The next steps

As a result of the efforts of the United Nations, the world now knows far more about child soldiers and the plight of children in armed conflict. The UN and regional organizations have also created a legal framework aimed at protecting children in armed conflicts. However, far too many children are still serving in armies and armed groups; far too many of them continue to suffer in conflict situations.

 

In a report to the UN Security Council in July 2000, Secretary-General Kofi Annan recommended the next steps Member States should take. They include:

 

  • ratification of those Conventions and protocols that protect children in situations of armed conflict;
  • adjusting national laws to define as national crimes those egregious violations of the rights of children in the context of armed conflict and ensuring that national courts can exercise "universal jurisdiction" in accordance with such crimes as defined by the International Criminal Court;
  • excluding genocide, war crimes and other egregious crimes against children from amnesty provisions during peace negotiations;
  • concrete steps to prosecute individuals and corporations involved in illegal trafficking of currency, arms and natural resources that fuel conflicts and lead to the abuse of children;
  • making any political, diplomatic, financial and military assistance for countries or armed groups contingent on compliance with international child protection standards;
  • addressing the root causes of children's recruitment and participation in conflict and giving support to local communities trying to provide protection for their children in times of war;
  • financial support for sustained education for all children both during and after conflict, particularly for former child soldiers and others;
  • including children's concerns in peace negotiations;
  • systematic training all UN peacekeeping personnel in the rights and protection of children and women;
  • making the concern of children central in national priority setting, resource allocation and national policy making during the reconstruction of war-ravaged societies;
  • commitment of armed groups to child protection standards of the Convention on the Rights of the child and its Optional Protocol and to cooperation in monitoring their adherence to those standards.

 

Why so little progress?

Though the United Nations has created a legal framework to protect children from armed conflicts, its actual implementation is painfully slow. This is partly because international human rights treaties typically bind States, not non-state actors such as armed rebel groups, limiting the reach of human rights law.

"...actual implementation is painfully slow."

 

Committing to international treaties is one thing, honoring them is another. Olara Otunnu, Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Children in Armed Conflicts, thinks it is up to the international community to mobilize a movement of political pressure -- naming, shaming and refusing support for armed groups that continue to abuse children. "We must also reinforce the other pillar of protection -- local standards that say that the abuse of children as a routine part of war is simply unacceptable."