4 March 2009 - CRIN Children and Armed Conflict 128
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**NEWS IN BRIEF**
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ICC: Updates on Sudan, DR Congo and Israel [news]
Lost track of what's going on at the International Criminal Court? Here's a quick update.
For more information about how the ICC works, go here.
Sudan: ICC issues arrest warrant for Omar Al Bashir, President of Sudan
Today, Pre-Trial Chamber I of the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued a warrant for the arrest of Omar Hassan Ahmad Al Bashir, President of Sudan, for war crimes and crimes against humanity. He is suspected of being criminally responsible... for intentionally directing attacks against an important part of the civilian population of Darfur, Sudan, murdering, exterminating, raping, torturing and forcibly transferring large numbers of civilians, and pillaging their property. This is the first warrant of arrest ever issued for a sitting Head of State by the ICC.
Read more.
The International Criminal Court is accepting supporting evidence of children's drawings of the alleged crimes committed in Darfur. Read more here
Comment: Keeping a lid on ICC arrest warrants (Institute of War and Peace Reporting)
DR Congo: Lubanga trial continues
Four former child soldiers have testified before the International Criminal Court against Thomas Lubanga, who is currently on trial for enlisting children under 15 and using them to participate actively in hostilities.
Read daily reports on the trial of Thomas Lubanga, including testimonies of former child soldiers, at: http://www.lubangatrial.org/
Israel: ICC deliberates case
Meanwhile, the ICC is discussing whether the Palestinian Authority "is enough like a State" to bring charges against Israel for committing alleged war crimes in Gaza.
Hamas accuses Israel of killing some 400 children in the recent conflict. Israel insists that fewer than 300 civilians – including women, children, elderly people and non-combatants – were killed.
The difference could partly be explained by the differing definitions of “child”: whereas Hamas considers anyone under the age of 18 a child, Israel's definition of a child is those under 16 for Palestinians (in Military Order No. 132) and those under 18 where Israeli children are concerned (as stated in the 1962 Guardianship and Legal Capacity Law, and the Youth (Trial, Punishment and Modes of Treatment) Law).
[Israel National News, The Guardian, Concluding Observations 2002, UN Committee on the Rights of the Child]
Useful links
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USA: Halfway Home - Unaccompanied children in immigration custody [publication]
Conditions of care for unaccompanied immigrant children in the custody of the U.S. government have markedly improved over the last six years, but more must be done to protect the safety and basic rights of these vulnerable children, cautions the Women's Refugee Commission in its new report, "Halfway Home: Unaccompanied Children in Immigration Custody."
In 2007, the Women's Refugee Commission and Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP embarked on a landmark study to assess the conditions of care and confinement for children in immigration proceedings without a parent or guardian and to determine the effectiveness of a 2003 transfer of custody from the former Immigration and Naturalisation Service (INS) to the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) in the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
The resulting report is based on the findings of visits between April 2007 and February 2008 to more than 30 programmes operating under ORR's Division of Unaccompanied Children's Services (DUCS), three facilities where Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detains children and three Border Patrol stations. The Women's Refugee Commission and Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe interviewed staff, attorneys, advocates, social workers and more than 200 children.
"Unaccompanied children are some of the most invisible and vulnerable migrants," said Michelle Brané, Director of the Women's Refugee Commission's Detention and Asylum Programme. "They have little understanding of what is happening to them, and the majority are repatriated to their home country without so much as an evaluation to determine whether they have a fear of return. The U.S. government has a special responsibility to provide for and protect unaccompanied children crossing into our country."
More than 90,000 unaccompanied children were apprehended in 2007 along the southern border of the United States. Most were returned to Mexico (the country of nationality of the majority of these children), some were reunited with family and approximately 8,000 children were placed in immigration proceedings and in U.S. custody.
Many of the children who are apprehended are fleeing persecution, gang violence, sexual abuse or abandonment. Others come to reunite with family members who are already in the U.S., or to seek a better life for themselves. An increasing number are victims of traffickers and smugglers. All are highly susceptible to rape and assault during their arduous journey to the U.S.
