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https://theirworld.org/explainers/child-soldiers

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We should stop child soldiers

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Many of the children fighting in the Democratic Republic of Congo's militia groups were abducted and forced to enlist. But researchers have found that girls are joining the groups voluntarily, motivated by a lack of access to education and a future with no prospects.
Throughout the decades-long conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), children have been abducted and made to serve as soldiers. While most are male, it is estimated over a third are female, used mainly as domestic and sexual servants, but sometimes as fighters. Now the London-based NGO Child Soldiers International (CSI) has released a report showing that many of the girls in armed groups weren't enlisted by force. They joined of their own free will - driven by poverty and a lack of access to education.

The NGO interviewed over 200 female former child soldiers following their escape from local militia groups, collectively known as the Mai Mai. The researchers found that many of the girls who had joined by choice cited the burden of school fees as their primary reason. Education was beyond their reach, but life with an armed group would at least offer them food, security and, they thought, better opportunities. "I was pushed out of school for failing to pay the fees, so instead of roaming aimlessly in town, it was better to go and help [the militia] in the bush," one girl was quoted as saying in CSI's report.

"Sometimes they join the Mai Mai encouraged by their parents, who think that providing their children to the armed group can protect the family against attacks and looting," says Sandra Olsson, spokeswoman for CSI. "Although it may sound like a choice, in reality it could be their only option to escape a life of utter poverty or to protect themselves from constant and terrifying attacks on their villages."

But for all the girls who join, whether voluntarily or by force, the reality is that life under the control of armed groups is one of servitude and abuse. As one of the girls interviewed by CSI put it: "Life in the bush was only suffering."

The girls said they were used as domestic servants and sex slaves. Many were repeatedly raped, often by different men, and drugged. "I would wake up and find myself naked," one victim told the researcher. "They gave us drugs so that we would not get tired of all of them using us."

The girls also described how they were forced to loot goods and then carry the heavy spoils through the bush, for hours and sometimes days. Those who were too weak to carry their pillaged load were killed.

But for many of the girls, escape offered little relief. When they finally make it back home, girls who have been living with the Mai Mai are "often stigmatized and rejected by the community and also experience difficulties in rehabilitation," says Dede Nkuluba, spokeswoman for Reconfort, a local organization that helps reintegrate former child soldiers.

The assumption that all female child soldiers are used for sex leads to many of them becoming isolated and, as a result, living in poverty. "For the majority of girls we interviewed, we were struck to find out that a major source of distress came from the current stigmatization, if not outright rejection, they faced when they finally returned home, because [in their words], they had 'known men in the bush,'" says the CSI's Olsson.

"Some of the girls we talked to even said that they had considered going back because they couldn't take the pain of being stigmatized and excluded from community life," she says. Furthermore, advocates believe this stigma could explain why many girls choose to stay in the militias and suffer.

Though it's difficult to get accurate figures for the number of girls within the Mai Mai, the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) estimates that girls make up around 30 to 40 percent of children in armed groups. Between January 2009 and November 2015, out of 8,546 former child soldiers registered by MONUSCO, only 7 percent were girls. That leaves a disproportionately high number of girls either unaccounted for or still serving as members of the armed groups.

The former female child soldiers who spoke to CSI researchers said, that when they escaped, they left many girls behind. As well as fearing rejection by their communities, girls within the groups are often subjected to stricter security measures than boys. And during demobilization, girls aren't considered soldiers but "wives" and, in some cases, mothers, so they are often held back, or hidden away, when militia commanders hand over the children in their ranks to child-protection agencies.

Despite their ordeals, many of the girls interviewed by CSI still hold on to dreams of a better life. According to Nkuluba of Reconfort, many female child soldiers find it difficult to re-enter the school system because they are usually too old by the time they manage to escape. But the girls in the CSI study said they were determined to get an education in the hope that it would lead to a positive identity and acceptance by their communities.

One recurring theme in the CSI's research is the importance of access to education for girls, both in helping those who are trying to reintegrate and for preventing them from joining the Mai Mai in the first place.

"Prevention is rarely prioritized in a situation of ongoing conflict," says Olsson. "We need long-term interventions to stabilize and pacify communities. Education is an important part of that."
This article originally appeared on Women & Girls Hub. For weekly updates, you can sign up to the Women & Girls Hub email list.

