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[LONDON, 28 July 2006] - As the election approaches in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the numbers of children being re-recruited to fight, work as porters, sex slaves, cleaners, and cooks is on the increase. Despite Save the Children’s preventative work and care for demobilised children in eastern DRC, large numbers of children remain in militia groups and more are being actively recruited. Between January 2004 and June 2006 more than 19,000 children were released, but Save the Children estimates that thousands more remain in armed groups and forces. Between 30-40 per cent of those are girls, many of whom have been victims of sexual violence. Just over a month ago, 12 children were abducted on their way to be reunified with their families in North Kivu. Save the Children’s work on reunification and reintegration cannot succeed if children continue to be re-recruited. Save the Children’s Child Protection Programme Manager in North Kivu says “there is a lack of trust from the children themselves in the whole process and towards us if we cannot adequately protect them from re-recruitment and serious exploitation”. In Goma alone, over 160 children are waiting to be reunified with their families but Save the Children is unable to reunify the majority of them because of insecurity and the risk of re-recruitment. 15 children, who had already been reunified with their families, recently returned to Goma to seek our protection. We call for the release of all child soldiers and the immediate cessation of recruitment of children into armed groups and forces and the enforcement of law against those who commit violence against children. The International Community must protest and take a strong stand against impunity for these acts, as well as call upon the newly elected government to protect and support children in the DRC - one of the toughest places in the world to grow up. Over 10 years of ongoing conflict and severe poverty has lead to the complete collapse of systems and infrastructure critical to children’s survival and development. As a consequence, around half of Congolese children are excluded from health and education services. Further information
pdf: http://www.savethechildren.org.uk/scuk/jsp/resources/details.jsp?id=4304...