left the country in 1999. It was impossible to determine the exact number of victims because of the secrecy with which these groups operated. The Government took no clear steps to stop these militias' actions, although tighter restrictions on these groups' right to bear arms were implemented following a May 1999 shootout between PLOTE and Tamil Eelam Liberation Organization (TELO) supporters near a popular shopping center in downtown Colombo. Despite the restrictions on weapons, the TELO and PLOTE had a shootout in Vavuniya in August.

The LTTE was responsible for an undetermined number of civilian disappearances in the north and east during the year 2001. Although the LTTE has denied taking any prisoners from its battles, at year's end 2001 it was known to be holding 11 civilian crew members of vessels that it had hijacked since 1995, along with 11 security force personnel. No prisoners were released during the year 2001.

Despite legal prohibitions, the security forces and police continue to torture and mistreat persons in police custody and prisons, particularly Tamils suspected of supporting the LTTE. Suspected criminals also apparently were tortured.

The Convention Against Torture Act (CATA) made torture a punishable offense. Under the CATA, torture is defined as a specific crime, the High Court has jurisdiction over violations, and criminal conviction carries a 7-year minimum sentence. However, according to a 1999 Amnesty International (AI) report, the CATA does not implement several provisions of the U.N. Convention; this results in torture being prohibited under specific circumstances but allowed under others. Consequently, torture continues with relative impunity. In addition, the PTA makes confessions obtained under any circumstance, including by torture, admissible in court. The U.N. Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances and other human rights organizations cited the PTA as a major factor contributing to torture of prisoners.

Since 2000 the Government has been working on developing regulations to prosecute and punish military and police personnel responsible for torture. The Attorney General's Office and the Criminal Investigation Unit have established units to focus on torture complaints; the units have forwarded 14 cases for indictments during the year 2001. The Interparliamentary Permanent Standing Committee and its Interministerial Working Group on Human Rights Issues have begun tracking criminal investigations of torture. In addition, the Government also ceased paying fines incurred by security force personnel found guilty of torture. Security force personnel have been fined under civil statutes for engaging in torture. According to the Attorney General's Office, members of the security forces and police have been prosecuted under criminal statutes, but none of the cases has come to conclusion. Impunity remains a problem. In the vast majority of cases in which military personnel may have committed human rights abuses, the Government has not identified those responsible and brought them to justice.

Members of the security forces continued to torture and mistreat detainees and other prisoners, particularly during interrogation. Methods of torture included electric shock, beatings (especially on the soles of the feet), suspension by the wrists or feet in contorted positions, burning, slamming testicles in desk drawers, and near drowning. In other cases, victims must remain in unnatural positions for extended periods, or they have bags laced with insecticide, chili powder, or gasoline placed over their heads. Detainees have reported broken bones and other serious injuries as a result of their mistreatment. There were reports of rape in detention during the year 2001. Medical examination of persons arrested through 2000 and this year continued to reveal multiple cases of torture. In December 2000, the bodies of eight Tamils tortured and killed by the army in Mirusuvil were exhumed after one person escaped and notified authorities. Nine soldiers were arrested, and by year's end 2001, an inquiry continued. The military also is conducting its own inquiry; the personnel involved have been discharged.

During the year 2001 Thivyan Krishnasamy, a student leader and an outspoken critic of the actions of the Sri Lankan security forces in Jaffna, claimed that he was tortured while in custody. Human rights observers claim that he was arrested because of his political activism, but the police state that he is connected to the LTTE. He was arrested on July 2, and when he was brought before a court in August he complained of being tortured. Krishnasamy appeared in court on November 18, at which time his hearing was delayed until early 2002. In response to his allegations of torture the Jaffna Student Union held protests. University administrators temporarily closed the university to avoid violence.

During the year 2001, there were a number of reports of women being raped by security forces while in detention. One such case involved two women arrested on March 19 in Mannar. The women claim that they were tortured and repeatedly raped by naval and police personnel. The women were released on bail in April, and have filed charges against their assailants. At year's end 2001, the 14 accused were still in custody awaiting their trial date. Four other cases in which the security forces are accused of raping women in detention were still pending at year's end 2001.