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Girls In The DRC Are Choosing To Be Child Soldiers To Escape Poverty

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Many of the children fighting in the Democratic Republic of Congo's militia groups were abducted and forced to enlist. But researchers have found that girls are joining the groups voluntarily, motivated by a lack of access to education and a future with no prospects.

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Ten years ago world leaders agreed to work together to stop the use of child soldiers - progress has been made but there are still child recruits in countries around the world. As many as 300,000 children are believed to be serving as soldiers in armed conflicts around the world - depriving them of a normal childhood and education.

These boys and girls, some as young as seven, serve in government forces and armed opposition groups. They fight on front lines, participate in suicide missions and act as spies, messengers or lookouts.

Girls are often forced into sexual slavery. Many are abducted or recruited by force, while others join out of desperation, believing that these armed groups offer their best chance for survival.

Last week, leaders gathered in France to mark the 10th anniversary of the Paris Commitments to end the use of children in conflict.

At least 65,000 children have been released from armed forces and armed groups in that decade, according to the United Nations children's agency UNICEF.

"Ten years ago the world made a commitment to the children of war and matched it with action - action that has helped give 65,000 children a new chance for a better life," said UNICEF Executive Director Anthony Lake said at the Paris anniversary talks.

"But today's meeting is not only about looking back at what has been accomplished - but looking forward to the work that remains to be done to support the children of war."

Here's a look at 10 of the countries where child soldiers are still be recruited and used in conflicts.
AFGHANISTAN
The Afghan National Police, the Afghan Local Police and three armed groups including Taliban forces, were listed as perpetrators by the UN in 2015. Also in that year Child Soldiers International interviewed a 17-year-old boy from Kunar province who had signed up when he was 15 or 16 using a fake ID card. During his recruitment, only the doctor who completed his medical examination asked his age. He went on to join a group of approximately 60 other new recruits for training in Kabul. He thought that around a quarter of them were younger than him.
CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC
As many as 10,000 children were used by armed groups involved in the latest conflict in CAR, according to Child Soldiers International. Armed groups in the mainly Muslim Séléka coalition and predominantly Christian militias called Anti-Balaka both used children as young as eight. The children are used as combatants, guards, human shields, porters, messengers, spies, cooks and/or for sexual purposes.
DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO
In 2011 it was estimated there were 30,000 child soldiers in DRC. In January-February 2016, Child Soldiers International spent six weeks in eastern DRC and interviewed more than 150 former girl soldiers. Children continue to be recruited and used by numerous armed groups. Girls are often used as "wives" and sexually abused by their commanders and other soldiers. Although a third of all children associated with armed groups in DRC are thought to be girls, they make up only about 7% of children released to date. When they are released or escape from armed groups, they receive little or no support to reintegrate into their communities, and many are shunned.
IRAQ
Human Rights Watch has documented the recruitment or use of children by Sunni and Shia Arab armed groups fighting in Iraq, including militias in the battle to retake Mosul. Armed groups in Iraq affiliated to the Kurdistan Workers' Party have recruited boys and girls, according to an HRW report in December. It documented 29 cases in northern Iraq in which Kurdish and Yezidi children were recruited by two armed groups, the People's Defense Forces (Hêzên Parastina Gel, or HPG) and the Shingal Resistance Units (Yekîneyên Berxwedana Şingal, or YBŞ).
MYANMAR
Internal armed conflicts have seen children widely used by both state armed forces and armed groups. Despite a minimum enlistment age of 18, large numbers of boys have been recruited, often forcibly, into the national army. Child Soldiers International has helped secure the release of 700 children from the army since 2012 while action has been taken against 382 national army officials.
NIGERIA
The terrorist group Boko Haram recruited 2000 child soldiers in 2016, according to the UN. It was also reported that they used girls as suicide bombers in Maiduguri, when two bombs went off killing at least one person. A local militia member, Abdulkarim Jabo, was reported to have said he thought the girls were each aged about seven or eight, commenting: "They got out of a rickshaw and walked right in front of me without showing the slightest sign of emotion. I tried to speak with one of them, in Hausa and in English, but she didn't answer. I thought they were looking for their mother. She headed toward the poultry sellers, then detonated her explosives belt."
SOMALIA
In April 2016, the UN reported that 903 children had been recruited - 555 by Al-Shabaab. Around 150 children were reportedly abducted for recruitment purposes from madrasas by Al-Shabaab in the Bay region. Of those cases, 26 (all boys) were verified by the UN. The Somali National Army also recruited a high number of children (218), who were used for various tasks, such as manning checkpoints. Recruitment was also attributed to clan militias (68), Ahl al-Sunna wal-Jama'a (40) and Galmudug forces (17).
SOUTH SUDAN
An estimated 17,000 children have been recruited in South Sudan since 2013. Many children were recruited by the Cobra Faction and the SPLA In Opposition, two armed groups which have been fighting the government. Last October, 145 child soldiers were released, according to UNICEF.
SYRIA
Since 2014, warring sides have recruited children as young as seven. More than half of children recruited in cases verified by UNICEF in 2015 were under 15. Children have been filmed executing prisoners in grisly propaganda videos by the Islamic State group. Last year the UN said: "A total of 362 cases of recruitment and use of children were verified and attributed to ISIL (274), the Free Syrian Army and affiliated groups (62), Liwa' al-Tawhid (11), popular committees (5), Kurdish People's Protection Units (4), Ahrar al-Sham (3), the Nusrah Front (2) and the Army of Islam (1). Of the verified cases, 56% involved children under 15 years of age, a significant increase compared with 2014. The payment of salaries and ideology continued to be major influencing factors."
YEMEN
There have been nearly 1500 cases of child recruitment in Yemen since the escalation of hostilities in 2015. According to UNICEF, this is a long-term problem in Yemen. In Yemeni culture, it's considered that a boy enters manhood at the age of 14 or 15 - and part of being a man is taking up a weapon. The UN documented nearly 850 cases of child recruitment in 2015, a five-fold increase over 2014. Houthi forces recruited a majority of these children - but Popular Committees and the extremist group Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, which at times reportedly fought alongside pro-government forces, also recruited children. In 2013, the UN secretary-general cited reports of young boys being recruited by Al-Qaeda, also called Ansar al-Sharia, for sexual exploitation.

