Former President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga has revealed that a disturbing newspaper report on the alleged sexual exploitation of schoolgirls and the reaction of her own children to it helped trigger the process that eventually led to the establishment of Sri Lanka’s National Child Protection Authority (NCPA).
Speaking in an interview with Dr. Tush Wickramanayaka, chairperson of the Stop Child Cruelty Trust, Kumaratunga recalled how concerns over child abuse during her presidency led to the creation of a presidential task force and subsequently a dedicated statutory authority.
Kumaratunga said she had set aside one day each week to spend with her two children and recalled an occasion when they approached her after reading a Sunday newspaper report about the alleged sexual exploitation of girls from a leading Colombo school.
According to Kumaratunga, the report alleged that a school van driver had deceived schoolgirls, taken them to a Colombo hotel and sexually exploited them, including by recording images.
She recalled her children confronting her over the report and questioning why such abuse could not be stopped even under their mother’s government.
The former president said the episode contributed to her decision to take stronger action on child protection.
Her administration subsequently established task forces to examine several issues affecting children, including child abuse, drug abuse and suicide, she said.
Kumaratunga said the task forces were largely made up of experts, government officials and people working in relevant fields rather than politicians.
“Politicians were not in those task forces. There were experts in the relevant subjects, government officials and people working in those areas,” she said.
The work ultimately led to the conclusion that Sri Lanka needed a specialised institution with adequate powers to deal with child abuse, according to Kumaratunga.
Official NCPA records show that Kumaratunga appointed a Presidential Task Force on Child Protection in December 1996. One of its key recommendations was the establishment of the NCPA. The National Child Protection Authority Bill was subsequently presented to Parliament in August 1998 and passed unanimously on Nov. 12, 1998.
The NCPA was established under the National Child Protection Authority Act, No. 50 of 1998, with responsibilities including advising the government on preventing child abuse, protecting victims, monitoring action against abuse and recommending legal and administrative reforms.
Kumaratunga rejected suggestions that her administration had encountered significant political resistance in establishing the authority.
She said the greater challenge was finding people who understood the subject and were capable of carrying out the work.
“We had to find people who understood this and could work on it,” she said, adding that individuals were recruited from civil society and the private sector to work alongside government officials.
Kumaratunga also recalled efforts to strengthen the police response to abuse involving women and children, including the establishment of specialised units involving female police officers, as well as public awareness campaigns encouraging people to report abuse.
She said civil society organisations had played an especially important role in addressing violence against children and women, including before the government began introducing dedicated mechanisms.
The NCPA formally became operational on June 4, 1999, following the appointment of its first chairman, Prof. Harendra de Silva, and its governing council. (Newswire)
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