Recruits
More than 300 new Sri Lankan army recruits completed a four-month training programme at the Battalion Training School (BTS) in Vidaththalpalai, Jaffna, becoming the first batch of recruits to pass out in Jaffna as militarisation of the Tamil homeland intensifies.
The 340 recruits who are now soldiers serving in the Sri Lankan Army were reportedly comprised of "Tamil, Muslim and Sinhala youths" following a recruitment drive that had targetted young people across the Jaffna region. The chief guest of the ceremony was Colonel Susantha Hettige, Commander of the 552 brigade. Speaking to the recruits the colonel emphasised the soldier's responsibility for "maintaining discipline" and "fulfilling their mission accountable within a framework of democratic, civilian control, rule of law and respect for human rights".
The recruitment comes after the Sri Lankan government looked to introduce mandatory military training for all over 18 year olds earlier this year.
The Sri Lankan army stands credibly accused of committing war crimes during and after the armed conflict and in the recent years military involvement in public and governmental bodies have been widely condemned by international bodies, as the state becomes increasingly militarized.
The North-East continues to be occupied by the military and troops are reportedly used to harass and surveil the population.
During the pandemic, military officials were tasked with implementing the government's COVID-19 response, which has been slammed by Amnesty International for its discriminatory approach. Despite the military heavy-handed approach which has led to upwards of 60,000 arrests, Sri Lanka finds itself battling another wave of the pandemic and under strict curfew, which can only be described as a failure of strategy by the Sri Lankan military tasked with combating a public health crisis.
