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This Sunday, February 12th, is Red Hand Day, against the use of child soldiers. This is a day dedicated to the thousands of boys and girls enlisted in armed groups around the world.
It is estimated that around 300,000 children participate in conflicts around the world. In an interview with RFI, the person responsible for child protection in South Sudan for Unicef, Brendan Ross, warned of the violation of the rights of these young people.
“In South Sudan, the number of child soldiers has declined over the past five years. According to our estimates, there are less than 100 children still enrolled in the armed forces and armed groups. But the problem in Sudan, as in many other countries , is the great poverty caused by decades of civil wars. There are many young people who have taken up arms, who have been enlisted in gangs and who are involved in various conflicts such as cattle theft or violence in communities. This is one of the biggest problems in Sudan”describes the person responsible.
“As in many conflicts, young people don’t have many opportunities, they struggle to access education and they have no alternatives because they haven’t been to school long enough. Most of the time there is no work. Picking up a gun and fighting to defend your community or their village, or earn some money by fighting for a politician, is what they think is the best opportunity for them”continues.
Recruited by government armed forces or rebel groups, these child soldiers can serve as fighters, cooks, messengers and even sex slaves. “Many of them suffered a lot of trauma. They lost their way, they lost their parents”explains Brendan Ross.
“In some cases they fight on the front lines, in others they are used as spies. Sometimes they have to fulfill other roles such as a cook. There are many different tasks that children are forced to do. But children have no place in the forces Armed! Children need their right to education, their right to have a childhood, to play, to be guaranteed. Therefore, this international day serves to unite us to recognize this fact: every child forced to take up arms sees his rights violated It’s a violation of their childhood and they will be traumatized for the rest of their lives. We must end this practice, that’s what this day is for.”he concluded.
There are no official statistics, but between 2017 and 2022, UNICEF helped reintegrate more than 17,000 children – young people who were abducted. A number that does not include all children who do not have access to the aid program or who have not yet been released.