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10 countries where child soldiers are still recruited in armed conflicts

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Ten years ago world leaders agreed to work together to stop the use of child soldiers - progress has been made but there are still child recruits in countries around the world. As many as 300,000 children are believed to be serving as soldiers in armed conflicts around the world - depriving them of a normal childhood and education.

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Their shouldn't

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If there are child soldiers I they will see something that will effect them in the future, and for some children it may scar them for life.

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If children are made to use guns and witness deaths then we are missing out on them helping society grow. They could be the humans that discover the cure to cancer and we are missing out because they are fighting in conflicts.

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There are as many as 300,000 children under the age of 18 presently serving as combatants around the globe. Their average age is just over 12 years old. The youngest ever was an armed 5 year old. The youngest ever terrorist bomber a 7 year old in Colombia.

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Kids shouldn’t have to use guns because they might think it’s a toy and 🤬someone for no reason. And the could get really really made at someone and shoot them by accident.

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The UN have made five plans to end the recruitment of child soldiers.they are
1.issue  military commands orders prohibiting  the recruitment and use of child soldiers.
2.release all children in the ranks of security forces
3.ensure children’s reintegration in civililian life
4.Criminalize the recruitment and use of children
5.interagrate age verification mechanisms in recruitment procedures.

https://www.google.com.hk/url?sa=i&source=web&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwjC8Ir--trgAhUFQd4KHTM-AQcQjB16BAgBEAM&url=https%3A%2F%2Fchildrenandarmedconflict.un.org%2Fchildren-not-soldiers%2F&psig=AOvVaw1Qzc0fkumkDxVkdhCFbMFl&ust=1551324150258227

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Around the globe, Human Rights Watch has documented the recruitment and use of children as soldiers. Today, child soldiers are fighting in at least 14 countries.

WHERE has been using CHILD SOLDIERS?
Afghanistan
Burma
Central African Republic
Chad
Colombia
Democratic
Republic of Congo
India
Iraq
Philippines
Somalia
South Sudan
Sudan
Thailand
Yemen

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In Africa there is  120,000 child soldiers and most of them are under 18 years old. In the 20th century nearly half of the child soldiers died,  but after the wars unicef helped the republic of Africa andmade  a school for all the child soldiers.

Click here
👇🏻

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Thomas Lubanga has been arrested in the DRC for using child soldiers in the civil war there.He was a warlord who tried to control the gold-rich area of Lituri.He faced 14 years in prison and is still serving it in the DRC after being sentenced in 2014. He is comparable to Ugandan warlord Joseph Kony but Kony hasn’t been caught after his guerilla war.

