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Study shows Lankan women were sexually exploited in war

A citizen's group has exposed a lesser-known atrocity in Sri Lanka's ethnic conflict: women have been sexually used by government soldiers on the move in villages bordering the war zone.

''We can't give you figures because some women spoke to us in confidence. There are many children fathered by soldiers who do not acknowledge the parentage,'' said Nimalka Fernando of the independent Movement for Inter-Racial Justice and Equality.

Sri Lanka's 15-year civil war has spawned a host of social problems with the displacement of tens of thousands and the break-up of families. Independent researchers and non-governmental groups have been studying the effects of war.

There is evidence of severe trauma among children and of women, particularly minority Tamils in the war zone, being used as weapons of war.

Earlier this month, the Colombo-based movement presented evidence of majority Sinhalese women -- in villages bordering the war zone in the east and north of the island -- being used by government soldiers.

''Women go from camp to camp searching for the men who fathered their children only to be told by senior officers that they either are not there or have moved on,'' Fernando said.

The movement released an interim report by a citizen's commission on the problems facing people in the border villages where they are routinely harassed by the security forces, and face severe shortages of food, basic amenities and loss of security.

UNI

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