Child Recruitment in Burma, Sri Lanka and Nepal

Foundational comparative document. Verbatim: 'Karuna had between 4,000–6,000 forces under his command, including some 2,000 child soldiers, when he broke off from the LTTE in March 2004.' On post-split Karuna recruitment: 'In 2005, however, Karuna began to rebuild his forces and fight against the LTTE. By the end of March 2007, UNICEF had received 285 reports of child recruitment by Karuna forces, but estimated the actual total may have been three times higher.' On state knowledge: 'In numerous cases, the Sri Lankan government, including local security forces, had knowledge of child abductions from government-held territory, yet failed to intervene or secure the release of the children.'