Under fundamental rights provisions in the Constitution, torture victims may file civil suit for compensation in the High Courts or Supreme Court. Courts have granted awards ranging from approximately $175 (14,200 rupees) to $2,280 (182,500 rupees). In February the Colombo high court ordered compensation of $625 (50,000 rupees) to a young man beaten in police custody in Vavuniya and Colombo in 1999. In August the Supreme Court ordered $1,250 (100,000 rupees) in compensation for a Tamil man tortured in December 1999 at an army camp near Batticaloa. However, most cases take 2 years or more to move through the courts, and nongovernmental organizations (NGO's) who represent torture victims complained that the new Supreme Court Chief Justice appointed in September 1999 grants hearings in only the most egregious cases.

Impunity remains a problem. In the vast majority of cases in which military personnel may have committed human rights abuses, the Government has not identified those responsible and brought them to justice.

At the invitation of the Government, the United Nations Committee on Torture sent a five-person mission to Colombo in August 2000, to determine whether a systematic pattern of torture exists in the country and, if so, to make recommendations for eliminating the practice. By year's end 2001, the mission had submitted its confidential report to President Kumaratunga, but the report had not been released to the public.

Tamil militants aligned with the former PA government also engaged in torture. With the apparent knowledge of the security forces, the PLOTE in Vavuniya and the EPDP in Jaffna, were criticized for torturing their opponents, and there were reports that they continued to use torture during the year 2001. Security forces have done little to stop this practice.

The LTTE reportedly used torture on a routine basis. Security force prisoners released by the LTTE in previous years stated that they had been subjected to torture, including being hung upside down and beaten, having pins inserted under their fingernails, and being burned with hot metal rods.

Despite the numerous protections of individual liberties embodied in the Constitution and the Code of Criminal Procedure, the government has succeeded in greatly expanding the discretionary powers of the armed forces and police through a variety of regulations and temporary provisions. The legal basis for these provisions comes from the Constitution itself, which sets conditions under which the government may act to restrict fundamental rights. Article 15 states that freedom of speech, assembly, and association may be subject to restrictions "in the interests of racial and religious harmony." It also allows the government, for reasons of national security, to suspend the right of a suspect to be presumed innocent until proven guilty. In addition, Article 155 authorizes the Parliament and, in certain circumstances, the president, to make emergency regulations which override or amend existing legislation.

Under these special provisions, the government passed the Prevention of Terrorism Act of 1979. The act empowered a superintendent of police, or an officer at or above the rank of subinspector authorized by the superintendent, to enter and search any premises and to arrest without a warrant upon reasonable suspicion of a crime. Although this act was originally slated as a temporary provision to be in effect for three years, the parliament voted in March 1982 to continue it indefinitely. In addition, an amendment passed in 1983 extended the police powers detailed in the act to members of the armed forces, and provided legal immunity for arrests and deaths occurring in the course of security operations.

The Code of Criminal Procedure allows the police to detain suspects without a hearing for a maximum of twenty-four hours. Under the Prevention of Terrorism Act, however, this period has been extended to seventy-two hours, and if the subsequent hearing leads to an indictment, the magistrate is required to order continued detention until the conclusion of the trial. The act further provides that the minister of internal security may, upon reasonable suspicion, order a suspect to be detained for a period of three months, extendable by three-month intervals up to a total of eighteen months. These provisions have been supplemented by the state of emergency regulations, first put into effect in May 1983 and renewed on a monthly basis thereafter. Under these regulations, police are given broad powers of preventive detention. In addition, a suspect may be detained for up to ninety days by order of the attorney general. At the end of this period, the suspect must appear before a magistrate's court which, with or without an indictment, is required by law to remand the suspect to prison. Subsequent detention may continue for an indefinite period of time.

Arbitrary arrest and detention are problems. Under the law, authorities must inform an arrested person of the reason for arrest and bring that person before a magistrate within 24 hours. In practice, persons detained generally appear before a magistrate within a few days of arrest. The magistrate may authorize bail or order continued pretrial detention for up to three months or longer. Under the ER (which lapsed in July) and the PTA, security forces may detain suspects for extended periods of time without court approval. The ER, in force periodically since 1979 and in force island-wide from August 1998 until July, allowed pretrial detention for a maximum of four consecutive 3-month periods. The ER gave security forces broad powers to arrest and detain without charge or the right to judicial review. ER provisions published in May 2000 lengthened to 1 year the period for which authorities were able to order individuals to remain at home or otherwise have their freedom of association and movement limited. ER provisions also permitted police to hold individuals for up to 90 days to investigate suspected offenses, although the police had to present detainees to a court within 30 days to record the detention. The court was able to order a further 6 months' detention.