Separating prosecution from care
In an effort to separate prosecution from care, the Homeland Security Act of 2002 placed authority for immigration enforcement in the hands of the newly-created Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and responsibility for children's care and housing decisions with ORR. In March 2003, ORR created DUCS to implement a more child welfare centered model of care. The Women's Refugee Commission was pleased to see that improvements have been made in the treatment of vulnerable unaccompanied children in the last six years and commends ORR for their cooperation with our evaluation.
"Some children are now placed into foster care, and most of the children in DUCS custody reside in more child-friendly shelters and group homes," said Brané. "They enjoy better medical and mental health care and educational services than before, and many more are reunified with parents or relatives while they await a decision in their immigration case. However, we've found that the transfer of custody is not yet complete and challenges remain for ORR."
"ORR has more than twice as many children in its care than at the time of the transfer," said Rene Kathawala, pro bono coordinator of Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe. "As the number of children in the system has increased, some DUCS sites have become more institutional in nature. And while many facilities do provide excellent care to the children, there are also a number of sites where policies and procedures are not being met, where children may be subject to overly harsh disciplinary techniques and where services are lacking."
A lack of effective oversight contributes to inconsistencies in service delivery and delays in addressing grievances and safety concerns. Furthermore, said Kathawala, "DUCS shares confidential information from children's case files with DHS in conjunction with court proceedings and when children are released. DHS can then use this information against children in court and to re-detain released children with their parents."
In addition, although DUCS is the legal custodian for unaccompanied children, the report also found that DHS exercises significant and inappropriate influence over their custody and care, including retaining custody of some children whom the Women's Refugee Commission considers unaccompanied—and who therefore should be transferred to DUCS within 72 hours of being apprehended.
"Moreover, children in DHS custody for any length of time are housed in inappropriate and unsafe conditions in Border Patrol stations, juvenile detention centres and, at times [as a result of flawed age determination procedures] in adult detention facilities," said Brané. "DHS serves as gatekeeper in deciding which children will be transferred to DUCS, and when. And because DHS has not adequately responded to our inquiries about children in their custody, we don't know the total number detained or their whereabouts. This is clearly an area of significant concern."
New legislation proposed
Congresswoman Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-34/CA) shares these concerns. In a few weeks, she will re-introduce the Immigration Oversight and Fairness Act. The legislation will require DHS to provide independent licensed social workers at the majority of Border Patrol stations so that children are informed of their legal rights and provided with emergency medical and mental health care, bedding, blankets, recreation and adequate nutrition. It will also ensure that children are kept safe from abuse during transfer to DUCS or upon repatriation and would prevent DHS from co-mingling unaccompanied children with (non-relative) adults or juvenile offenders.
If passed, the legislation will provide the first codified standards of treatment for children during the critical hours and days after they are apprehended by Border Patrol but before they are transferred to DUCS.
The Women's Refugee Commission has a strong record of advocacy on immigration issues, and it looks forward to working with Congress and the new administration to build upon advances made in the quality of care given to this vulnerable population.
According to Brané, "In order for the United States to uphold its responsibilities to children, DUCS, ICE and Border Patrol must take the final steps to complete the transfer of custody and implement monitoring and oversight to ensure that children in custody are safe. We have an obligation to ensure that all unaccompanied children are placed in safe, appropriate settings, have access to legal counsel, and enjoy protection from harm."
Recommendations
Halfway Home details a few critical areas that warrant significant improvement. Key recommendations follow:
- ICE, Border Patrol and ORR must clarify the definition of unaccompanied alien child so that no child remains in ICE or Border Patrol custody for more than 72 hours, regardless of criminal history.
- DHS and HHS must implement the William Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008 (TVPRA)—a major step forward in protecting unaccompanied children which will resolve some of the deficiencies we observed (see the Women's Refugee Commission's December 11th statement on the legislation).
- To protect their best interest, children in immigration proceedings must be provided with guardians and attorneys. Most children must now represent themselves in court and navigate the complex immigration system on their own—an exceedingly difficult task for anyone, much less a child.
