Questions & Answers

 
Who are child soldiers?

While there is no precise definition, the Coalition considers a child soldier any person under the age of 18 who is a member of or attached to government armed forces or any other regular or irregular armed force or armed political group, whether or not an armed conflict exists. Child soldiers perform a range of tasks including participation in combat, laying mines and explosives; scouting, spying, acting as decoys, couriers or guards; training, drill or other preparations; logistics and support functions, portering, cooking and domestic labour; and sexual slavery or other recruitment for sexual purposes.

Why are girls considered child soldiers? Don't they just accompany the men and boys who do the fighting?

Girls usually fulfil multiple roles. While they are frequently recruited and used for sexual purposes, they are virtually always also involved in other military tasks, including combat, laying explosives, portering, and performing domestic tasks.

How many child soldiers are there?

It is not possible to give a global figure for the number of child soldiers at any one time.

The reason that exact figures cannot be calculated are various. For example, military commanders frequently conceal children or deny access to observers. Armed groups frequently operate in dangerous, inaccessible zones to which observers do not have access and many children perform support roles and are therefore not visible in military operations.

The way in which children are recruited also prevents accurate documentation. Children are recruited both formally and informally. In some situations they stay in their communities and report only when required and often for short periods of time, for example when fighting escalates or to build strength while negotiating a demobilization package. Child soldiers also shift between groups or are released and then recruited by a different group. Many children are killed or die of injuries sustained or illnesses caused by the hardships of military life. Child soldiers often reach the age of 18 while in the ranks and are no longer considered children. The years spent as a child soldier then become invisible.

While thousands of children have come out of fighting forces in the last five years as wars ended in countries such as Afghanistan, Angola, Liberia, and Sierra Leone, thousands more have been drawn into new conflicts, for example in Cote d'Ivoire, Sudan and Chad.

In countries such as Colombia, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Myanmar (Burma) there has been little change and thousands of children continue to be used as soldiers.

Which country or region has the worst record for using child soldiers?

Unfortunately child soldiers exist in all regions of the world and in almost every country where there is armed conflict.

Africa has the largest number of child soldiers. Child soldiers are being used in armed conflict in Burundi, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda, Somalia, Sudan and Uganda.

In Asia thousands of children are involved in fighting forces in active conflict and ceasefire situations, although government refusal of access to conflict zones has made it impossible to document the numbers involved. Myanmar is unique in the region, as the only country where government armed forces forcibly recruit and use children between the ages of 12 and 18. Child soldiers also exist in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Nepal, the Philippines, and Thailand, where they are mainly associated with armed opposition groups, factional or clan-based groups or groups composed of ethnic or religious minorities. In Sri Lanka, hundreds, perhaps thousands of children are believed to remain in the ranks of the main opposition force and forcible recruitment continues.

In the Middle East child soldiers are reportedly used in Iran, Iraq, and Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories and in tribal groups in Yemen.

In Latin America up to 14,000 children are estimated to be involved with armed political groups and army-backed paramilitaries in Colombia.

In Europe under-18s are believed to be involved in Turkey and a range of armed groups in the Chechen Republic of the Russian Federation, although the numbers are impossible to establish given the lack of information available.

Why is the minimum recruitment age for child soldiers set at 18? Surely in many "non-western" societies children assume "adult" responsibilities far below this age?

The Coalition bases its work on international legal standards for child protection. The Convention on the Rights of the Child sets the age of majority at 18 years. It states that children and youth below 18 require special protection because of their physical and mental immaturity. Virtually all nation states have pledged to implement the provisions of the Convention.

The Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict came into force in February 2002. It deals specifically with the use of child soldiers. It bans the direct use of all children under the age of 18 in hostilities and prohibits all military use of under-18s by non-governmental armed groups. While government armed forces are permitted to recruit volunteers from the age of 16, they must take steps to ensure that the recruitment is genuinely voluntary. Many "non-western" states were involved in drafting and negotiating the Optional Protocol and many have pledged to abide by its terms and to end the use of child soldiers.

There is continuing debate about the age of adulthood in "western" and non-western" countries. For example, the governments of Canada, France, Germany, the UK and the USA continue to recruit under 18 year olds into their armed forces, although they are not allowed to vote. In some Middle Eastern countries on the other hand, the age of majority is higher than 18 years. In many countries where children are recruited - either legally or illegally - families, communities, activists, academics, doctors, lawyers and former child soldiers themselves have spoken out against the practice. They have argued for laws and other measures to protect children from the dangers and trauma of involvement in hostilities or other military activity.

Does the Coalition support the recruitment of under 18 year olds into government armed forces?

No. The Coalition campaigns for a complete prohibition of all recruitment and use of under-18s for military purposes by any armed force. Even if they are not sent to fight, young recruits in government armed forces are frequently exposed to bullying and other forms of physical or sexual abuse, hazardous training activities, and to harsh discipline and difficult living conditons.

Some child soldiers are known to have committed human rights atrocities. Shouldn't they be punished for such crimes?

Child soldiers, even those who have committed human rights abuses, should be treated first and foremost as victims of adult crimes – that is the prosecution should be prioritized of those who unlawfully recruited and used them.

However, there will be cases where a child soldier was clearly in control of his or her actions, was not coerced, drugged, or forced into committing atrocities. In such cases, not holding children accountable may deny justice to the victims. Acknowledgement or atonement, including in some instances prosecution, may be an important part of personal recovery and may contribute to successful reintegration of former child soldiers into their families, communities and society at large. However, in any criminal justice process involving a former child soldier, international standards on juvenile justice must be adhered.

Most child soldiers are used by non-governmental armed political groups. How can they be stopped from using child soldiers?

Non-governmental armed groups are not bound by international law in the same way as governments. However, child soldier recruiters may face prosecution by the International Criminal Court, established in 1998. The statute of the court defines the use of children under 15 in hostilities as a war crime. The court announced its first investigations in 2003, in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda, where child soldiers are extensively used by armed groups. In 2006 it successfully prosecuted a Congolese warlord for recruitment of child soldiers.

The Special Court for Sierra Leone issued its first indictments in 2003, including against former Liberian president Charles Taylor. (See news to read about his subsequent arrest and trial.) The indictments included charges of recruiting or using children under the age of 15 in hostilities. The court was established in 2002 to prosecute those suspected of responsibility for war crimes and crimes against humanity during the 1991-2002 war.

For updated information of prosecutions by the ICC and the Special Court for Sierra Leone see developments.

Prosecutions of child recruiters may serve as a deterrent to armed groups in future. Some armed groups are seeking international legitimacy and support for their political objectives. Negative publicity arising from child soldier use might undermine such support and lead to pledges and action to stop the practice. Armed groups may also respond to pressure from governments tacitly supporting their activities or providing military or other assistance. In some cases armed groups may be open to negotiations with governments or the UN aimed at demobilizing child soldiers. If children continue to be used, the Coalition considers that the international community should act decisively with targeted sanctions and prosecutions to stop the operations of such groups.

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