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esident of a camp who was asked to become an SPO said,
Even boys who were 15 years old were becoming SPOs. There are boys
and girls who hold rifles and the rifles are bigger than them … Police
asked me also to become an SPO but I refused because I did not want
to become an SPO and commit heinous crimes. I did not want to shoot
and kill people. They did not ask me how old I was when they asked
me to become an SPO. They do not ask anyone how old they are. Even
14-year-olds can become SPOs if the police want them to become
SPOs. 399
In cases where school children become SPOs, age-related documentation or oral
verification from teachers is easy to procure, and police have been negligent in not
verifying the age of such applicants.
While there is no evidence of police coercion in SPO recruitment, in some cases
Salwa Judum leaders, village headmen, or police have approached camp residents
and asked them to become SPOs. As one girl explained,
In the camp they asked me and my sisters to become SPOs. I said I
wanted to take care of my sister and would not become an SPO
because of that. They keep asking me every time I go to [name
withheld] camp. They keep asking my sister also – they tell her “ask
your sister to become an SPO.”…They ask everyone who is around [age]
16. 400
In some cases, children have chosen to become SPOs because it provides a
livelihood. 401 For example, Irram Seethamma who claimed she was age 18 at the time
she was appointed as SPO explained to Human Rights Watch why she signed up:
399 Human Rights Watch interview with Poosam Kanya (pseudonym), former resident of Errabore camp, location withheld,
December 5, 2007.
400 Human Rights Watch interview with Vasanti Kumar (pseudonym), IDP from Pandiguda, location withheld, December 6,
2007; Madkam Dhairya (pseudonym), camp resident, Jailbada camp, December 13, 2007; Korsa Vishwas (pseudonym), SPO,
other details withheld.
401 Human Rights Watch group interview GR8 with volunteers working in camps (name and details withheld).
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Human Rights Watch July 2008