Disarmament Diplomacy

News Review

Optional Protocol on Child Soldiers Enters Into Force

On February 12, the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child entered into force, three months after the deposit of the tenth instrument of ratification. In the words of an exultant press release from the UN Children's Fund, UNICEF, the Protocol - opened for signature at the UN General Assembly on May 25, 2000 - "outlaws compulsory recruitment of children under the age of 18 by both government and non-government armed forces" and "raises the previous standard by obligating states to ensure that members of their armed forces under age 18 do not take direct part in conflict". As of February 12, 96 countries had signed the Protocol, with 14 - Andorra, Bangladesh, Canada, Czech Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Holy See, Iceland, Kenya, Monaco, New Zealand, Panama, Romania, Sri Lanka, Vietnam - becoming the original states parties.

In the view of UNICEF Executive Director Carol Bellamy, the "entry into force of the Optional Protocol is vital to the protection of children in today's conflicts. ... Too often, children are forced into combat. They are terrorised in their homes and schools and subjected to abductions, ill-treatment and sexual exploitation." According to UNICEF, currently "over 300,000 boys and girls are serving in government or rebel forces in over 30 armed conflicts in the world".

Among other UN reaction on February 12, Olara Otunnu, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, stated: "Children have no place in war and deserve the highest level of international protection to keep them from being used as child soldiers. This new treaty is a victory for children who have been neglected, abused and sexually exploited by warring factions for decades. ... With the coming into force of the Optional Protocol, we have a universal standard which is also a rallying call to the international community to work more diligently to promote adherence and hold accountable those parties that fail to comply and which continue to see children as weapons of war." In the words of Mary Robinson, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, there "can no longer be any excuses for using children in war", a practice she described as "one of the major causes of human rights violations in the world."

Reports: Treaty on child soldiers takes effect, Associated Press, February 11; Bellamy and Otunnu hail entry into force of Optional Protocol on Child Soldiers, UNICEF Press Release, February 12; (http://www.unicef.org) Campaign against child soldiers gathers speed, Reuters, February 12; Treaty to ban child soldiers starts, Associated Press, February 12.

© 2002 The Acronym Institute.