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The Use of Child Soldiers in Contemporary Conflicts

The Use of Child Soldiers in Contemporary Conflicts. Child Soldiers in Active Combat. Reasons for recruitment: Uniquely vulnerable Easily trained and intimidated Cheap and abundant labour force Ability to absorb new indentities War ‘games’ Elevated levels of brutality

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The Use of Child Soldiers in Contemporary Conflicts

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  1. The Use of Child Soldiers in Contemporary Conflicts

  2. Child Soldiers in Active Combat • Reasons for recruitment: • Uniquely vulnerable • Easily trained and intimidated • Cheap and abundant labour force • Ability to absorb new indentities • War ‘games’ • Elevated levels of brutality • Reluctance of troops to attack children • End of Cold War resulted in abundance of small, light weapons that are easily used and carried by children

  3. Recruitment • Kidnapping and abduction • Refugee camps • From schools • From streets / homeless • Child soldiers re-recruited into other conflicts • Enticements offered by rebel groups: • Education • Food • Security • Parents ‘volunteer’ children in exchange for food/ security • Familial environment • Sense of power • Revenge

  4. 300,000 children associated with armed combat • 10% are in direct combat • Northern Uganda • 8,000 children abducted between 2002 – 2003 • DRC • Approx 90% of armed forces under 18 years of age • Burma/ Myanmar • 70,000 child soldiers within National Army • Those as young as 12 routinely sent into battle • Sudan • Militias supported by the government are currently using 20,000 child soldiers within their ranks. (Becker, 2007)

  5. Duties of Child Combatants • Human shields • Mine detectors • Initial wave of attackers / ‘cannon fodder’ • Guerilla warfare • Killings • Torture • Execution of colleagues attempting to escape • Forced rape • Forced destruction of home towns/ villiages to cut social ties • Mutilation

  6. Reconciliation • Reintegration into community • Re-establishing social structures • Education • Dealing with stigmatisation • Fear • Pregnancy • Mutilation • Knowledge of actions during conflict

  7. Local approaches v international approaches • Involving the entire community v isolated rehabilitation centres • Importance of local customs and traditions • Spirit mediums • Local chiefs • Religious beliefs

  8. Mozambique and Liberia as Case Studies • Similar Conflicts • Different outcomes for former child soldiers • Mozambique • Community based reconcilitation • Focus on involving family members • Incorporation of cultural beliefs • Government funded programmes • Emphasis on ‘cleansing’ and the future • Successful? • Liberia • National programmes of rehabilitation • Focus on skills and education • Government and EU funded programmes • Emphasis on atonement • Unsuccessful?

  9. Conclusion • Effect of combat on children

  10. Bibliography • BECKER, J 2007 Children as Weapons of War http://www.hrw.org/legacy/wr2k4/ download/11.pdf • COLLINS, A (Ed) 2007 Contemporary Security Studies Oxford: Oxford University Press • HONWANA, A 1999 Negotiating Post-War Identities: Child Soldiers in Mozambique and Angola Codesria Bulletin:http://medico-international.de • MORAN, M and PITCHER, M 2004 The ‘Basket Case’ and the ‘Poster Child’: Explaining the End of Civil Conflicts in Liberia and Mozambique Third World Quarterly 3 501 – 519 • HICK, S 2001 The Political Economy of War-Affected Children Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science 575 106-121 • BENNETT, TW. 1998 Using Children in Armed Combat: A Legitimate African Tradition? Institute for Security Studies Monograph 32

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