CRINMAIL 173:

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News and Updates

Crisis of education in conflict-affected countries

A recent report by UNESCO has noted that, whilst the total number of children out of school has slowly fallen in recent years, the benefits of this progress has not reached children in war zones. In fact, as the report highlights, half of the 57 million children who do not attend school live in conflict-affected countries and urgent action is required to address their needs.

Save the Children have also recently released a paper, “Attacks on Education, The impact of conflict and grave violations on children’s futures”, which examines the different types of attacks on schools, what motivates attacks and their impact on children through case studies collected from countries across the world.

 Meanwhile, Leila Zerrougui, the Secretary-General's Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict, has voiced her deep concern at the recent spike in incidents affecting schools and children in the North-east region of Nigeria and called on the government to investigate these “heinous” crimes and hold the perpetrators accountable. Ms. Zerrougui’s comments come in the wake of a deadly school attack in July by Islamic militants belonging to the Boko Haram group, resulting in the deaths of a number of students. UNICEF also condemned this attack, stating that there is “no justification for the deliberate targeting of children”. The attack has lead to the closure of all secondary schools in the state until the safety of schools can be guaranteed.

Sexual violence in conflicts affecting both genders

New UN statistics show an alarming rise in sexual violence in strife-torn eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, with 705 cases (619 of these being rape) registered this year. This contrasts with only 108 cases being recorded during the same period in 2012. Whilst the attacks have mainly been against women and girls, there have also been a number of assaults against males. The upsurge in violence comes after the end of a nearly two-month-long ceasefire between the Congolese armed forces and M23 rebels. This recent violence has also forced more than 66,000 Congolese, approximately 55 per cent of whom are children, to seek refuge in neighbouring Uganda, with many refugee children recounting being separated from their parents amidst armed attacks in the middle of the night, resulting in the children having to make their own way to the Ugandan border.

The plight of male victims of sexual violence in conflict has also been noted in a recent UN forum, led by the Special Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict, with experts stating that this issue is not new but that boys and men continue to suffer in silence. It was noted that one immediate action should be to address the inadequacies in legal frameworks that ignore or criminalise male victims and allow perpetrators to enjoy impunity. Full story here.

Update on the situation in Syria

Children continue to suffer from the continuing conflict in Syria, with reports of ballistic missiles being used by the Syrian regime to kill civilians, including children, the recruitment of children as combatants by both  sides, the arbitrary arrest and detention of children, and the denial of education as schools come under attack.  Read the full story here.

Following her recent visit to the country, the Secretary-General’s appointed expert on Children and Armed Conflict called for an urgent political solution to be found. Leila Zerrougui also encouraged authorities to enforce the recent law adopted by the government forbidding the recruitment and use of children under 18. Her comments come after the UNHCR’s internal report identified recruitment by armed groups as amongst the key protection challenges for Syrian children. Ms. Zerrougui also voiced concern at children continuing to be detained by Syrian authorities on security charges, or suspicion that they or their families are sympathising with the opposition.

War crimes trials continue

A series of acquittals of Serbian commanders by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) has sparked concerns about the prospects for future prosecutions. The commanders, while undeniably involved in providing support for, or in the chain of command of, units who committed war crimes, were acquitted on the grounds that there was no evidence they had “specifically directed” atrocities. Some international lawyers have raised serious concerns that these rulings could help generals and politicians evade responsibility for crimes carried out by forces under their command in the future.

In a related case, while Radovan Karadzic’s acquittal for genocide committed during the Bosnian war of the 1990s was unanimously reversed by the Appeals Chamber of ICTY recently, this does not amount to a conviction. The presiding judge, Theodor Meron, noted that there was prosecution evidence to suggest that the former Bosnian Serb leader possessed “genocidal intent”, and as a result, this matter has now been remanded to another chamber within the ICTY for further action consistent with the judgment.

Victims of former Chad leader seeking justice

More than 1,000 victims of Chad’s former dictator, Hissene Habre, are seeking to participate in his trial in Senegal, either as direct victims or representing the rights of their deceased family members. Habre is accused of war crimes and systematic torture during his eight years as leader of Chad in the 1980s. The former dictator's arrest in Senegal comes after a gruelling and very long campaign by human rights activists and those that suffered directly under Habre’s regime to bring him to justice.

Zimbabwe accedes to OPAC

On a positive note, Zimbabwe has acceded to the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict, bringing the total number of state parties to 152.

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