CRINMAIL 148:
In this issue:
To read this CRINMAIL online, click here
OPAC: The Committee on the Rights of the Child releases its concluding observations
Mexico, Belarus and Ukraine were reviewed under the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict (OPAC) in the latest session of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child. For all three countries, the Committee noted the need for more data, more training programmes and dissemination of the OPAC provisions, as well as the need to raise the minimum age of entry into military schools.
The Committee also regretted the lack of legislation in Ukraine and Belarus that specifically prohibits the trade and export of small arms and light weapons to countries where children are or may have been involved in armed conflict.
The Committee expressed concern to Mexico about the lack of measures taken to prevent the recruitment of children by non-State groups. One thousand children have died over the last four years as a result of the fighting between the army and the organised criminal gangs. Read the Concluding Observations
An alternative report submitted by the Network for Children´s Rights in Mexico (Red por los Derechos de la Infancia en México) reveals that more than 30,000 children and teenagers were recruited by drug traffickers between 2006 and 2010, while 3,664 have been jailed for alleged offences linked to organised criminal groups. Download the report.
Latest news and updates:
International Justice: Rwanda, Sierra Leone
The Special Court for Sierra Leone this week dismissed former Liberian President Charles Taylor's claims of bias. Taylor, who denies all charges of instigating murder, rape, mutilation, sexual slavery and conscription of child soldiers in wars in Liberia and Sierra Leone in which more than 250,000 were killed, challenged the tribunal's impartiality based on United States embassy cables published by WikiLeaks. Full story
Meanwhile Callixte Mbarushimana, the head of a Rwandan rebel group accused of committing war crimes in Democratic Republic of Congo, has been extradited from France to The Hague. Mbarsuhimana faces five counts of crimes against humanity and six counts of war crimes, including charges of murder, torture, rape, inhumane acts and persecution, and destruction of property. Full story
Click here for more information on the International Criminal Court
Click here for more information on Taylor's trial
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Egypt: Children and the protests
Eye-witness accounts tell of the strong presence of children and young people in the ongoing anti-government protests taking place in Egypt. Children's right to freedom of association is enshrined in article 15 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (read CRIN's editorial on children's right to freedom of association) and children should be protected while exercising this right. However, reports suggest a small number of children have been killed in the protests.
Also, in the absence of regular security patrols, boys as young as 12 have been joining their fathers, brothers and neighbours on overnight vigils at checkpoints set up by local popular committees to stop looting and other criminal activity in their neighbourhoods, where they risk becoming victims of violence themselves, Save the Children said. Full story
Click here for more on civil unrest in the Middle East
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UN spotlight on children in Côte d'Ivoire and Afghanistan
Côte d'Ivoire still teeters on the brink of humanitarian crisis as both incumbent leader Laurent Gbagbo and his rival Alassane Ouattara declared themselves president following the disputed November elections. Read more. Radhika Coomaraswamy, the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, has said: “I am deeply troubled by the persistent allegations of killing, maiming and abduction of children in Côte d'Ivoire since the beginning of the post-electoral crisis. Also of concern is that the lack of access makes these allegations extremely difficult to verify. Additionally, girls and boys, who make up the bulk of refugees, fleeing to Liberia are tremendously vulnerable.” Read the full statement.
The Special Representative has returned from a three day visit to Afghanistan where she witnessed the signing of a comprehensive Action Plan between the government of Afghanistan and the United Nations to halt child recruitment and other violations among the Afghan National Security Forces. Full story
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Chad: Recruitment of children in armed conflict
Boys as young as 13 years old are being used as soldiers by officers of the Chadian national army and other armed groups, a new report by Amnesty International says. Thousands of children have joined up in recent years as the Darfur conflict over the border in Sudan has engulfed eastern Chad. Some children have been forcibly recruited. Others are urged by their communities to avenge killings and pillage by armed groups. Download the full report
More on child rights in Chad
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Myanmar: Indiscriminate attacks against civilians put children at risk
Indiscriminate attacks on civilians in the district of Papun continue to be carried out by the military, according to the Karen Human Rights Group. Pregnant women are particularly vulnerable to such attacks, especially while fleeing the military hostilities. Full story
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Gaza: 26 children were shot last year
Children in Gaza are coming under regular gunfire from Israeli soldiers while scavenging in the ruins of buildings bombed during the Israeli invasion of Gaza in 2009, according to a new Save the Children report. The story also cites information from a UNICEF-led Working Group that 26 children were shot close the border last year. Full story
More on Israel's implementation of the CRC
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Yemen: Children still suffer displacement
One third of the population in Sa’ada, Northern Yemen, have fled their homes following the sixth round of conflict between the Houthis and the army in August 2009. Children have been separated from their families, recruited, detained, injured or killed in the clashes. As families flee from the north to escape the fighting, children suffer from the memories of constant bombardments, the widespread use of child soldiers. Full story
THE LAST WORD
"I am deeply distressed by the use of a young boy in a suicide attack today in Pakistan and condemn those who manipulate or kill innocent children to achieve political goals. Today's crime is an unfortunate reminder of the changing nature of war where civilians are more frequently targets or unwilling participants."
(UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, 10 February 2011)
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