SRSG on children and armed conflict: Annual report 2017, para. 16
Paragraph- Paragraph text
- In countries such as Afghanistan, Iraq, Israel, Nigeria and Somalia, as well as others, hundreds of children have been detained, sometimes for specific criminal offences, but often purely for association with parties to conflict. Given the vulnerability of children who have been recruited and used, the Special Representative once again urges Member States to ensure that children's reintegration is the prevailing approach and that children are treated primarily as victims of recruitment. This approach is in accordance with the Geneva Conventions, in which it is stated that children should be the object of special respect and that parties to the conflict should provide them with the care and aid that they require. This protection is not lost even in cases where a child has been recruited and used by a party to conflict. In addition, Member States that have ratified the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict should strongly heed the provisions stipulating that all feasible measures should be taken to ensure that persons recruited or used in hostilities are demobilized and that appropriate assistance is afforded for their physical and psychological recovery and their social reintegration. Standard operating procedures for the handover of children encountered during military operations to child protection actors are important tools for adhering to the principles of the Optional Protocol. In recent years, handover agreements have been signed by the Governments of Chad, Mali, Somalia and Uganda, and together with UNICEF and other United Nations entities the Special Representative has continued advocacy with Member States and provided technical support for the development of new procedures during the reporting period.
- Legal status
- Non-negotiated soft law
- Body
- Special Representative of the Secretary-General for children and armed conflict
- Document type
- SRSG report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Year
- 2017
- Paragraph type
- Other
- Paragraph number
- 16
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