PRESS CONFERENCE ON CHILDREN IN DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO

The Security Council must give higher priority to protecting the lives and rights of children in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and holding the perpetrators of abuses accountable, correspondents were told at a Headquarters press conference this morning.

Introducing a 36-page report entitled “The Impact of Armed Conflict on Children in the DRC”, which was released today to coincide with the end of the Security Council mission to the area, Julia Freedson, Coordinator of Watchlist, said that massive violence towards children and abuses of their rights in the DRC should receive immediate attention of the international community. 

Every day, she said, gross atrocities were being committed against Congolese children, including rape, abduction, sexual torture and forced recruitment into armed forces.  The report provided a full picture of the impact of war on children in the DRC, documenting their lack of access to health care and education; the spread of HIV/AIDS; forced participation in the illegal exploitation of natural resources; the use of child soldiers; wide-spread violence against women and girls; and death and injury from landmines and small arms.

Also participating in the press conference on behalf of Watchlist –- a non-governmental organization initiative to improve monitoring, reporting and follow-up action on the impact of armed conflict on children -- were Anne Edgerton of Refugees International and Kathleen Hunt of Care International.  The press conference was sponsored by the Permanent Mission of Canada.

Highlighting some of the key findings of the report, Ms. Edgerton said that the situation in the DRC represented one of the largest humanitarian tragedies on the planet today.  More people had died as a result of violence, malnutrition and disease in the Congo during the past week than had perished in the war in Iraq to date.  The needs of the country were dire and immediate.  The Ituri region served as an example of the violence in the eastern part of the DRC.  While the United Nations, and the Security Council in particular, had responded to the challenge, more needed to be done.  It was imperative to stop massive atrocities, particularly against women and girls.  Continued recruitment of child soldiers also required urgent attention.

Ms. Hunt focused on the recommendations provided in the report, saying that, first of all, all the parties to the conflict needed to adhere to the norms of international law and provide safe and unimpeded humanitarian access to the population in need.  Obviously, special attention should be given to the most vulnerable groups of the population, including children.  Other key issues included the recommendation to immediately end all abuse against children and ensure their security and rights.  She welcomed the fact that the Security Council had taken on the problem of children in armed conflict, issuing four major resolutions on that issue, most recently in January (resolution 1460).  Children’s security and rights also should be included as a priority item on the Council’s agenda. 

Regarding the United Nations Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC), Watchlist was recommending that the Council expand its mandate and capacity to include protection of civilians, including children and adolescents.  To that end, full deployment of MONUC to its full strength of 8,700 was being recommended, as well as immediate deployment of peacekeepers to Ituri.  Women and girls should be protected against all forms of gender-based violence, and the Department of Peacekeeping Operations needed to attach particular attention to that matter. 

Also, Ms. Hunt said MONUC staff should continue to receive training in international human rights and humanitarian and refugee law relevant to children.  The non-governmental organizations were also calling for HIV/AIDS education, testing and counseling for all peacekeepers in accordance with Security Council resolution 1460.  Allegations of abuse, sexual exploitation and all forms of misconduct by civilian MONUC personnel should be properly investigated.

Responding to a question regarding the number of women and children subjected to abuse and forced recruitment, Ms. Edgerton said that in the DRC, everything was an estimate.  The number of internally displaced persons in the Congo was estimated at 2.7 million.  Estimates regarding child soldiers ran between 30,000 and 50,000.  All the parties to the conflict named in resolution 1460 used child soldiers.  What she had personally witnessed in the past several years was that, as a result of increased attention to the matter, recruitment had moved from cities to remote areas.  The fact that recruitment had become much more insidious meant that the international community now needed to work harder to eradicate it.

Ms. Freedson pointed out that, while no exact figures were available about rape, it was known that it was widespread.  In some areas, the documentation of cases of rape was on the increase.  Ms. Hunt said that, given how much shame was associated with rape, it was difficult to document the exact number of cases.  Also shocking was the degree of violence and disfigurement of victims, including through the use of explosives.

Asked how the international community could implement the recommendations, Ms. Freedson said that fully adequate human and financial resources should be provided for MONUC, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and implementing partners to carry out their child protection mandates.  Ms. Edgerton noted that the response needed to be appropriate to the size of the crisis.  Also, it was not the whole of the DRC that was now in crisis, but its eastern area bordering Rwanda, Uganda and Burundi, which represented about one quarter of the country.  That was where MONUC needed to be.  Correct placement of the Mission, combined with the adequate mandate to protect civilians, could be an instrument in stopping the violence. 

Ms. Hunt added that the complexity of the situation on the ground required an equally complex response.  Some of the issues that needed to be addressed did not call for a robust Chapter VII deployment.  They required taking an intelligent look at the parts of the country that needed attention and putting pressure on the parties to abide by the agreements. 

To another question, Ms. Freedson replied that from the report, it was clear that the situation in the country had not been “that rosy” even prior to the conflict.  There was a long history of deterioration of the infrastructure and violence.  However, the statistics provided in the report testified to the fact that many of the country’s serious problems had been exacerbated by the conflict, which had been going on since 1998.

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