- DUCS should take steps to enhance internal monitoring and oversight to ensure that sites are in compliance with DUCS policies and procedures and that complaints and concerns are addressed quickly and effectively.
- An independent agency or organisation with expertise in child welfare service delivery should conduct an analysis of the DUCS program and structure, and issue recommendations for a service delivery model that brings the program fully into line with recognized child welfare practices.
For more information, contact:
Women's Refugee Commission
122 East 42nd Street, New York, NY 10168-1289, USA
Tel: +1 (212) 551-3115
Email: [email protected]
Website: http://www.womensrefugeecommission.org/
Further information
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SIERRA LEONE: Special Court convicts rebels of child recruitment and other war crimes [news]
[FREETOWN, 25 February 2009] - A U.N.-backed court for Sierra Leone convicted three rebel chiefs on Wednesday of war crimes and crimes against humanity during the country's 1991-2002 civil war, including the first ever convictions for forced marriage.
The war saw bands of rebels including drug-crazed child soldiers kill, rape or chop the hands off innocent villagers in a conflict fuelled and financed by gems taken from its eastern diamond fields.
Issa Hassan Sesay, Morris Kallon, and Augustine Gbao, the most senior surviving commanders of the Revolutionary United Front (RUF), were all found guilty of most, but not all, of the 18 individual counts against them. All had pleaded not guilty.
"These individual leaders were responsible for some of most serious crimes known to humankind," Chief Prosecutor Stephen Rapp said in a statement after the court handed down its verdict in Sierra Leone's coastal capital Freetown.
Sesay, Kallon and Gbao became the first people in the world to be convicted specifically of attacks on peacekeepers and of forced marriage, described as "inhumane acts" in one of four counts of sexual violence of which all three were found guilty.
"(The court) recognises the very deep and long lasting suffering inflicted upon women through conscription as 'bush wives' during the Sierra Leone conflict," said Rapp.
"It sends a message that may deter such attacks against the men and women who are protecting individuals, restoring security, and keeping the peace across the globe," he said.
All three were also convicted of recruiting child soldiers. Sesay and Kallon, convicted of a total of 16 out of 18 charges, and Gbao, found guilty on 14 counts, are expected to be sentenced in March.
RUF founder Foday Sankoh died in detention in 2003 while awaiting trial and his estranged deputy Sam Bockarie died the same year. The leaders of both the other major militias in the war also died or disappeared before they could be sentenced.
Warning
The Special Court, the first of its kind, was set up in 2002 to try those accused of the most serious crimes in a war that killed 50,000 people.
Wednesday's verdict was the third collective judgement it has handed down after members of two militia groups were convicted in 2007, and was the first judgement of members of the RUF, whose rebellion triggered the conflict.
"The RUF led a campaign of terror which tore apart the lives of countless ordinary Sierra Leoneans," said Corinne Dufka, West Africa researcher for U.S.-based Human Rights Watch.
"The countryside is dotted with villages which endured massacres, mutilations, rape and pillage on an alarming scale. Today's important verdicts have validated this suffering, and will no doubt serve as a warning to current day perpetrators the world over," she said.
Former Liberian President Charles Taylor, who is accused of fomenting Sierra Leone's conflict during his own country's brutal 1989-2003 civil war in return for diamonds from Sierra Leone's east, is also on trial before the Special Court.
His trial is being held in The Hague due to fears that it may endanger regional stability if held in West Africa, meaning Wednesday's convictions are likely to be the last ones handed down by the Court's judges in Sierra Leone.
[Source: Reuters]
Further information
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CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC: Child abuse, rape, armed recruitment rampant, UN reports [publication]
[10 February 2009] – Grave violations against children are being perpetrated by all parties to the various conflicts in the Central African Republic (CAR), including rape and armed recruitment into the fighting forces, according to a United Nations report released in February
Non-State armed groups and bandits are also kidnapping children as a means of recruitment and to threaten and extort ransom from the population, while abuses against youngsters generally are committed in a climate of impunity, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon writes in his latest report to the Security Council on children and armed conflict in CAR.