As required under the ER, the army generally turned over those that it arrested to the police within 24 hours, although the police and the army did not always issue arrest receipts or notify the HRC within 48 hours. The HRC has a legal mandate to visit those arrested, and police generally respected this in areas outside of the conflict. Due to censorship and infrequent access, observers could not determine the state of affairs in the north and the east.

Despite Government announcements that it would close all secret detention centers, there were continued credible reports that the military held persons for short amounts of time in smaller camps for interrogation before transferring them to declared places of detention. This procedure, which allegedly occurred on the Jaffna peninsula, in Vavuniya, and in the east, did not comply with requirements to notify the HRC of arrests and to issue arrest receipts. The military maintained the detainees were "in transit," and claimed they did not violate the detainees' rights.

Large-scale arrests of Tamils continued during the year 2001. Many detentions occurred during operations against the LTTE. Most detentions lasted a maximum of several days although some extended to several months. The number of prisoners held at any given moment under the ER and the PTA fluctuated between 1,500 and 2,000. Hundreds of Tamils charged under the PTA remained in detention without bail awaiting trial, some for more than 2 years. The high courts held hearings on just over 500 cases under the PTA or ER during the first 8 months of the year. Many such cases drag on for years. During the week following the July 24 attack on Colombo's main airbase and international airport, security forces detained hundreds of Tamils in the Colombo region for questioning. In addition, those arrested sometimes were held in prisons with convicted criminals. Although most of the Tamils who were detained were released within a matter of hours, many were held overnight, with some held for several days. Cordon and search operations occurred regularly throughout the country during the year 2001, although on a much smaller scale. Tamils complained that they were abused verbally and held for extended periods at security checkpoints throughout Colombo The Government justified the detentions and arrests on security grounds, but many Tamils claimed they constituted harassment. Tamil homes were often searched arbitrarily. In January 2000, security forces detained several thousand Tamils in Colombo and the surrounding suburbs in cordon and search operations meant to find LTTE cadres after suicide bomb attacks. Although authorities eventually arrested fewer than 100 persons, many of those rounded up for questioning spent hours in detention.

In July 1998, the President established the Committee to Inquire into Undue Arrest and Harassment (CIUAH). The committee, which includes senior opposition party and Tamil representatives, examines complaints of arrest and harassment by security forces and takes remedial action as needed. The Committee received more than 1,200 complaints by year's end 2001. Opinions on the effectiveness of the CIUAH are mixed. Some human rights observers believe that the work of the committee deterred random arrests and alleviated problems encountered by detainees and their families. However, some critics claim that, following initial publicity, the committee's services have not been advertised widely. Many Tamils believe that the CIUAH does little to deter police agents from stopping them at security force checkpoints in the capital.

The HRC investigated the legality of detention in cases referred to it by the Supreme Court and private citizens. Although the HRC is legally mandated to exercise oversight over arrests and detentions by the security forces and to undertake visits to prisons, members of the security forces sometimes violated the regulations and failed to cooperate with the HRC.

The Government continued to give the ICRC unhindered access to approximately 160 detention centers, police stations, and army camps recognized officially as places of detention. Such visits played an important role in enabling the ICRC to monitor the human rights practices of the security forces. Due to the lapsing of the ER in July, the total number of persons detained in military bases at any one time has been dramatically reduced, with the military making fewer arrests and transferring detainees to police facilities more quickly than in previous years.

The PLOTE reportedly continued to run places of illegal detention in Vavuniya. The EPDP also detained its own members for short periods in Jaffna as punishment for breaking party discipline.

The LTTE has in the past detained civilians, often holding them for ransom. There have been isolated but unconfirmed reports of this practice during the year 2001, such as the reported kidnaping of a Muslim businessman in the Batticaloa area in October. Reports indicate that the LTTE demanded $5,600 (500,000 Rupees) for his release. In September 1999, the LTTE held three businessmen for a ransom of $550,000 (40 million Rupees). The businessmen were freed after making partial payment and promising to pay the balance. Unconfirmed reports indicated the LTTE was holding in custody more than 2,000 civilians in the northern part of the island. In June 2000, the LTTE released 1 of its 12 declared civilian prisoners. In February 2000, the LTTE released 4 of the 15 servicemen that it held. The LTTE did not permit the ICRC or any other humanitarian organization to visit its detainees during the year 2001.

