CRINmail 179 
 

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Children and armed conflict at the UN

On 7 March, the UN Security Council (SC) held an Open Debate on Children and Armed Conflict and unanimously adopted resolution 2143 setting out practical steps to combat violations against children in armed conflict.

Fifteen years have passed since the Council adopted its first resolution specifically dedicated to children and armed conflict. A new element in this resolution is the reference to the use of schools by armed forces.

Leila Zerrougui, the Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict (SRSG), noted how attacks on schools and hospitals, as well as the killing and maiming of children, continue unabated in Syria, one of several countries - including South Sudan and the Central African Republic (CAR) - where conflict has taken a heavy toll on children.

Highlights from the resolution:

- The SC expressed “deep concern about the military use of schools by armed forces and non-State armed groups in contravention of applicable international law, including those involving their use as military barracks, weapons storage facilities, command centres, detention and interrogation sites and firing and observation positions”

- The SC recalled “the responsibility of all Member States to comply with their respective obligations to end impunity and to investigate and prosecute those responsible for genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes and other egregious crimes perpetrated against children”

- The SC urged “Member States, United Nations entities and other parties concerned to ensure that child protection provisions, including those relating to the release and reintegration of children formerly associated with armed forces or armed groups, are integrated into all peace negotiations and peace agreements”

- The SC also recommended “that Member States include child protection in military training and standard operating procedures, as well as in military guidance as appropriate; [and] that United Nations entities and United Nations peacekeeping troop and police-contributing countries undertake targeted and operational trainings for the preparation of United Nations mission personnel […] on their contribution in preventing violations against children so as to give all mission personnel the ability to effectively recognize, report and respond to violations and abuses committed against children […]”.

The debate was the first of two thematic debates on Children and Armed Conflict in 2014. The second Open Debate is expected to happen sometime after June following the launch of the 13th the Secretary-General’s annual report of  on Children and Armed Conflict. Full story.

Also in March, the UN launched a new campaign to end the recruitment and use of children by government forces in conflict. The ‘Children, Not Soldiers’ campaign calls on governments and regional NGOs to work with the UN to intensify efforts to meet the goal of zero use of children by any government force by 2016.

Visit the page of the campaign “Zero under 18” aimed at the universal ratification of the Optional Protocol on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict.

Parties to conflict that recruit and use children are listed in the annexes of the Secretary-General’s Annual Report on Children and Armed Conflict. Currently, eight government security forces are listed. In the past three years, six of those countries have signed action plans with the UN: Afghanistan, Chad, South Sudan, Myanmar, Somalia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Both Yemen and Sudan have expressed their commitment to child-free security forces, and dialogue with the UN is ongoing. Full Story.

Earlier, the SC published its sixth ‘Cross-Cutting Report on Children and Armed Conflict’, continuing a series that began in 2008. These reports track the SC’s involvement in children and armed conflict over the years, highlighting emerging trends since this issue first became a separate thematic agenda item in 1998. The report noted that, during the period covered (2012-2013), there was a continued pushback within the SC on children and armed conflict, making it difficult to move forward with any new initiatives. While there was a push from some SC members for greater accountability, other members were reluctant to impose targeted sanctions against persistent perpetrators of children’s rights violations during armed conflict.

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News update:

Reports of ethnic cleansing in Central African Republic

Tens of thousands of Muslims have fled the Central African Republic (CAR) as Christian militias known as anti-Balaka (anti-machete) have stepped up attacks since the forced resignation of CAR's first Muslim ruler, Michel Djotodia, in January. The anti-Balaka claim to be taking revenge for atrocities committed by mainly Muslim Seleka rebels after Mr Djotodia seized power in March 2013. Full story.

Human Rights Watch reported that entire Muslim communities have disappeared. Baoro was once home to at least 4,000 Muslims and more than a dozen mosques. Now there are none. The last Muslims of Boali left for Cameroon. The last Muslims of Yaloke, where more than 10,000 had lived, left for Chad.

Thousands of people are believed to have been killed, and 2.2 million, about half the population of CAR, need humanitarian aid as a result of the conflict. More than 650,000 people are still internally displaced, and over 290,000 have fled to neighbouring countries in search of refuge from the conflict. Full story.
 

Child victims of sexual violence and forced prostitution

Nearly 50,000 Colombian children, most of them girls, were raped and/or sexually abused by warring factions in the country’s armed conflict between 2008 and 2012, according to a new report. The report also raises the alarming issue of children being used in “networks of forced prostitution” in regions where foreign contractors work in the oil industry.

Colombia has been mired in fighting between state security forces, leftist rebels and right-wing paramilitary militias for five decades. All of these armed groups, along with drug-running criminal gangs, are responsible for sexual violence against children, says the study by Oxfam International and 10 non-governmental organisations. Full story.

Read CRIN’s background on the armed conflict in Colombia and its impact on children.

UN rights panel denounces the international community’s inaction on Syria

As the Syrian war enters its fourth year, the violence shows no signs of subsiding, said Paulo Sérgio Pinheiro, Chair of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic, denouncing the international community’s inaction in the pursuit of peace and accountability.

The Commission of Inquiry presented a detailed report on the living conditions in the region and outlined a list of individuals – on all sides - believed to be responsible for crimes against humanity.

According to the report, nearly nine million people – a third of the population – have fled their homes. In addition to the 2.5 million refugees, there are an estimated 6.5 million internally displaced people inside Syria, and millions more living in enclaves surrounded by violence. “This is the tragic reality of the Syrian war,” stated Mr. Pinheiro in his presentation, adding that “no one can claim ignorance of what is going on. […] Compassion does not and should not suffice […] we cannot continue to sit for years in these rooms, writing reports and making speeches lamenting the blood that is running in Syria’s streets.” Full story.
 

Fighting continues in South Sudan

Despite the signing of an agreement to cease hostilities at the end of January, fighting between government and opposition forces in South Sudan has increased in recent weeks.

The conflict began on 15 December following a political dispute between President Salva Kiir and his former deputy Riek Machar, that escalated into full-scale conflict, with some of the fighting along ethnic lines.

On the invitation of the South Sudanese government, Ugandan forces entered the country to help protect the airport, presidential palace and other installations in the capital but have been accused by rebels of fighting alongside government forces in various flashpoints.

Nearly 900,000 people - half of them children - have already been forced from their homes. Full story.

The UN peacekeeping chief has called on parties in South Sudan to respect the cessation of hostilities agreement they signed two months ago.

Meanwhile, Human Rights has Watch reported that both pro and anti-government armed forces are responsible for serious human rights abuses that may amount to war crimes.

Publication

The 1612 Monitoring and Reporting Mechanism: A Resource Pack for Non-Governmental Organizations

Watchlist on Children and Armed Conflict (Watchlist) has launched its new ‘Resource Pack for NGOs on civil society engagement in the UN-led Monitoring and Reporting Mechanism (MRM).

In 2005, the Security Council established the MRM on grave violations against children in armed conflict under its resolution 1612. The purpose of the MRM is to ensure the systematic gathering of accurate, timely and objective information on grave violations committed against children in armed conflict. Such information is used to foster accountability and compliance of parties to conflict with international child protection standards. Read more on the MRM here.

The aim of the Resource Pack is to provide NGOs with the tools necessary to help them define whether, and how, to engage in the MRM in a way that strengthens both their programmes and the mechanism itself. Download the resource pack here.

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