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Found guilty, on 14 March 2012, of the war crimes of enlisting and conscripting children under the age of 15 years and using them to participate actively in hostilities (child soldiers). Sentenced, on 10 July 2012, to a total of 14 years of imprisonment. Verdict and sentence confirmed by Appeals Chamber on 1 December 2014.

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Child Soilders

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Nigeria uses child soldiers, but from the recent news Nigeria is releasing many of them back to their homes.

At this moment in time there are estimated 1092 child soldiers still active but all previous 1190 soldiers have been released. Although this 570 child soldiers have been killed due to enemy forces and its own people.

Many of these children were abducted, not deciding to join. There have been many survival stories of abductions.

Website:https://childrenandarmedconflict.un.org/where-we-work/other-countries/nigeria/

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Boko Haram’s attacks  used an alarming number of children as “suicide bombers”. 203 cases in Nigeria and Cameroon were verified in 2017. More than 3,000 cases of recruitment by armed groups in DR Congo were reported in 2017. At least 19,000 under-18s are believed to be participating in the conflict in South Sudan.

Website:https://www.child-soldiers.org/news/annual-report-2017-18

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WHERE?

From 2016, there have been reports of the use of child soldiers in:

·      the Philippines

·      Myanmar

·      India

·      Pakistan

·      Afghanistan

·      Somalia

·      Yemen

·      Iraq

·      Syria

·      Libya

·      Sudan & South Sudan

·      Colombia

·      Mali

·      Nigeria

·      Cameroon

·      Central African Republic

·      Democratic Republic of Congo

HOW MANY?
It is unclear how many child soldiers there are, but it is estimated to be in the tens of thousands, if not in the hundred thousands.

WHY?
Children are vulnerable, cheap and easily manipulated. In addition, states that still allow child recruitment tend to be larger and wealthier than average, and they spend more on their military.

WHAT IS BEING DONE?

The UN and Child Soldiers International is looking to set a strict Straight-18 standard. For example, Australia, China, France, Germany, Saudi Arabia and the USA allow enlistment from age 17. Brazil, Canada, and the UK are among the small handful of countries that set the bar even lower, at age 16.

Information has been sourced from Child Soldiers International and the UN.

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Around the world child soldiers is still an issue. In todays world 300,000 children are being requited to fight and work in wars. A horrible 40% of armed forces still use children soldiers. In places like
-Syria
-Yeman
-Myanmar
- India
- Sri lanka
- Somalia
are among the worse. The children who are most likely to be chosen are the children who are poor, with no family and little to no access to education. On top of that woman who are chosen are usually to be used as the 'wives' and are sexually abused by the soldiers. After a while when the child soldiers are released, they normally find it very hard to fit into society as they are not used to it.

Sources:
https://borgenproject.org/shocking-facts-about-child-soldiers/
https://www.child-soldiers.org/news/child-soldiers-world-index-reveals-shocking-scale-of-child-recruitment-around-the-world
https://reliefweb.int/report/central-african-republic/10-countries-where-child-soldiers-are-still-recruited-armed

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The use of children by armed forces is a violation of children's rights. However, children are still used as soldiers around the world and someone must put a stop to it. Children around the world are used as shields, cooks, suicide bombers, fighters, spies, messengers and/or for sexual purposes. Some children are forced into combat and others volunteer as they believe it will give them a sense of security or because their families are already dead and they need someone to take care of them (supplying food and water etc).
A lot of these children are brainwashed and manipulated into thinking it is okay to be serving as a soldier and some end up with many psychological problems.

RESPONSES:
- Child helplines being set up as well as community-based child protection networks.
- Psychological support, which includes counseling to help children regain a sense of normality and help their mental state of mind.
- The Borgen project, which is a nonprofit organization that works towards ending poverty and hunger in some of the countries that recruit child soldiers.

Find more on:
https://www.warchild.org.uk/what-we-do/protection?gclid=CjwKCAiAnsnjBRB6EiwATkM1XuMLX8e-b9BHtzlyA9b43fiNXwbcSEIoC4uz7gLHwZHuDqNDk4qWvxoCWV8QAvD_BwE

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In 2017 there are about 240 million child soldiers around the world all of them have to face violent and hunger in the armed forces

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For example, in one survey taken of child soldiers in Asia, the average age of recruitment was 13. However, as many as 34 percent were taken in under the age of 12. In a separate study in Africa, 60 percent were 14and under. Another study in Uganda found the average age to be 12.9.