The Government does not practice forced exile and there are no legal provisions allowing its use.

Although Sri Lanka's colonial heritage fostered a tradition of judicial freedoms, this autonomy has been compromised since independence by constitutional changes designed to limit the courts' control over the president and by the chief executive's power to declare states of emergency. Also, Parliament's willingness to approve legislation, such as the 1979 Prevention of Terrorism Act, vested the government in the late 1980s with broad powers to deal with subversives, or those deemed subversive, in an essentially extralegal manner. Observers in the late 1980s reported that the act facilitated widespread abuses of power, including the systematic torture of detainees, because it recognized the admissibility as evidence of confessions to the police not made in the presence of a magistrate.

Under the Constitution, the highest court is the Supreme Court, headed by a chief justice and between six and ten associate justices. Supreme and High Court justices are appointed by the president. Superior Court justices can be removed on grounds of incompetence or misdemeanor by a majority of Parliament, whereas High Court justices can be removed only by a judicial service commission consisting of Supreme Court justices. The Supreme Court has the power of judicial review; it can determine whether an act of Parliament is consistent with the principles of the Constitution and whether a referendum must be taken on a proposal, such as the 1982 extension of Parliament's life by six years. It is also the final court of appeal for all criminal or civil cases.

As defined by the Constitution of 1978, the judiciary consists of a Supreme Court, a Court of Appeal, a High Court, and a number of magistrate's courts (one for each division, as set out in the Administration of Justice Law). In cases of criminal law, the magistrate's courts and the High Court are the only courts with primary jurisdiction, and their respective domains are detailed in the Code of Criminal Procedure. Appeals from these courts of first instance can be made to the Court of Appeal and, under certain circumstances, to the Supreme Court, which exercises final appellate jurisdiction. In all cases, the accused has the right to representation by an attorney, and all trials must be public unless the judge determines, for reasons of family privacy, national security, or public safety, that a closed hearing is more appropriate.

The vast majority of the nation's criminal cases are tried at the lowest level of the judicial system, the magistrate's courts. Cases here may be initiated by any police officer or public servant, or by any oral or written complaint to the magistrate. The magistrate is empowered to make an initial investigation of the complaint, and to determine whether his court has proper jurisdiction over the case, whether it should be tried by the High Court, or whether it should be dismissed. Magistrates' courts have exclusive original jurisdiction over all criminal cases involving fines of up to Rs1,500 or prison sentences of up to two years. If the magistrate's court is determined to have the necessary jurisdiction, prosecution may be conducted by the complainant (plaintiff) or by a government officer, including the attorney general, the solicitor general, a state counsel, a pleader authorized by the attorney general, or any officer of any national or local government office. At the trial, the accused has the right to call and cross-examine witnesses. Trials are conducted without a jury, and the verdict and sentence are given by the magistrate. Any person unsatisfied with the judgment has the right to appeal to the Court of Appeal on any point of law or fact.

For criminal cases involving penalties over Rs1,500 or two years imprisonment, original jurisdiction resides with the High Court. The High Court is the highest court of first instance in criminal law, and exercises national jurisdiction. Prosecution must be conducted by the attorney general, the solicitor general, a state counsel, or any pleader authorized by the attorney general. During the trial, the accused or his or her attorneys are allowed to present a defense and call and cross-examine witnesses. For more serious offenses, including crimes against the state, murder, culpable homicide, attempted murder, and rape, the law provides for trial by jury. In such cases, a jury of seven members is chosen by lot from a panel elected by the accused unless the court directs otherwise. Both the prosecution and the defense have the opportunity to eliminate proposed members of the jury. The jury is required to reach a verdict by a majority of no less than five to two. (Under the Prevention of Terrorism Act of 1979, the right to a jury was suspended for a wide variety of offenses involving violations of communal harmony defined as incitement of one ethnic group against another.) In cases where the law does not prescribe trial by jury, the judge gives the verdict and passes sentence at the conclusion of the hearings. As in the magistrate's courts, the accused has the right of appeal to the Court of Appeal on any matter of law or fact.

