“Sri Lanka has become an unsafe environment for women and children,” said Dr. Tushara Wickramanayake, fondly known as Tush. A family physician and founder, Chairperson of Stop Child Cruelty Trust. An old girl of Visakha Vidyalaya, she has been an active voice against all forms of injustice to children and women from an early age. A general physician practicing in the UK and Sri Lanka. Tush has worked in child welfare since the 2004 tsunami and became a passionate child rights advocate, turning adversity to advocacy after her own 11-year-old daughter was subjected to corporal punishment and mental abuse in an international school in 2018.
Spearheading a national campaign to end violence against children in Sri Lanka, Tush’s self-learning experience of the crippled child protection mechanism, indefatigable efforts in advocacy work, and compassion and empathy in raising awareness have resulted in global recognition and historical achievements in a short period of time. Can you tell us about your experience working with children who have been affected by abuse?
Child abuse can be broadly categorized into physical abuse, sexual abuse, mental abuse, and neglect. Physical abuse, cruelty, and corporal punishment are the most common forms of abuse in Sri Lanka and globally, affecting 1.3 billion children each year. The complaints received on cruelty by the National Child Protection Authority (NCPA) have trebled in ten years, with 2238 cases reported in 2023. Sexual abuse, especially online abuse, is increasing rapidly. Whilst there may be injuries and scars visible immediately after physical and sexual abuse, all forms of abuse affect the child mentally. But mental scars may not be obvious and may require years before a formal clinical diagnosis is made.
Therefore, mental abuse is often overlooked, their true effects amplifying years later into adulthood and cascading to the society. Often, the impact of abuse depends on the child’s own internal resilience and external support systems. For example, a child who is forced to kneel down may be immune to it because it is normalized in his/her environment, whilst another child may be traumatized because it is unfamiliar in his/her surroundings. Irrespective of our own upbringing and prejudices, we must endorse zero tolerance of any form of abuse against children growing up in the 21st century.
HOW DO YOU HANDLE SITUATIONS WHERE YOU SUSPECT ABUSE BUT DON’T HAVE CONCRETE EVIDENCE?
The first and simple golden rule is BELIEVE the child. 90% of child abuse occurs within the home environment, perpetrated by people whom the child loves and trusts. Most of the time, the abuse occurs for years, maybe even known to some adults and ignored because they are afraid of the scandal this may reveal or crippled by the power hierarchy. If the child mentions anything untoward, try not to dismiss the child or defend the alleged perpetrator in the intention of saving the family name, school name, or reputation of the person. Children may show symptoms of abuse, which may be subtle—becoming quiet and withdrawn, spends more time in seclusion, avoids things they normally enjoy, refusal of school, spends more time on devices, eating/sleeping disturbances, substance abuse, mood changes including anger and behavior, engaging in risk-takin risk-taking behaviours like staying out too late or disappearing without informing parents, joining new cliques of friends, etc.
The best way to ensure your child comes to you as the first port of call if they are in trouble is to have healthy parent-child communication without persecution or blame. If the child feels they can make mistakes without being penalized, they will be forthcoming and transparent. Encourage your child to follow the traffic light system from the age that they can walk and talk: Red – shout, Orange – run, and Green – tell someone they trust. Introduce a security ring where the child identifies 2/3 adults whom they trust. It can be parents, teachers, grandparents, elderly siblings, etc. Always remember the first and last step is to BELIEVE the child.
WHAT WAS MOST REWARDING AND WHAT WAS MOST CHALLENGING ABOUT WORKING WITH CHILD VICTIMS OF ABUSE?
The globally accepted term is “survivor” of child abuse because victimizing someone is disempowering them. The most rewarding is when the child is able to overcome the trauma and be able to function at the highest individual capacity they consider as being normal for them. This could even be as simple as waking up and getting to school consistently. The most challenging has been to deal with the bureaucratic lethargy in finding the care, support, and justice in the state mechanisms. Once the child is removed from the immediate risk, we need to consider the safest and healthiest option.
This requires a multidisciplinary approach with the family unit at the heart of the solution because research has shown that chances of a child thriving within a caring family are higher than under institutionalized care. Aligned with this are relevant inputs from education, health, justice, rehabilitation, social, and caregiver support. Caregiver support includes education and economic and mental support, which is often neglected whilst focusing on the child.
CAN YOU DESCRIBE A DIFFICULT CASE YOU HAVE WORKED ON AND HOW YOU HANDLED IT?