“I call on all parties to the conflict to immediately and without precondition cease the recruitment and use of children and to identify and release to the United Nations those children already in their ranks,” he says.
“In addition, I appeal to the Government to address the prevailing culture of impunity for grave violations against children, including child recruitment, sexual violence and abductions, through rigorous investigation and prosecution,” he adds, stressing that this should include members of the army and Presidential Guard where evidence exists of abuses perpetrated by them.
Mr. Ban notes children have been consistently recruited and used by non-State armed groups, including Government-backed self-defence militias, and that the country as a whole has been marked by a state of permanent rebellion “that has had dire humanitarian consequences.”
“In addition to violations committed by rebel groups, the national armed forces, particularly the Presidential Guard, have also been responsible for widespread human rights abuses, including extrajudicial executions. This has provoked massive displacement of the population. Thousands of people have fled to forest hideouts where they lack even the most basic means for survival,” he says.
Several rebel groups are active throughout the country, with a high concentration of such forces in the northern regions, despite various agreements signed over the past two years, and this has been exacerbated by a spill-over from the conflicts in neighbouring Chad and Sudan’s Darfur region.
“The Central African Republic continues to have some of the worst child survival indicators in Africa. Given the poor human rights situation and the humanitarian crisis, children are particularly vulnerable to a range of grave violations,” Mr. Ban writes. “It is estimated that children account for half of the total number of the internally displaced population, and these children also lack access to basic education and health services.”
He notes that attacks on and the burning of villages by all parties have resulted in the deaths of hundreds of children. The frequent and systematic abduction of children, especially in the north “is a critical concern,” perpetrated mostly by rebels groups and highway bandits for the purpose of recruitment or to extort ransom money. Rapes and abductions by the Ugandan rebel Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) have also been reported during its incursions into CAR.
Welcoming recent progress in the so-called Inclusive Political Dialogue process and the Comprehensive Peace Agreement, Mr. Ban calls on all parties to ensure that the rights of children are taken into full consideration in establishing peace and in the post-conflict recovery and reconstruction phases, and pledges that the UN will work with all parties to end the abuses.
[Source: UN Security Council]
Further information
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COLOMBIA: Financial woes may drive children into battle [news]
[BOGOTA, 11 February 2009] - Global financial turmoil could drive more children to become fighters for Colombia's rebel groups as the country's poorest people suffer the fallout of the economic slowdown, a U.N. agency said on Wednesday.
Colombia's Marxist guerrillas and paramilitary gangs often recruit children as fighters and spies and the government estimated last year that as many as 8,000 children were still caught up in the four-decade-old conflict. They entice child soldiers by offering money.
"The armed groups aren't going to suffer the recession like the country's poor," Paul Martin, a United Nations Children's Fund representative in Colombia, told reporters.
"They're going to keep offering a million pesos to children who live and struggle more each day from the crisis and each day are more likely to accept those offers," he said.
Violence from the Andean country's conflict has eased since President Alvaro Uribe sent U.S.-backed troops to retake areas once under the control of illegal groups. FARC rebels have been driven back into the remote jungles and mountains.
Investment has soared as bombings and murders fall, but Colombia recently cut its growth outlook for this year and next as it absorbs the impact of the financial crisis rattling markets and economies across the world.
Aid agencies say the FARC guerrilla force is stepping up forced recruitment of children to fill ranks sapped by a string of military defeats and scores of desertions.
Children as young as 10 are used as informants or to transport arms and are later trained as fighters.
In 2006, a rights group reported as many as 11,000 children and teenagers may have belonged to Colombia's armed groups. But the Defense Ministry estimated last year that figure was closer to 8,000.
[Source: Reuters]
Further information
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**NEWS IN BRIEF**
Publication: "Children in War" (Research Center for Evacuee and War Child Studies)
http://www.crin.org/resources/infoDetail.asp?ID=19736&flag=report
Sri Lanka: Child conscription stepped up (AFP, 18 February 2009)
http://www.crin.org/resources/infoDetail.asp?ID=19653&flag=news
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