As its name suggests, the Court of Appeal has only appellate jurisdiction in matters of criminal law. Cases before the court are conducted without a jury. Appeals from the High Court must be heard by a bench of at least three judges, whereas appeals from a magistrate's court require at least two judges. Verdicts are reached by majority decision, and therefore a supplemental judge is added in cases of a split vote. As in other courts, appellants are entitled to representation by an attorney, but if they cannot afford legal counsel, the Court of Appeal may, at the discretion of the judges, assign an attorney at the court's expense. After the court has handed down its decision, further appeal to the Supreme Court may be made on any matter involving a substantial question of law, but an appeal requires the approval of either the Court of Appeal or the Supreme Court itself.

The Supreme Court was substantially refashioned by the 1978 Constitution, with many of its former functions reverting to the Court of Appeal. The Supreme Court in the 1980s consisted of a chief justice and between six and ten other justices who sit as a single panel on all cases before the court. Cases are conducted without a jury, and the court exercises final appellate jurisdiction for all errors in fact or in law.

Today, the Constitution provides for an independent judiciary and the Government generally respects these provisions in practice.

The President appoints judges to the Supreme Court, the courts of appeal, and the high courts. A judicial service commission, composed of the Chief Justice and two Supreme Court judges, appoints, transfers, and dismisses lower court judges. Judges serve until the mandatory retirement age of 65 for the Supreme Court and 62 for other courts. Judges can be removed for reasons of misbehavior or physical or mental incapacity, but only after a legal investigation followed by joint action of the President and the Parliament.

In criminal cases, juries try defendants in public. Defendants are informed of the charges and evidence against them, and may be represented by the counsel of their choice, and have the right to appeal. The Government provides counsel for indigent persons tried on criminal charges in the high courts and the courts of appeal, but it does not provide counsel in other cases. Private legal aid organizations assist some defendants. In addition, the Ministry of Justice operates 11 community legal aid centers to assist those who cannot afford representation and to serve as educational resources for local communities. However, these legal aid centers had tried no cases by the end of September. There are no jury trials in cases brought under the PTA. Confessions, obtained by various coercive means, including torture, are inadmissible in criminal proceedings, but are allowed in PTA cases; most convictions under the PTA rely heavily on them. Defendants bear the burden of proof to show that their confessions were obtained by coercion. Defendants in PTA cases have the right to appeal. Subject to judicial review in certain cases, defendants can spend up to 18 months in prison on administrative order waiting for their cases to be heard. Once their cases come to trial, decisions are made relatively quickly. Courts held hearings on approximately 500 PTA and ER cases during the year 2001.

Most court proceedings in Colombo and the south are conducted in English or Sinhala, which due to a shortage of court-appointed interpreters has restricted the ability of Tamil-speaking defendants to get a fair hearing. Trials and hearings in the north and east are in Tamil and English, but many serious cases, including those having to do with terrorism, are tried in Colombo. While Tamil-speaking judges exist at the magistrate level, only four high court judges, an appeals court judge, and a Supreme Court justice speak fluent Tamil. Few legal textbooks and only one law report exist in Tamil, and the Government has complied only slowly with legislation requiring publishing all laws in English, Sinhala, and Tamil.

In Jaffna LTTE threats against court officials sometimes disrupted normal court operations. Although the Jaffna high court suspended activities due to security concerns in 2000, it reopened during the year 2001 and was still functioning at year's end 2001.

The LTTE has its own self-described court system, composed of judges with little or no legal training. The courts operate without codified or defined legal authority and essentially operate as agents of the LTTE rather than as an independent judiciary. The courts reportedly impose severe punishments, including execution.

The Government claims that all persons held under the ER and the PTA are suspected members of the LTTE and are, therefore, legitimate security threats. Insufficient information exists to verify this claim and to determine whether these detainees or members of the now legal JVP, detained in similar fashion in past years, are political prisoners. Between 200 and 300 of those previously detained--mostly JVP members--were convicted under criminal law; some remain incarcerated. In many cases, human rights monitors question the legitimacy of the criminal charges brought against these persons.

The LTTE also reportedly holds a number of political prisoners. The number is impossible to determine because of the secretive nature of the organization. The LTTE refuses to allow the ICRC access to these prisoners.