The most recent was a case of two sisters, aged 17 and 14 years, who were suspected of being sexually harassed by the father in a remote village. Although there was no conclusive evidence of actual sexual abuse, the stories from the girls were convincing enough for me to take immediate action. The mother was a laborer on a meager allowance, whilst the father was the main provider. The police were being influenced by the father and his connections, a not too unfamiliar scenario in maintaining law and order in Sri Lanka. We filed a case in court requesting restricted access for the father and full guardianship for the mother. I tried valiantly to get them to a government safe home but failed. The father followed them around and kept on physically harassing the family.
The next thing I did was to find a higher-paying job that gave the mother some financial independence. She found a relative in the area who helped them to relocate. Even changing schools was an issue because the father objected to the old school providing the leaving certificate, as he had signed their admission forms. The school authorities were paralyzed by his threats. I had to write to the education authorities alerting them of acting contrary to court orders and violating the basic education rights of the children; after months of exchanging correspondence, the girls were enrolled in the best school in the region, where they are excelling now with counselling support. After one year, they still keep in touch with me and share their achievements, and we hope to meet them personally when they come to Colombo soon.
WHAT IS YOUR UNDERSTANDING OF CHILD PROTECTION?
Many are confused by these terms: Child Safeguarding—encompasses broader preventive measures within the organization. It refers to actions that address how business operations and work practices impact children’s welfare. The purpose is to prevent harm before it occurs. The key actions are implementing policies, training staff, and promoting safe practices. It is applied continuously as a proactive approach and has collective responsibility. Example: Conducting risk assessment in the prospective service delivery points.
Child Protection—is an important part of safeguarding and refers to the actions an organization takes to address a specific concern that a particular child is at risk of significant harm due to her contact with staff, family, etc. The purpose is to intervene when children are at immediate risk and prevent further The key actions are investigating cases, providing support, reporting mechanisms, and ensuring the safety of vulnerable children. It is applied after harm occurred and shared by everyone much more widely.
For example, reporting cases and providing psychosocial support to a child who has been physically abused. Child Protection Programs—These are specific initiatives designed to address child protection issues to protect children through targeted interventions. Advocacy programs to lobby parliament to pass the bill on abolishing corporal punishment. The safeguarding mechanisms are nonexistent in Sri Lanka, with no systematic child protection policies either. Hence, the child protection programs are inconsistent, elevating child abuse to be a top five grave crime, according to the annual grave crimes report by Sri Lanka police of 2023.
WHAT ARE THE CURRENT CHILD PROTECTION MECHANISMS IN SRI LANKA, AND HOW DO THEY COMPARE TO THE REST OF THE WORLD?
Sri Lanka ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) in 1991. There are 45 articles, but even if we can’t remember them all, just remember Article 3, ‘in the best interest of the child.’ Despite the cabinet approving the National Child Protection Policy in 2019, the NCPA has failed to implement it to date. Likewise, there are many laws and regulations that are not being implemented effectively, especially the Ministry of Education Circular forbidding physical punishment of students in schools. It is ironic that although in 2017 Sri Lanka was honored by being the only South Asian pathfinding country focused on ending violence against children, the National Partnership to End Violence Against Children (NPEVAC) collapsed in 2018, and we have been lethargic about introducing legal reforms to end corporal punishment, the most common form of child abuse. Due to the absence of safeguarding policies and mechanisms, there is a high incidence of abuse occurring within schools and care homes under Probation and Childcare Services. As none of the governments elected have even acknowledged child welfare as the core of the national political agenda, such abuse can be con For example, in the UK, a ten-year-old girl child was abused and murdered by her parents in August 2023.
The perpetrators were arrested, the criminal court case was concluded in December 2024, and the accused were given life imprisonment sentences. In contrast, in Sri Lanka, a 15/16-year-old girl was allegedly sexually abused in a politician’s home and died after severe burn injuries in July 2022, but the investigations remain incomplete, and no indictments have been filed to date. The Auditor General’s Report of 2022 concluded there are over 40,000 cases of child abuse backlogged at the NCPA and Attorney General’s Department. This is a national tragedy.
WHAT ARE THE THREE THINGS THAT THE GOVERNMENT CAN IMPLEMENT IMMEDIATELY TO IMPROVE THE CHILD PROTECTION CRISIS?
Appointment of a Presidential Task Force for children Provide additional budget allocation for education and child welfare. Finalize the legislative process, particularly the Bill on Penal Code Reforms to Abolish Corporal Punishment, which was passed in Cabinet in September 2024. We hope the new government will present this bill to parliament.