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Child soldiers are also used in different ways they can be cooks , spies , messager , frontline soldier or even used for sexual purposes . The military  organisation found that recruiting children are easier than adult because alot  of children needs food and shelter so they have to join the military force inorder to stay alive

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Children in the military are children who are associated with military organisations, such as state armed forces and non-state armed groups. Throughout history and in many cultures, children have been involved in military campaigns

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London, 11 February 2019
The number of children used in armed conflict around the world has more than doubled since 2012 with a 159% rise and almost 30,000 recruitment cases verified, new analysis ahead of International Day Against the Use of Child Soldiers reveals.

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Child soldiers (by Joseph, James, and Clement) 7D

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Child soldiers (by Joseph, James, and Clement) 7D

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Child soldiers are children under the age 18 who are recruited by the military of any country and are used to fight. Child soldiers are trained to 🤬 and show no mercy. Some children are even under the age of 10

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Malay Muslims in Thailand’s southern border form a large, distinct majority in the region, which for more than a century has sought independence from Thailand. A number of separatist groups have waged an insurgency since the 1960s, and in 2004 the violence escalated dramatically. Separatist groups have orchestrated numerous deadly attacks targeting the security forces and civilians. State security forces have also committed human rights violations when attacking suspected insurgents. More than 6,400 people have been killed in the violence to date.

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The use of child soldiers in Central African Republic has affected all parts of the country for a long time.
Muslim armed groups have been using children as spies, guards and messengers.
https://www.child-soldiers.org/central-african-republic

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Each of the young people receives 10,000 Nepalese as well as rehabilitation assistance from the government and the United Nations in Nepal. This assistance includes formal schooling, vocational training, education as health workers, and help with setting up small businesses.
https://www.unicef.org/protection/nepal_52791.html

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child soldiers can vary from combatants to cooks, spies to messengers and even sex slaves.
Each year children from aged 8-9 are with armed groups. Girls are also included in armed groups but are exposed to sexual assaults.
No matter what child soldiers suffer emotional and physical damage.
The  UN are working to stop this by giving child soldiers Psychosocial support, education and training.
I got this info from:
https://childrenandarmedconflict.un.org/children-not-soldiers/there is quite a lot of information on the page so look into it more!!!!!!!

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In Somalia, the voluntary age to join the army is 18 by law but lower in practice. There is no specific age when you have to enrol for the military. In Somalia there are reports stating that whenever Somalia is engaged with a war they will use child soldiers to fight in war. UN (United Nations) have signed an action plan saying that they will try to do something about Somalia not having child soldiers. I think they are trying very hard to help but they might not be trying that hard because UN signed the form in 2012 but in 2017 they still had child soldiers.

Why is it wrong to have child soldiers in Somalia?

It is wrong to have child soldiers in Somalia because when you are 18 you are an adult and you have a choice whether to join the army. But if you are below the age of 18 then you are not exactly an adult so you will have to be forced into doing what you don't want to do.

I got this info from:
A. The dictionary because it helped me understand words I didn't know

B. The website below,
make sure to check it out!!!!!!

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the use of child soldiers in Somalia has been an ingoing issue. In the battles for Mongadishu, all parties involved in the conflicts such as the union of islamic courts, the alliance of peace and counter terrorism and the transitional federal government forces recruited children for use in combat

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1. around 2.2m malnourished children are in yemen right now.
2.  2015/16 there were 1275 children under the age of 18 recruited for armed forces.
3. the yemen conflict is still going on right now. it started back in 2015 and is still going on in 2019!

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Around South Sudan, there are about 19,000 child soldiers.

BBC news have been to South Sudan four years ago and interviewed a person which he and his four friends were forced to be part of the army.

The link for the video is here: https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-africa-29759135/south-sudan-s-child-soldier-proble

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Reasons why child soldier are recruited for human shields and suicide bomb

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Afganistan has the most child soldiers in the whole world 🌍
They range from 10 to 18 years old.
These children are used in war and traficking

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Nepal

2.7 billion children was forced to join the army because:

A safer place than home
Food suplies
Revenge for killing their relatives
Forced to be in the army
Website used: https://www.refworld.org/docid/4988063d28.html

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1. Child soldiers are any children under the age of 18 who are recruited by a state or non-state armed group and used as fighters, cooks, suicide bombers, human shields, messengers, spies, or for sexual purposes.