The president has the power to grant a pardon or a stay or commutation of sentence to any offender convicted in any court in Sri Lanka. In cases involving a sentence of death, however, the president is required to seek the advice of both the attorney general and the minister of justice before issuing a pardon. The president also has the authority to pardon the accomplice to any offense, whether before or after the trial, in exchange for information leading to the conviction of the principal offender.

Penal Institutions and Trends in the Prison Population

All correctional institutions were administered by the Department of Prisons under the Ministry of Justice. In 1980 the department had a reported staff of approximately 4,000 officers and a total of 28 prisons, including conventional prisons, open prison camps, and special training schools for youthful offenders. The facilities were regulated by the Prisons Ordinance of 1878, and each was headed by a superintendent or assistant superintendent of prisons. Departmental staff are trained at the Centre for Research and Training in Corrections in Colombo. The center, which was established in 1975, provided new recruits a ten-week training course in law, human relations, unarmed combat, first aid, and the use of firearms.

Between 1977 and 1985, the prison population remained relatively stable, averaging 11,500 new admissions each year. More than 75 percent of the new inmates in 1985 had been convicted of minor crimes, and 62 percent were serving sentences of less than six months. Those convicted of serious crimes (including murder, culpable homicide, rape, and kidnaping) represented less than 2 percent of the prison population and, although the number of new convicts sentenced to death fluctuated over this period (between 33 and 81), no prisoners were executed. Men represented more than 95 percent of the prison population, and more than one-third of the nation's prisoners were being held in the Colombo District.

In the 1980s, convicted offenders between the ages of sixteen and twenty-two were being housed at separate correctional facilities and open work camps. Many of them were eligible for admission to the Training School for Youthful Offenders, which provided a special program of rehabilitation. Offenders under sixteen were not accepted into the correctional system.

Because of the small number of female prisoners at any one time, in the 1980s there were no separate institutions exclusively for women. Instead, each of the major prisons had a small women's section staffed by female attendants. All female convicts with terms longer than six weeks were transferred to Welikade Prison in Colombo. Mothers with infants were allowed to keep their children in prison, and a preschool program was established to provide child care during daytime hours.

In the 1980s, all male and female prisoners with terms longer than six months received vocational training during their stay in prison. Training was offered in twenty-two trades, including agriculture, animal husbandry, rattan work, carpentry, and tailoring. Every convicted offender was required to work eight hours each day and received a wage calculated according to the level of skill.

Apart from the correctional system maintained by the Department of Prisons, the armed forces and the police have operated a number of detention camps for suspects arrested under the Prevention of Terrorism Act. According to the United States State Department's Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, "there have been persistent reports of torture or ill-treatment by military and police" at these camps, and detainees have been deprived of the legal rights and conditions of incarceration that apply to conventional detention facilities.

Sexual assault, rape, and spousal abuse (often associated with alcohol abuse) continued to be serious and pervasive problems.

Amendments to the Penal Code introduced in 1995 specifically addressed sexual abuse and exploitation and modified rape laws to create a more equitable burden of proof and to make punishments more stringent. Marital rape is considered an offense in cases of spouses living under judicial separation, and laws govern sexual molestation and sexual harassment in the workplace. While the Penal Code may ease some of the problems faced by victims of sexual assault, many women's organizations believe that greater sensitization of police and judicial officials is required. The Government set up the Bureau for the Protection of Children and Women within the police in 1994 to respond to calls for greater awareness and attention; however, there was no information on any actions taken by the Bureau nor on the number of crimes against women.

Although laws against procuring and trafficking were strengthened in 1995, trafficking in women for the purpose of forced labor occurs.

During the year 2001, there were a number of reports of security forces raping women in custody. During the first 6 months of the year, police reported a total of 36 rape case investigations, 5 of which involve security force personnel. There have been no convictions in the cases involving security force personnel.

In the period from January 1 to June 30, 2000, the police recorded 680 cases of crimes against children, compared with 767 cases for January 1 to the end of August. Many NGO's attribute the problem of exploitation of children to the lack of law enforcement rather than adequate legislation. Many law enforcement resources are diverted to the conflict with the LTTE, although the police's Bureau for the Protection of Children and Women conducts investigations into crimes against these two groups.

