o mark the first anniversary of the entry into force of an international treaty banning child soldiers, the Coalition to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers warned that the problem, far from being solved, is still prevalent. "The problem is not decreasing but, with each new conflict, children are at risk of being drawn into the fighting," read a statement issued by the Coalition, a group formed in 1998 by six leading
NGOs.
The problem is not decreasing but, with each new conflict, children are at risk of being drawn into the fighting
The Coalition warned the international community against assuming that the issue of child soldiers could be struck-off simply because their use was now banned by international law.
The issue of child soldiers has been addressed at the UN Security Council, which has taken a landmark decision to name the names of those who are recruiting child soldiers.
In December 2002, the United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan's report to the Security Council identified 23 parties to conflict in five country situations that involved child soldiers: Afghanistan, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Liberia and Somalia. Not only armed opposition groups were using children: the UN pointed the finger at the government forces of Burundi, DRC and Liberia as abusing children by using them as soldiers.
At the end of January 2003, the UN Security Council adopted the new Resolution 1460 on children and armed conflict calling on the Secretary-General to include information about protecting children in all his country-specific reports.
Although 111 countries have now signed the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict, only 46 countries have actually ratified the treaty, thus making a binding legal commitment to enforce the Optional Protocol.
Some countries of concern where child soldiers are being used:
In Myanmar, for example, an estimated 70,000 children are in uniform in the state army - many are forcibly conscripted by kidnapping or threats of prison at ages as young as 11.
In Colombia, the Coalition's research estimated that up to 14,000 child soldiers - boys and girls as young as 10 years old - are recruited into armed groups.
In Nepal, some sources indicate that as many as 30 percent of the Communist Party of Nepal fighting forces are children, and the number is growing each month.
Background
The Coalition to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers was formed in 1998. Its founding members include Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, Jesuit Refugee Service, Quaker United Nations Office - Geneva, Rädda Barnen for the International Save the Children Alliance, Terre des Hommes.
Later, Defense for Children International, World Vision International and several regional NGOs from Latin America, Africa and Asia also joined in the Coalition's activities. Many Coalition members or partner organizations around the world, from Pakistan to the United States of America, will be celebrating the 12 February anniversary with special events.
(From Jesuit Relief Service)