Child soldiers

The story: The US added Pakistan and 14 other countries to a "Child Soldier Recruiter List" that identifies foreign governments having government-supp

Child soldiers

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• The story: The US added Pakistan and 14 other countries to a "Child Soldier Recruiter List" that identifies foreign governments having government-supported armed groups that recruit or use child soldiers.
• Child Soldier: This refers to any person below 18 years of age who has been, recruited or used by an armed force or armed group in any capacity. It includes but is not limited to children, boys and girls who are used as fighters, cooks, porters, spies or for sexual purposes (Paris Principles on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict 2007).
• Points to note: The US Child Soldiers Prevention Act 2008 (CSPA) requires the publication in the annual Trafficking in Persons (TIP) report a list of foreign governments that have recruited or used child soldiers. Some of the countries which have been added to the list are Pakistan, Turkey, Afghanistan, Myanmar, Iran, Iraq, Nigeria, Yemen etc. The United Nations (UN) verified that over 7,000 children had been recruited and used as soldiers in 2019 alone. The CSPA prohibits the US government from providing military assistance, including money, military education and training, or direct sales of military equipment, to countries that recruit and use child soldiers.
• Global conventions: The recruitment or use of children below the age of 15 as soldiers is prohibited by both the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) and the additional protocols to the Geneva Conventions. The CRC says childhood is separate from adulthood, and lasts until 18; it is a special, protected time, in which children must be allowed to grow, learn, play, develop and flourish with dignity. The Geneva Conventions and their Additional Protocols form the core of international humanitarian law, which regulates the conduct of armed conflict and seeks to limit its effects. They protect people not taking part in hostilities and those who are no longer doing so.
• War crime: Recruiting Child Soldiers is also considered a war crime under the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC). Also, the United Nations has identified the recruitment and use of child soldiers as among six “grave violations”. Other Five violations are:

Killing and maiming of children;
Sexual violence against children;
Abduction of children;
Attacks against schools or hospitals;
Denial of humanitarian access for children.

• Indian scenario: Though not common in India, child soldiers are seen among non-state forces such as insurgent organizations in the NorthEast region (mainly in Assam, Manipur, Nagaland) and militant factions in the Kashmir region. They are hired in Maoist affected areas of Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Maharashtra. Some global human rights organisations allege Indian security forces of using children as spies and messengers, although the Indian government denies this allegation. The National Cadet Corps (NCC) which is run by the Ministry of Defence, aims to motivate youth from age 13 to take up a career in the armed forces (Army, Navy and Air Force) and Territorial Army, and they can not be equated with the child soldiers. The Indian Penal Code criminalises the recruitment or use in hostilities of persons under-18 years by state armed forces or non-state armed groups. Only adults of age over 18 years are recruited in the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF).
• Summary: International treaties and instruments, such as the CRC and its Optional Protocol are valuable and necessary tools to ensure betterment of children but these must be implemented by all parties in its true spirit. In 2014, UNICEF launched the campaign “Children, Not Soldiers” to bring about a global consensus that child soldiers should not be used in conflict.

 

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