There is a serious problem of child prostitution in certain coastal resort areas. The Government estimates that there are more than 2,000 active child prostitutes in the country, but private groups claim that the number is much higher. The bulk of child sexual abuse in the form of child prostitution is committed by citizens; however, some child prostitutes are boys who cater to foreign tourists. Some of these children are forced into prostitution. The Government has pushed for greater international cooperation to bring those guilty of pedophilia to justice. The penalty for pedophilia is not less than 5 years and up to 20 years as well as an unspecified fine. Four cases of pedophilia were brought to court in 2000, one involving a foreigner. There were no convictions or arrests for pedophilia during the year 2001.

Regular employment of children also occurs in the informal sector and in family enterprises. Government inspections have been unable to eliminate these forms of child labor, although an awareness campaign coupled with the establishment of hot lines for reporting child labor has led to an increase in the prosecutions by the Labor Department regarding child labor violations. However, many thousands of children are believed to be employed in domestic service, although this situation is not regulated or documented. Many child domestics are reportedly subjected to physical, sexual and emotional abuse. Internal trafficking in male children for the purpose of prostitution is a problem.

The Government created the National Child Protection Authority (NCPA) in 1998. The law establishing the NCPA consolidated existing legislation and defined a child as anyone under age 18. Under the law, the definition of child abuse includes all acts of sexual violence against, trafficking in, and cruelty to children. The law also prohibits the use of children in exploitative labor or illegal activities or in any act contrary to compulsory education regulations. The legislation further widened the definition of child abuse to include the involvement of children in war. The NCPA is comprised of representatives from the education, medical, retired police, and legal professions; it reports directly to the President. The LTTE uses child soldiers and recruits children, sometimes forcibly, for use in battlefield support functions and in combat. LTTE recruits, some as young as 13, have surrendered to the military, and credible reports indicate the LTTE has stepped up recruiting efforts. In May 1998, the LTTE gave assurances to the Special Representative of the U.N. Secretary General for Children in Armed Combat that it would not recruit children under the age of 17. The LTTE has not honored this pledge.

The law prohibits trafficking in persons; however, Sri Lanka is a country of origin and destination for trafficked persons, primarily women and children for the purposes of forced labor, and for sexual exploitation. Sri Lankan women travel to Middle Eastern countries to work as domestics and some have reported being forced into domestic servitude and sexual exploitation. Sri Lankan women are trafficked to Singapore for purposes of sexual exploitation. Some Sri Lankan children are trafficked internally both for sexual exploitation and as domestics. Citizens are trafficked to the United Kingdom for labor exploitation. Boys are trafficked to the Middle East (primarily Qatar and the United Arab Emirates) as camel jockeys. According to police reports, there is a floating pool of approximately 200 foreign female sex workers in the country who may have been trafficked from the former Soviet Union, Thailand, and China.

Internal trafficking in male children is also a problem, especially from areas bordering the northern and eastern provinces. Protecting Environment and Children Everywhere (PEACE), a domestic NGO, estimates that there are at least 5,000 male children between the ages of 8 and 15 years who are engaged as sex workers both at beach and mountain resorts. Some of these children are forced into prostitution by their parents or by organized crime. PEACE also reports that an additional 7,000 young men aged 15 to 18 years are self-employed prostitutes.

There is evidence of continuing international interest in Sri Lankan children for the sex trade as evidenced in tourism by foreign pedophiles, and an increase in Internet sites featuring child pornography involving the country's children.

Penal Code amendments enacted in 1995 provide for penalties for trafficking in women including imprisonment for 2 to 20 years, and a fine. For trafficking in children, the law allows imprisonment of 5 to 20 years, and a fine.

The Government took action during the year 2001 to prepare a national plan to combat the trafficking of children. This project is part of a regional project funded by the ILO.

The country has a reputation as a destination for foreign pedophiles. Officials believe that approximately 30 percent of the clients are tourists and 70 percent are locals. The Government occasionally prosecuted foreign pedophiles, and there have been some convictions; however there were no such convictions during the year 2001. Many NGO's attribute the problem of child exploitation to a lack of law enforcement.

