How can child soldiers be rehabilitated

How can I help rescue child soldiers? Photo: Mark Nonkes 2. Although child soldiers are often forcefully recruited, it is not the primary way that children, both male and female, become involved in armed conflict. Participation frequently comes down to despair.

It is far more common that coercion, in partnership with desperate circumstances, plays a role in this choice. Therefore, when trying to end the scourge of child soldiers, it is necessary to work not only with armed groups, but to consider other means by which the cycle can end. Addressing the root cause of the child soldier problem means tackling the numerous other factors that impact recruitment. These factors can include:. In areas of armed conflict, people can find themselves in refugee camps, internally displaced person camps, or in other informal settlements where education is severely limited or non-existent.

A lack of education often means a lack of income opportunities. Thus, joining an armed group becomes an employment or survival strategy. For child soldiers, personal financial or familial economic situations rank high as a reason to join. When food and resources become scarce, the alluring promise of barracks that offer a warm bed and readily available food is difficult to resist. Poverty is also a root cause of girls becoming child soldiers.

In fact, far more girls join than previously thought, though they are recruited for different reasons. Girls are used as wives and girlfriends of the soldiers and are commonly pushed into those relationships.

Girls are also often used as spies. While the physical effects of being a child soldier are varied, the horrors of armed conflict do leave long-lasting psychological effects. The UN, NGOs and Member States, can make concrete commitments to better support the children who need reintegration by: — ensuring programs receive appropriate financing through rapid emergency and long-term funds; — being an active voice in changing the perception of child soldiers, particularly in the debate on violent extremism.

These children, more than any other children affected by conflict, are in need of tailored psychosocial support and reintegration processes; — finally, supporting educational and vocational opportunities for these children. While the cost of reintegration may seem large, it is insignificant compared to the cost of protracted conflict. Your Majesty, Three years ago, you decided to dedicate your first official visit abroad to the issue of child rights.

I am sure your presence here with us will further strengthen our collective determination to continue with this important task and will hopefully reinforce our appeal to Member States.

Previous Next. Kabba Williams [former child soldier from Sierra Leone], Your Majesty, I wanted to sincerely thank you for dedicating your time and interest to this crucial issue of reintegration of children affected by armed conflict. Your Majesty, Ladies and Gentlemen, Reintegration is indeed a challenge, but we can draw on successful examples from the past and adapt them to current needs. Related Posts. Thursday, 7 October Monday, 28 June Statement: Event to commemorate the 7th official observance of the International Day for the Elimination of Sexual Violence in Conflict.

Thursday, 17 June Remarks by Ms. Friday, 7 May Instead, they become victims, desensitized to violence, capable of perpetrating violence long after a conflict has ended. Against such odds, can rehabilitation and reintegration be used to help children have meaningful and productive postwar lives? Medical treatment is instrumental in getting former child soldiers rehabilitated and reintegrated.

In the case of girls, who are casualties of intense sexual abuse and violence: systematic rape and mutilation, immediate medical care is critical as their wounds are internal. Child soldiers needing to reintegrate into a community face double discrimination, as their actions and their current physical state might be considered taboo.

These transitory care centers care for the child for three months, focusing on nursing the child back to health and providing immediate psychological therapy. Children come from an amalgam of different backgrounds-various ethnic and armed groups- to aid in showing them that grief; depression and anger are common side effects in their post-war recovery period.

Betancourt's groundbreaking research and work on this topic has shown that breaking the cycle of violence is possible, but difficult. The second step is establishing support groups for the child in their community. These therapy sessions offer safe spaces for children. Art is a great medium to use when a child cannot articulate the trauma they have experienced. It is one form of therapy employed in rehabilitating child soldiers. Absolute numbers are impossible to come by and even the U.

Since , countries have ratified it. But progress has been slow. Security Council Resolution —which set up a monitoring , reporting, and compliance mechanism—notes that much works remains on this agenda, especially since most egregious violations are by non-state actors.

In the Middle East all sides in the ongoing conflicts have been accused of using child soldiers , with the forcefully displaced at special risk. On an almost daily basis, children are featured in multiple contexts, from highly publicized executions and training camps to Quran memorization fairs and dawa proselytizing caravans.