Book argues child soldiers should be seen as both victim and perpetrator

Child soldiers have murdered and maimed, sometimes members of their own family. In Sierra Leone. In Uganda. In Colombia. In Liberia. The list goes on and on. But should these young fighters be lumped in with the alleged architects of war crimes committed in such places as the former Yugoslavia, Rwanda, Sierra Leone and face prosecution for war crimes before international tribunals? If they are not prosecuted, are they more likely to be chosen by warlords, commanders and other leaders to perform the “dirtiest” orders?

International legal and human rights experts explore the issue at length for the first time in a new book released Wednesday, and they conclude there are better ways to hold young recruits to account than hauling them before international courts aimed at punishing the strategic planners of genocide and crimes against humanity. “Those courts deal more with the architects of the crime, the higher command, the military leaders, officers and generals,” said Vasseline Popovski, a co-editor of International Criminal Accountability and Children’s Rights. “The major job of the prosecution is to show this was a strategic crime. Children are not involved in this. They are executioners. But they are not architects of the crime.”

Popovski, a specialist on international justice at the United Nations University in Tokyo, said the authors of the book agreed there are occasions when child soldiers, defined as anyone under the age of 18, should be held accountable. But they encouraged countries, and domestic and international courts to adopt child-oriented policies, which recognize the child soldiers as both victim and perpetrator. It could mean exchanging amnesty for young fighters for their agreement to participate in truth-and-reconciliation tribunals and peace-building exercises, Popovski said.

The authors also encourage international tribunals to impose tougher punishment on the those convicted of war crimes when more of the victims in the bloodshed are children. Popovski singled out Sierra Leone, where minors can be prosecuted for murder, as a leader in the field of dealing with child soldiers. Rather than prosecution, he said, the prosecutor of the special court of Sierra Leone, after consulting with the local population, has opted for the reconciliation route.

In essence, the authors argue the recruitment of children is in itself a war crime. They also encourage international tribunals to impose tougher punishment on those convicted of war crimes when more of the victims in the bloodshed are children. “Even if child soldiers commit crimes, their recruitment is already a crime in a way they are victims already of another crime before they commit murder and rape,” Popovski said in a telephone interview from Tokyo.

According to UN statistics, more than 300,000 young men and women have been illegal recruits in more than 30 conflicts around the world in the last decade. Though some sign up voluntarily, the bulk of them are conscripted. The agency says some are as young a six years old and about 40 per cent are girls. Popovski says the post-conflict situation for girl soldiers is distressing because they suffer from most of the sexual abuse. It is more difficult for them to integrate back into their communities because they are viewed as promiscuous, violent and unruly, he said.

Norma Greenaway
25 October 2006

http://www.canada.com/ottawacitizen/story.html?id=b3a43fd1-cb00-4cc2-95db-9c7be6f04d8b&k=21059

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