DRUG TRAFFICKING

Sri Lanka continued its nation-wide demand reduction campaign in 1998. Efforts at public drug abuse education also continued during the year 2001, often assisted by the U.S. Government. The country remained a strong regional player in counternarcotics cooperation during the year 2001. The government continued to make available to other countries in the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) a U.S. government-funded database on narcotics arrests and related information. Implementation of the counternarcotics master plan, begun in 1994, also continued. Cannabis eradication and seizures decreased, however, and there was a decrease also in the number of drug-related arrests, due to police preoccupation with the conflict against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), a terrorist organization fighting for a separate state in the north and northeast of the country. Sri Lanka is a party to the 1988 United Nations Drug Convention, although enabling legislation for the convention had not been presented to parliament by the end of 1998. The government also had not submitted legislation to control precursor chemicals to parliament yet, but a law authorizing control has been drafted.

Sri Lanka has a comparatively modest drug problem. A slight but steady increase in narcotics consumption-particularly heroin-has continued in recent years. The Ministry of Defense (MOD), under whose jurisdiction the police serve, has overall responsibility for all counternarcotics and demand reduction activities, but the ongoing conflict with the LTTE drains much of the ministry's resources, leaving it limited personnel, time and funding to address the drug problem. Sri Lanka's 1,100 miles of coastline cannot be adequately patrolled, especially since Sri Lanka's naval forces are heavily engaged in the ongoing conflict. Sri Lanka's popularity as a transshipment point for narcotics from South and Southeast Asia has consequently grown, although these drugs do not appear to be coming to the U.S. in quantities large enough to have a significant effect on the U.S. Police officials in the Southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu continued to report drug smuggling activities among Sri Lankan Tamil refugees living there. It is widely believed, moreover, that the LTTE helps finance its insurgency through drug trafficking, although neither the Embassy nor the Police Narcotics Bureau (PNB) have firm evidence to support this suspicion.

Cannabis is the only illicit narcotic cultivated and produced in Sri Lanka. There is no evidence, however, to indicate that cannabis grown in Sri Lanka affects the United States. Cannabis is grown mostly in heavy jungle near areas of LTTE activity. Due to manpower limitations brought on by the conflict and the proximity of the cannabis fields to the fighting, the police were able to locate and destroy only two major crops of cannabis during 1998. In January, a joint operation conducted by the PNB and the Excise Department located more than 15 acres of cannabis under cultivation in three growing areas. In June, about 5000 cannabis plants were discovered and destroyed, along with 284 kilograms of ganja, during a police raid in Southern Sri Lanka. Two persons were arrested in the raid. Police continued to rely primarily on informants to find the location of cannabis plants.

The NDDCB continued its aggressive, nationwide public education campaign which included a weekly radio program that reached audiences throughout the island; seminars for judicial officers; hundreds of drug awareness seminars attended by students, teachers and parents; training programs on drug abuse prevention; camps for youth leaders; counseling programs at the state detention home; and treatment programs at residential treatment centers. A family-based prevention/treatment program begun in 1994 continued in 1998, and the number of people utilizing rehabilitation centers continued to increase. The Drug Advisory Program of the Colombo Plan sponsored several seminars aimed at reducing drug abuse among Sri Lankan youth. An Embassy officer continued to speak at these programs in 1998. The PNB worked with Lions International and with the Customs Service to provide drug awareness outreach to schools and churches as well.

There was no evidence public officials were involved in narcotics trafficking in 1998, although one high-ranking counternarcotics contact thought there was a growing increase in narco-corruption. In 1994, the government set up a permanent commission to investigate charges of bribery and corruption against public officials. No cases of drug-related corruption were reported by the commission. However, in 1998, the commission effectively stopped functioning due to internal disagreements.

Heroin and hashish are the only narcotics that have been detected transiting Sri Lanka in significant quantities. Most seizures take place at Katunayake International Airport near Colombo. In 1998, the PNB detected and seized a shipment of 15 kilograms of heroin from India at the airport and another shipment of 9 1/2 kilograms. The PNB believes a substantial number of transshipments-mostly heroin from India-takes place along the Sri Lankan coast. Sri Lanka has no coast guard and its naval vessels are principally engaged in operations against the LTTE. Thus, there is little reliable information on maritime transshipments of drugs. There is little evidence narcotics transiting Sri Lanka have a significant effect on the U.S. In 1998 the PNB assisted the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) in monitoring and detecting a yacht containing 11 tons of hashish which was captured by the RCMP off the coast of Vancouver. Seven persons were arrested, none of them Sri Lankan.

Internet research assisted by Nick Holladay and Aruna Lanka