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Washington, D.C.: World Vision Says 'No Child Soldiers'
Before Senate, World Vision urges U.S. to help end child soldier use globally.
April 24, 2007
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At World Vision's Children of War Center in northern Uganda, former child soldiers participate in re-enactment dramas as part of a therapy session.
[(c) May 2005/Jon Warren/World Vision]
Around the world, an estimated 250,000 children are exploited in state-run armies, paramilitaries, and rebel groups. Serving as combatants, porters, human mine detectors, and sex slaves, their health and lives are endangered and their childhoods are sacrificed.
World Vision works in several countries where children are forced to be soldiers and is calling on the U.S. government to help stop the use of child soldiers.
Nine Countries Use Child Soldiers
Although many child soldiers are found in non-governmental armed opposition groups, the U.S. State Department reports that governments in nine countries are implicated in child soldier use.
The U.S. government provides military assistance to eight of them. They include:
- Burundi
- Chad
- Colombia
- Cote d’Ivoire
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- Democratic Republic of Congo
- Sri Lanka
- Sudan
- Uganda
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U.S. military assistance to these countries ranges from small amounts of funding for military training to hundreds of millions in weapons, training, and military financing.
World Vision's Position
World Vision strongly believes that U.S. tax dollars should not be used to support the exploitation of children as soldiers. Moreover, U.S. weapons should not end up in the hands of children.
To bolster this message, Joseph Mettimano, director of public policy and advocacy for World Vision, recently testified before the Senate Subcommittee on Human Rights and the Law on “Casualties of War: Child Soldiers and the Law.”
During his testimony, Mettimano called on the U.S. government to commit to leading an international effort to pressure countries to stop supporting the use of children in armed conflict.
World Vision Public Policy and Advocacy Director Joseph Mettimano (right) talks with Illinois Senator Dick Durbin (left) and former child soldier and author Ishmael Beah (center). Both Mettimano and Beah testifed before the Senate on "Casualties of War: Child Soldiers and the Law."
[©2007 Fogarty Photography/Genesis Photos] | | Citing World Vision’s experience working with child soldiers in places like northern Uganda, Mettimano said, “Organizations like ours can stop the bleeding and help heal physical and emotional wounds when the children are in our care, but we alone can’t stop the wars or change the policies of the governments or groups that use children in combat.
“World leaders such as the U.S. can and should play a more engaged role internationally to end this state-sanctioned abuse of children through diplomatic efforts, funding programs and assisting peace negotiations.” |
Ishmael Beah, a former child soldier and author of “A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier” also testified before the committee.
The Child Soldier Prevention Act of 2007
A bill recently introduced in the U.S. Senate would put restrictions on U.S. military assistance for governments that use child soldiers. World Vision urges support for the legislation to encourage governments to prohibit, demobilize, and rehabilitate child soldiers from national forces and government-supported militias.
Introduced by Senators Richard Durbin (D-IL) and Sam Brownback (R-KS), S.1175 Child Soldier Prevention Act of 2007 would curtail U.S. military assistance to governments that fail to take steps to demobilize and stop recruiting children into the armed forces or government-supported militias. Countries that take steps to demobilize child soldiers would be eligible for certain forms of assistance in that process for up to two years, to help professionalize their forces and ensure U.S. taxpayer dollars are not used to finance the exploitation of children in armed conflict.
"This bill creates strong incentives for foreign governments to end any involvement in the use of children as soldiers," said Mettimano.
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