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From 4 to 7 July 2006, 56 participants from 22 countries met in Switzerland, to attend a four-day forum on Armed Groups and the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict (the forum) organised by the Coalition to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers (the Coalition). The forum was held in response to a growing recognition of the need to broaden the constituencies involved in the dialogue around the recruitment and use of children by armed groups and to develop more effective and coordinated approaches to armed groups on the issue of child soldiers. As such, the forum provided a platform for a broad range of international, national and local actors to exchange views and experiences and to consider the development of collaborative, multi-sector approaches to addressing the use of child soldiers by armed groups. In particular, it drew on the expertise of participants in implementing different approaches to influence the policy and practice of armed groups and examined how these can best be applied to the protection of children in conflict situations. Particular effort was made to ensure representation from grass root or local actors who confront, on a daily basis, the impact of conflict on children, often their own, whose experiences and views are not widely heard and therefore do not always inform approaches to armed groups. Participants included representatives from: Coalition partners from civil society groups and local non-governmental organisations (NGOs) working in situations of armed conflict in Asia, West Africa, the Great Lakes region, the Middle East and Europe; other civil society groups, community and religious leaders; international human rights, humanitarian, peace building and conflict resolution, and child protection NGOs; UN agencies including the UNICEF and UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA); governments; senior military officials with experience of international peacekeeping operations; mediators in peace processes; academics; former child soldiers; and representatives of armed groups. The forum was organized as part of an ongoing project by the Coalition to help increase knowledge, improve collaboration and develop effective strategies for ending the use of children by armed groups. In support of these aims, the forum focused on three main issues: different approaches used to influence the behaviour and decision-making of armed groups; approaches that have been effective in altering the policy or practice of armed groups, why they have been effective and the limitations of specific approaches; and the relevance of these approaches to preventing child soldier use, securing their release and ensuring their successful reintegration. Four key themes emerged from the forum: the legal framework that applies to armed groups and accountability; the challenges of engaging with armed groups; community engagement and mobilization; and international advocacy. This report provides an overview of these themes, reflecting on some of the key points raised by speakers and participants and the ways in which this has informed the Coalition‟s own thinking on approaches to armed groups. It includes selected examples of specific initiatives that participants have taken to approach armed groups on the issue of child soldiers. The report also contains proposals for future projects to support and strengthen approaches to armed groups that were suggested at the forum. Selected papers presented by experts to introduce various themes and a list of all the Coalition‟s resources on armed groups are contained in Appendix I. In addition to these thematic issues, participants agreed that a more coordinated approach to addressing armed groups was necessary. At a minimum, a greater degree of information sharing between different actors is needed both about the general situation and the armed group itself, but also about the mandates, objectives and working methods of organizations, institutions or other actors engaging with the armed groups. Locally-based groups, in particular, appealed for international actors to consult more closely with them when designing and implementing strategies in the field. Ideally these relationships should extend beyond consultation to coordination and, where appropriate, partnership. Further informationÂ
pdf: http://www.crin.org/docs/CAAC_forum_0807.pdf