HEADLINE:
Groups seek end of child
soldier use;
300,000 youths in 41 countries on active
duty
The
Washington Times (http://www.washtimes.com/)
June 18, 2001, Monday, Final Edition
BYLINE: Betsy Pisik; THE WASHINGTON TIMES
BODY:
NEW YORK - His parents dead and chaos surrounding him, Ishmael Beah, 14,
was "adopted" by the Sierra Leone Army in 1993. The army trained Mr.
Beah and other orphans in the use of light weapons and then hastily sent the
boys to the front lines to lie in ambush against rebel troops. "The
military was able to structure, to manipulate you so you thought the best way
to do something was to join the military and revenge the death of your parents,"
he said. "But when you actually go to the front line and fight, it's a
different issue. I was in the front line, I laid in ambush, and I saw friends
of mine shot and killed. I didn't want to pull the trigger, but I had
no choice."
After three years with the government army, Mr.Beah was taken in by a Catholic
relief group and eventually taken to the United States.
Today, Mr. Beah is a freshman at Oberlin College in Ohio, a confident young
man with a wide smile. He testifies frequently to the horrors of child soldiering
and the importance of demobilization and reintegration of young combatants.
As many as 500,000 minors have been recruited by government armies, paramilitary
militias and rebel groups, according to the Coalition to Stop the Use of Child
Soldiers, a group of human rights organizations dedicated to raising the
military recruiting age to at least 18. Of these, 300,000 children in 41
countries are now or recently have been in active conflict situations
around the world.
Those figures include tens of thousands of 17-year-olds who enlist voluntarily
in countries as diverse as the United States, Israel and Singapore.
The situation is most damaging in the sweeping conflicts of Africa and South
Asia, but child soldiers are also fighting in Sri Lanka, the Kurdish
territories, the Balkans and Paraguay.
The proliferation of light and uncomplicated small arms have made it easier
for children as young as 10 to become effective soldiers, say coalition
organizers, who also note that children are dragged into long-raging
conflicts to supplement thinning ranks of adult soldiers.
And then there are the child-specific roles. Young boys make obedient porters,
cooks and human shields and can pass through streets freely as suicide bombers.
Young girls can do all that, too, or be forced into sexual slavery.
"One of the most disturbing trends is that children are now recruited for
their value as children, rather than as a substitute for adults," said
Rory Mungoven, coordinator of the Coalition to Stop the Use of Child
Soldiers.
"Their recruitment can be used to terrorize and control communities, and
they are easier to drug and condition into a life of violence and atrocities."
The coalition's 450-page report this month tracks the use of child soldiers
by country and breaks down the recruitment of children among government forces,
paramilitary groups and rebel organizations.
Among the main findings:
In Sri Lanka, UNICEF says that
children aged 14-17 are most frequently recruited by the Liberation Tigers of
Tamil Eelam. Ethnic Tamil rebels have been fighting the
Sinhalese-dominated government since 1983, and the LTTE has carried out suicide
attacks since July 5, 1987 - "Black Tiger Day." Up to 60
percent of LTTE's battle casualties are said to be minors, though the LTTE says
it uses children only in support functions.
Russia does not recruit men under age 18, but opposition forces, particularly
in Chechnya, add to their ranks by abducting homeless children.
Thousands of Iraqi children, some as young as 12, are organized into military
training camps with names like Saddam's Cubs and Saddam's Youth. They are
trained in Ba'ath Party ideology, light weapons and hand-to-hand combat.
The Sudanese People's Liberation Army, an opposition group, made headlines
when it released 3,200 child soldiers in February. But its leaders say the
rebel group has another 7,000 children awaiting demobilization.
The government of Sudan, meanwhile, has been providing military and technical
assistance to the Lord's Resistance Army, a Ugandan rebel group that uses child
soldiers.
An estimated 14,000 children, some only 8 years old, are fighting
in Colombia. Guerrilla groups refer to their youngest recruits as "little bees"
for their agility and ability to sting; the paramilitary groups call
theirs "little bells" because they are so useful in detecting traps
and attracting fire on the front lines. "Little carts" ferry
drugs and weapons without arousing suspicion.
Despite the widespread use of children in combat, there is a growing recognition
among governments and even rebel groups that children should not be used as
soldiers.
The International Labor Organization calls child soldiering one of the most
egregious forms of forced labor.
The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, Organization for
African Unity, and the Organization of the Islamic Conference have officially
condemned child soldiering.
And 79 countries, including the United States, have signed an agreement banning
the deployment of soldiers under the age of 18. The treaty- technically an
addition to the Convention on the Rights of the Child- also limits voluntary
enlistment to people who are at least 16 years old.
"Children exposed to war are among the most vulnerable groups in the world,"
said Olara Otunnu, the special representative for Children and Armed Conflict,
addressing a preparatory session of the U.N. conference on children this month.
The worst offenders are not governments but paramilitary groups - which often
operate with the knowledge or support of governments - and opposition groups.
These nonstate actors are not bound by U.N. treaties or affected by diplomatic
pressure, threats to official aid and investment, or loans from the World Bank
or other international institutions.
Coalition organizers concede that international opinion carries less weight
with rebel leaders than with elected officials.
"We've seen some nonstate actors make voluntary pledges to adhere to the
same standard, in large part because they are looking for ways to enhance their
international credibility and legitimacy," said Jo Becker, child-
advocacy director for Human Rights Watch.
Indeed, today's rag-tag resistance is tomorrow's national military- as with
the formerly child-recruiting Falintil, the East Timor guerrilla movement that
fought Indonesia for independence.
The protocol added to the Convention on the Rights of the Child last year
also calls on governments to outlaw the use of child soldiers, a measure meant
to ratchet up the pressure on rebel forces and influence
pro-government paramilitary units.
The coalition found that most of the minors in military service are, in fact,
serving with government troops. But these are overwhelmingly 17-year-olds who
will soon be considered adults in most respects.
Several countries - including Colombia, Finland and South Africa - have recently
raised their military recruiting age to 18. However, Mr. Mungoven notes, the
United States, China, France and Britain, four of the five permanent Security
Council members, still accept recruits younger than 18. Only Russia has officially
banned soldiers younger than 18 years old.
Rebel armies, which by definition operate outside the law, are the ones that
tend to deploy the youngest combatants.
Mr. Mungoven said he sees small improvements around the globe, but he said
they reflect the winding down of conflicts rather than moral enlightenment.
The
Washington Times (http://www.washtimes.com/)
June 18, 2001, Monday, Final Edition