2. In the last 15 years, the use of child soldiers has spread to almost every region of the world and every armed conflict. Though an exact number is impossible to define, thousands of child soldiers are illegally serving in armed conflict around the world.

3. Some children are under the age of 10 when they are forced to serve.

4. Credit:https://www.dosomething.org/us/facts/11-facts-about-child-soldiers

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Afghanistan has the most Child Soldiers, boys and girls, some as young as seven, serve in government forces and armed opposition groups. They fight on front lines, participate in suicide missions and act as spies, messengers or lookouts.

Girls are often forced into slavery. Many are abducted or recruited by force, while others join out of desperation, believing that these armed groups offer their best chance for survival.

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Dreaming big after being a child soldier | UNICEF

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In Afghanistan, children were used in the first and second civil conflicts and were known as Kadagos (which means ‘little ones’ in Swahili). It had been estimated

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There was an interesting discussion in 8A about what armies should or should not be allowed to do in a war situation. For example, if a country is being attacked, should they not allow children to defend themselves. This topic relates to the Geneva Convention. The video below explains what these rules are and you can find more information on the Red Cross website below. How does this topic relate to child soldiers? Why might it be important?
https://www.icrc.org/en/document/what-are-rules-of-war-Geneva-Conventions

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International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC)

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What are the Rules of War? | The Laws of War  | ICRC

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Natalie, Meisa and Candy(New Updated Version)

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Natalie, Meisa and Candy(New Updated Version)

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India Child Soldiers

When: 2013

Where: India

How:

According to the Asian Centre for human rights, there were 3000 child soldiers in India in March 2013. There are 500 in Northeast India and 2500 in extremely affected areas.

Indian boy child soldiers aged from six to twelve are used as spies and they are trained in basic drills and they are armed with rifles. Young girls participate in the same drills as boys and they are trained to lead operations from the front. Indian boy child soldiers aged above twelve are used as fighters. They are trained to make and plant land mines and bombs.

Once the child soldiers are caught they are abused and once they are released they are bullied by other people who haven’t experienced what they have experienced and they are mentally injured from their experience of being a child soldier.

How can we help them:

Donate to Child Soldiers International Organisation (https://www.child-soldiers.org)to stop and end all recruitment of children by armed forces and groups.

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We can raise awareness of the child soldiers by putting posters up around the school and creating online potition that people can sign to help raise awareness of these child soldiers and the more people who care the quicker the prowill  stop

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War in Sudan
https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2017/jul/24/south-sudan-child-soldiers

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Did you know that the most child soldiers is in the democratic republic of Congo.
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/drc-child-soldiers_us_587000cee4b099cdb0fd2de0

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Afghanistan's government is trying new ways to help young men who fought with the Taliban.

Some of them are as young as 12 and have been sentenced for offences such as attempted suicide bombing or possessing roadside explosive devices.

Prison authorities are converting what were once cells into classrooms, using education and games and a more compassionate approach to reverse what they describe as Taliban brainwashing.

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NIGERIA CHILD SOLDIERS:
There had been around 6500 children recruited since 2003.
And about 8700 child soldiers were released in 2017.
All of the children in the army are under 18.

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Child soldiers in Thailand .
During 1998 to 2001 there are 60,856,000. Child soldiers in Thailand.
The rebels’ daily shootings, bombings or stabbings have stoked paranoia among their targets: INFIDSLS Thai Buddhists, and their “running dogs,” non-separatist Muslims with ties to the government.

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We can help by putting posters up around the school and..............

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Reasearch on the child soldiers in 2019:

Child soldiers are still here in 2019, for example,Colonel Tun Tun Win of Myanmar's Ministry of Defense speaks about reunite more than 1 700 children with their parents. Colonel Tun Tun Win of the Ministry of Defense said that the army has taken action against the use of child soldiers in Myanmar based on regulations of the International Labor Organization (ILO) (a United Nations agency that sets global labor standards and promotes social protection for workers).

Conclusion, the ILO’s regulations, the Tatmadaw has taken action from 2007 to 2018 against a total of 379 military personnel, including 64 officers and 315 other ranks in accordance with military discipline.

🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂Thank you for your reading attention
🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂

https://www.rfa.org/english/news/myanmar/myanmar-has-returned-more-than-1700-child-soldiers-01172019164747.html

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When: 2006~2016
Where: Nepal
How: The youngest child soldier are only 8 years old. They are forced to join a army and fight for their country

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When:2006-2016
Where: Nepal
How:the youngest child soldier are only 8 year old. They often force to

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Thailand child soldiers
Near the south of Thailand
Many Malay Muslim were forced to join the army.
There are many deadly attacks and more than 6400 children died during the war.

