With the defeat of terrorism in May 2009, through a massive humanitarian resc...

With the defeat of terrorism in May 2009, through a massive humanitarian rescue mission, the Government took concerted action to rehabilitate and reintegrate all former child combatants. Among them, 351 were girls. Knowing that these children had been forced to take up guns instead of school books, the Government of Sri Lanka adopted a prudent, practical and compassionate approach towards their reintegration. Such an approach was based on the principles of women empowerment, livelihood training, psycho-social support, and above all, restorative justice. For those who missed the opportunity of experiencing a childhood and a formal education, arrangements have been made through the “ catch up schools” to enable them to complete the General Certificate of Education examinations, irrespective of their current age. The state and society view them as victims and not as perpetrators. The lessons learnt and the good practices adopted by Sri Lanka in the arduous process of rapidly restoring the future of these children, deserve appreciation. Ours is a success story that has no parallel elsewhere.