Selected links on Children in Armed Conflicts
More than 5000 children are, on a daily basis, displaced due to armed conflicts somewhere in the world. Many of these are able to run away from the violence together with their families,
but an increasing number may look track of their loved ones and find themselves alone in a threatening situation.
Among these, some will be recruited into armed groups. Whereas some children have been abducted and forcedly separated
from their families, others have been driven to volunteer as a result of social exclusion, and family breakdown, or
after witnessing atrocities. Children, both girls and boys, even under the age of 15 are cynically included and used
as cheap and expendable tools of war, and too many are also exposed to sexual abuse and exploitation in the context of
armed groups. Over the past decade we have seen the number of child soldiers increasing. And as small arms and light weapons
become more accessible the children are readily armed, forming part of the ongoing violent conflicts in the different and often
forgotten corners of the world. Despite strong international focus on preventing and bringing to halt, the active participation
of children in war, there is a long way to go. And at the same time, the work to help the children out of this, to provide them
with safety, education, rehabilitation and social networks represent an extremely important and complex endeavour.
In the following, practical work and experiences, along with international conventions and regulations are presented
in order to inspire and strengthen this necessary work among children and young persons who have been exposed to loss,
violence and lost childhoods.
Children in Armed Conflicts and International Conventions
UN and Regional Reports
Mental Health after Armed Conflict
Rehabilitation and Reintegration
Organisations and sites
- The Watchlist on Children and Armed Conflict
strives to end violations against children in armed conflicts and to guarantee their rights.
They strategically collect and disseminate information on violations against children in conflicts
in order to influence key decision-makers to create and implement programs and policies that effectively protect children.
- Child soldier relief Rehabilitation centers around the world
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Children and War Foundation Works for more solid knowledge about children to improve the care of all children affected by war and disaster.
- The Children and Armed Conflict Unit aims to keep the issue of the impact of armed conflict on children in the public and institutional eye through its web-site, which provides accessible information on conflicts and relevant international standards and norms as well as good practices relating to children.
- The Child Rights Information Network (CRIN) is a global network that disseminates information about the Convention on the Rights of the Child and child rights amongst non-governmental organisations (NGOs), United Nations agencies, inter-governmental organisation (IGOs), educational institutions, and other child rights experts.
- Childsoldiers.net is the website of the Belgian organisation Childsoldiers/ Kindsoldaten vzw,which was established by Belgian journalist Els De Temmerman in the year 2000. Its objective is to help ex-child soldiers in Uganda to re-enter mainstream society by means of a school-fee sponsoring programme.
- UN's webpage concerning children and armed conflict A collection of relevant UN documents compiled by The Special Representative of the Secretary-General of Children and Armed Conflict
- War Child International network Linkpage on child soldiers
- War Child International network Linkpage on children in conflict
- The Coalition to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers
works to prevent the recruitment and use of children as soldiers, to secure their demobilisation and to ensure their
rehabilitation and reintegration into society.
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