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Child soldiers in Somalia
A large percentage of child soldiers that has been recruited by Al-Shabab (A military group)The children that is the youngest is as young as 9 year old! More than half of Al-Shabab members are believed to be children according to the U.N. The childrens that was recruited to Al-Shabab was forced to go to war. Child soldiers in detention are threatened, tortured and are forced to sign confessions. Former child soldiers of Al-Shabab all have difficulties finding a job with little to no skills or education.

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The average amount of child soldiers are at the age of 16. This happened during 2002 to 2009 in Sri Lanka. A total of 594 of child soldiers. Children as young as 11 years old has been abducted {kidnapped}. 6000 people have been killed, including child soldiers.

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We are currently researching child soldiers in Uganda.
Who abducted the children: Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) who were rebelling against the president, Yoweri Museveni. They made children commit acts of violence against other kids, even their own siblings.
Where: Uganda
When: 1987-2004
Why: To create a group to rebel against the president.
How many children abducted: (1988-2004) 30,000.
Other countries in which LRA abducted 27 children in 2018: Republic of the Congo, Sudan and The Central African Republic.
Statistics: 30% of the child soldiers are female. 30+% of the LRA is made up of children who were born within the LRA.

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The Palestinians’ child soilders

When: Wars between Palestine and Israel.
Where: the refugees in the West Bank (Palestine)
How: Children have organised themselves to express their frustration with the Israel military occupation by attending protests , throwing stones and even child suicide bombers at the Israeli army.
Death caused: more than 12dozens of them are killed and more than 1200 are injured.

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We are investigating about Child soldiers in Syria 🇸🇾.

In Syria It works with peacekeepers, police, prison and military officials to train them "to prevent the recruitment and use of child soldiers in the field."

The Dallaire initiative trains people on the 12 most common scenarios in which they would encounter child soldiers as an enemy force, such as in a battlefield scenario, as suicide bombers, children wanting to exchange sex for food and at military checkpoints

Thirteen-year-old Bah Bola, a member of a militia fighting for Liberian President Charles Taylor, readies to leave for the front line in Monrovia on June 15, 2003.

Once the peacekeepers are out of sight, she uses a cellphone to call some child soldiers down the road who are monitoring a checkpoint. Once the peacekeepers arrive there, they interact with the child soldiers.
Shelly Whitman, the executive director of the initiative, said without training, the adult is likely to overreact and escalate the conflict.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/dhx-media-training-videos-child-solider-initiative-1.4540681

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Child Soldiers in Syria🇸🇾

We are currrently investigating about Syrian child soldiers.
Since 2011, there is an estimate of 2.5 million Syrian children with a lot of poverty to make the soldiers with revenge and confilct. Under the age between 6 and 18, they were armed by the armed groups when the Syrian war continues in the past. This also happened in 2016, which was three years ago, the number of soldiers and deaths of children and adults are risising in a more devastating amount in the country. Moreover, a lot of the child soldiers had been kidnapped by the army and soldiers to have serious revenge and conflict to the Arabs and the Muslims. To do this, the Syrian army had forced the child soldiers to go the struggling families that they do not know how to survive.

When: 2011-2018
Where: Syria
Why: Since the huge amount of soldiers and an army called ISIS wanted the children to join the government, there were dire situations and the families are struggling to survive will be killed for no food and no fresh water.

https://borgenproject.org/child-soldiers-in-syria/

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India Child Soldiers

When: 2013
Where: India
How: According to the Asian Centre forhuman rights, there were 3000 child soldiers in India in March 2013. There are 500 in Northeast India and 2500 in extremely affected areas. Indian child soldiers aged from six to twelve

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Tymon Lau, Justin Tsz Ching Wong, Rohan Krishnan 

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Tymon Lau, Justin Tsz Ching Wong, Rohan Krishnan 

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Child Soldiers in Britain
When:2003-2010
Where: Afghanistan and Iraq

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https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/dhx-media-training-videos-child-solider-initiative-1.4540681 This is a link to a website where the company that made teletubbies are making support on child soldiers

In India and a few more places, to drug child soldiers the army’s used a solution of sugar cane juice with gunpowder and making it look like water or some type of drinking liquid and this solution makes the kids high or confident.

