A leading US-based human rights group has accused the Sri Lankan government of complicity in abduction of minors by refusing to take action to stop child recruitment by pro-government Karuna rebel group.

Human Rights Watch said that abductions of minors continued and children are continually being drafted as soldiers by both the Karuna faction and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam.

"The LTTE is a notorious repeat offender of child recruitment," said Brad Adams, Asia director of HRW. "It's a shame that government forces complicit with the Karuna group are now involved in the same ugly practice."

'There is strong evidence that government forces are now openly cooperating with the Karuna group despite its illegal activities', Adams said in a statement.

HRW said it witnessed children clearly under the age of 17 in Batticaloa district, some armed with assault rifles, performing guard duty at various offices of the Karuna group's political wing, the Thamil Makkal Viduthalai Pulikal and that Sri Lankan soldiers and police routinely walk or drove by the children without taking any visible action.

According to UNICEF, there were 45 reported cases of child abductions by the Karuna group in three months -- among these were three children abducted from camps for internally displaced persons in Batticaloa district.

HRW said the actual number is likely to be higher because many parents are afraid to report cases, and these numbers do not reflect the forced recruitment by the Karuna group of young men aged over 17.

UNICEF documented 19 cases of LTTE child recruitment in January and nine in February.

The LTTE has also abducted at least four people from camps for the internally displaced.

Access to LTTE-controlled areas remains difficult, but credible reports indicate that the group is increasingly recruiting and deploying girls as frontline soldiers in the East, HRW said.

The rights group said armed Karuna rebel members regularly walk or ride throughout Batticaloa district in plain view of government forces.

"The government says it needs evidence to start an investigation, but it already has ample information," Adams said. "In addition to UN documentation and testimonies in our report, many families have made formal complaints to the police."

"The Karuna group is doing the government's dirty work," Adams said. "It's time for authorities in Colombo to stop this group from using children in its forces."