PRESS BRIEFING BY SECRETARY-GENERAL'S EXPERT ON IMPACT OF WAR ON CHILDREN
Press Briefing
PRESS BRIEFING BY SECRETARY-GENERAL'S EXPERT ON IMPACT OF WAR ON CHILDREN
19961108
FOR INFORMATION OF UNITED NATIONS SECRETARIAT ONLY
"It is my responsibility to speak for the millions of children whose voices have been silenced forever and for those voiceless children still alive", said Graca Machel, the Secretary-General's appointed expert, in a Headquarters press briefing this morning as she introduced a United Nations report on the Impact of Armed Conflict on Children.
"Don't turn your eyes away", said Ms. Machel, former Minister of Education of Mozambique, and she charged the press to look into the eyes of the children whose faces were captured by their cameras. Onlookers must feel the pain, anger and longing to be just children. She wanted today's press conference to make a difference in the lives of children who had lost their childhood. She was launching the report on behalf of the women and children she had met to give them a face and a voice.
Ms. Machel, who was joined at the press conference by Executive Director of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), Carol Bellamy, had spearheaded the report in an effort that involved the participation of the victims as well as that of experts. She was introduced by Assistant Secretary-General for Public Information, Samir Sanbar. The report was initiated by the General Assembly in its resolution 48/157 which requested the Secretary-General to appoint an expert to undertake the comprehensive study.
The report was a collective effort, she said, and UNICEF had worked closely with the outstanding leaders who were associated with the study and with her own team of advisors who represented a range of varied disciplines.
Among the key recommendations of the report were that the age of military recruitment should be raised to 18. "No child under 18 should have any role in any armed force of any kind", she stated. All children now in an armed force, whether governmental or non-governmental, should be demobilized.
Rape as a weapon of war must be deemed a war crime, she continued. In addition "internally displaced" children, those who have become refugees in their own countries, needed special attention. She called on UNICEF to take the lead in providing protection and care of internally displaced children.
The report also stressed the particular danger that land-mines posed to children. Although there was an international campaign for a complete ban on the production, use, trade and stockpiling of land-mines, it was still an issue around which the international community had not reached agreement. The report emphasized the importance of mine clearance as well as mine-awareness
programmes designed for children and the need for child-oriented rehabilitation programmes for children.
By the year 2000, there should be strong public opinion against using children as soldiers, rape as a weapon of war and the use of land-mines, she asserted. The Security Council, when it adopted mandates for peace-keeping operations, should refer to protection for children. Peace-keeping forces should be educated as to the special circumstances of children impacted by war. Humanitarian assistance programmes must be broadened to include psychological and emotional assistance, and appropriate training should be given to humanitarian workers.
She said the international community seemed powerless to prevent the repeated conflicts that flared up around the globe. Despite tragedy after tragedy and emergency after emergency, the international community had failed to find the mechanisms to avert conflict. It was not tackling the root causes. The media and the delegations at the United Nations must believe that they could make a difference. "Each of you in your own capacity" could do something to change the situation. She stressed the importance of developing a culture of respect for children's rights.
"We don't need more treaties" but to adjust and aggressively implement existing globally agreed upon standards, she said. People have not been punished for violating international agreements. The tools existed, but the political will was lacking. Violence against children was testimony to the failure of the international community to fulfil its responsibility to children.
In other remarks, she said the nature of warfare had changed -- it now targeted children deliberately, separating them from their families and the institutions that provided security. In today's conflicts, over 90 per cent of war casualties were civilians and half of those were children. Adults were able to talk about their victimization, but one rarely heard from the children. She had spoken to a nine-year-old girl from Sierra Leone who had been raped by soldiers, and a remorseful 15-year-old soldier who had lost his childhood. She had heard a Cambodian mother tell of seeing her children blown to pieces by land-mines in the family fields just when she believed they had made it home safely after the war.
Ms. Bellamy said "war is the ultimate violator of children's rights". Children needed peace. The recommendations of the report, particularly concerning the ban on land-mines, recruitment under 18 and sexual violence, needed to be instituted immediately and could not wait until the wars were over. UNICEF welcomed the report which was clear and comprehensive. She hoped the challenge would be heard, and that a difference would be made in a short period of time.
Machel Press Briefing - 3 - 8 November 1996
In response to a question, Ms. Machel said that children who had been affected by war would be part of the presentation this afternoon when the report would be presented to the Third Committee, and also at the Children's Parliament on 13 November.
Asked what she meant by the phrase "targeting children" she gave the example of deliberate attacks against primary schools. The attackers had to know that children were there. Also, children were specifically kidnapped. The attackers chose the most sensitive targets to show power and control, to destroy the pride of a community. They knew that any man who failed to protect his wife and family would be totally demoralized. It was a coordinated strategy that seemed to be becoming global in its application. Most of such acts were committed by so-called "rebel groups" who want to attain super control and instill fear.
Asked why increasing numbers of children were becoming soldiers, she said commanders had told her that children were impressionable and easy to dominate. They were good soldiers because they obeyed orders without challenge. Moreover, when they lost their parents and communities, they often joined armed forces for food and safety. Revenge for atrocities committed against their families might also be a factor. In poor communities, children were easily recruited as the breakdown in the social network made them more vulnerable. In her opinion, no child who lived in a safe, protective and intact family and community "volunteered" to be a soldier. The so-called volunteers rarely had another choice.
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