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We are currently investigating child soldiers in South Sudan.
In 2018, around 900 child soldiers were released, however, the country still contains the largest amount of child soldiers in the world. Ammounting to over 19,000 child soldiers in their army.

These child soldiers were forced to join both sides of the army during the south Sudanese Civil War in December 15, 2013.

“Commanders have deliberately and brutally recruited and used children to fight, in total disregard for their safety and South Sudan’s law,” Says Daniel Bekele.

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We chose to investigate about child soldiers in Afghanistan there a child soldier who’s now 17 and got a fake ID when he’s around 15-16. 861 child killed in 2017, 10% decrease then the number from 2016 casualty rates remain very high. 2318 children injured including 251 girls. 3179 child casualties. There were 58 attack at the hospital and children used as bodyguard and had them learned for suicide attacks and also planted improvised explosive devices.

https://childrenandarmedconflict.un.org/where-we-work/afghanistan/

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CHILD SOLDIERS IN NIGERIA

Recently, Nigeria released 833 child soldiers. In 2017 there are more than 2000 child soldiers, they uses 🤬 to keep the children violent and it is really bad for their health

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Child Soldiers in South Sudan

According to the UN, there are still 19,000 children in armed forces in South Sudan. According to UNICEF, the number of child soldiers in South Sudan have been increasing since the war began in 2013. Some children have managed to escape but haven’t been found an haven’t gone through a rehabilitation programme. Thousand seven of these child soldiers are unlikely to be freed from the South Sudan Civil War due to lack of funds from aid agencies, of those who are managed to be saved there are still a lot more waiting in military camps in the bush. After being abducted, children might be raped or sent to attack their families to sever ties. Any escape attempts were punished by either hand amputation or molten plastic being poured onto the skin.

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CHILD SOLDIERS IN SYRIA
Child soldiers in Syria can be as young as 10 when they join and are usually forced to join against their own will. In the last 15 years, the use of child soldiers has almost spread to almost every region of the world. They are used as fighters, cooks, subside bombers, human shields, messengers, spies and even for sexual purposes.

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1.If the children attempt to leave, they get abused badly.

2.They use children not as soldiers, but as human shields too, suicide bombers, and executioners. As young as 8 years old.

3.Some children are under the age of 10 are forced to leave their families or elimnate
them and become child soldiers.

4.Some children went to school, and never came back the parents didn’t know why, it turns out they were forced to leave school and join the army.

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Where were the child solder?
Child soldiers were in Thailand …
When do child soldier happened?

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Child soldiers in Chad

The child soldiers recruitment and started since July 2008 and persists until now. Although, the security council on children has put out a report that addresses the issue of recruitment and use of children in mid 2009. Since then, the Chadian authorities have tried to issue clear orders to its military chain of command, including at the local level, perhibting the recruitment and use of children in line with its international human rights and humanitarian laws and to insure that the inmme release of all children.

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NIGERIA CHILD SOLDIERS:
There had been around 6500 children recruited since 2003.

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Child Soldiers in Afghanistan:
The Taliban have been recruiting child soldiers in Afghanistan. They use Islamic Religious schools to train the children from a young age. The children learn military skills around the age of thirteen. Usually the children do not join by force; families often enrol their children in the Taliban schools because they provide food and clothing. Certain children who were just six years old are also used as suicide bombers. One of the only reported female child soldier was a trained suicide bomber. Child soldiers are mostly used by the Taliban, but the Afghan national police sometimes use children as cooks and guards at checkpoints. Since 2012, the number of child soldiers has doubled. There were originally 4000, and now there are 8000. Around 5000 child soldiers have died in the past two years. Afghanistan ranks as the worst place to be born in the world, partly because of the recruitment of child soldiers. Poverty, violence, health and child abuse also contribute to this. Afghanistan is also the second poorest country in the world, and life expectancy at birth is supposed to be the lowest.

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Who are child soldiers?
Child soldiers are children who are illegally recruited and forced to fight during war. They are manipulated and sometimes even drugged; the recruiters will go to extreme lengths to get them to fight. Rarely, they decide to volunteer so that they can receive care as their family is dead and they are too young to provide for themselves. They were even forced to 🤬 their family if they weren’t already dead.

What was it like after the war?
Usually they would return to their normal lives either in their own country or they migrated to another. However this was not easy. They would often still be very young by the time the war had ended and they usually had no family to return to