Allons-Y, Vol. 6 (2022)

Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://hdl.handle.net/10222/85651

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Title Page and About the Volume (Allons-Y, Vol. 6 (2022))
(The Dallaire Institute for Children, Peace and Security, 2022) Dustin Johnson
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Letter from the Editors (Allons-Y, Vol. 6 (2022))
(The Dallaire Institute for Children, Peace and Security, 2022) Dustin Johnson; Catherine Baillie Abidi
This sixth volume of Allons-y: Journal of Children Peace and Security focuses on the implementation of the Vancouver Principles in light of the successes, lessons learned, and challenges of the past twenty-five years of the Children and Armed Conflict (CAAC) Agenda. The volume began its journey in 2021, which represented a number of important milestones for children, peace and security: the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the CAAC Agenda with General Assembly Resolution 51/77 (1996), the 20th anniversary of Security Council Resolution 1379 (2001) which first mandated that the Secretary-General publish a list of parties to conflict who recruited and used child soldiers, and 2021 was the International Year for the Elimination of Child Labour. As multiple of the authors in this volume note, there have been great advancements in the recognition of the specific harms children face during armed conflict and in the international system to prevent and redress them over the past 25 years. These include the adoption of a specific treaty on children‘s involvement in armed conflict, the establishment of the Monitoring and Reporting Mechanism for grave violations of children‘s right, and the inclusion of child protection mandates in UN peacekeeping operations. States, the UN, and civil society now have multiple tools to aid in better protecting children, and particularly, in preventing their recruitment and use as soldiers, such as the Vancouver Principles, Safe Schools Declaration, and Paris Principles. This time has also witnessed expanded research into children‘s experiences during armed conflict and how to better protect them, from a range of disciplines from history to social work to international relations. At the same time, the past twenty-five years have seen the emergence or return of conflict dynamics which further expose children to violence and make their protection even more difficult. The Russian invasion of Ukraine is the latest example of the disregard for children during war, while existing conflicts in Yemen, South Sudan, Mozambique, and elsewhere continue to involve children as both perpetrators and victims of violence. These include the challenges in effective multilateral responses by the UN due to great power politics and challenges to the international system, the intractability of longstanding civil conflicts that affect hundreds of millions of children, and changes in armed conflict such as the scope of violence by organized crime, the splintering of armed groups and use of terrorist tactics, and new developments in cyber warfare and autonomous weapons. Support for basic human rights and the resources required to address children‘s needs, are sorely lacking and not rising to meet the challenges of the current world. We hope these reflections on the roles of youth, the UN, civil society, and committed governments in advancing the CAAC agenda into the next quarter century can help foster new thinking, strategies, and relationships to raise children‘s place in the peace and security agenda and further the cause of peace globally.
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Foreword: Together and Forward: Delivering the United Nations Children and Armed Conflict Mandate
(The Dallaire Institute for Children, Peace and Security, 2022) Virginia Gamba
Twenty-five years ago, in December 1996, the United Nations General Assembly took the extraordinary decision to create a mandate to protect children from the ravages of war and adopted Resolution 51/77.[1] The inception of the mandate of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict (CAAC) was an unprecedented action which brought hope for millions of children living in conflict situations. It further prepared the ground for decades of commitments and actions during which Member States, the United Nations and civil society organizations have strengthened the protection of children affected by war. The mandate has evolved over the years – and is still evolving – allowing my Office to better address the needs and rights of children in armed conflict. An important milestone was reached when, in 1999, the United Nations Security Council adopted its first resolution on children in armed conflict[2] acknowledging its impact on peace and security. The Council has also identified and condemned six grave violations affecting children in times of conflict: the recruitment or use of children as soldiers; the killing and maiming of children; rape and other forms of sexual violence against children; the abduction of children; attacks against schools or hospitals; and the denial of humanitarian access for children. Through my office, the United Nations monitors these violations, identifies perpetrators, and engages with parties to conflict to develop action plans and other forms of commitment aimed at ending and preventing such crimes. The CAAC mandate is one of concrete and practical engagement between the United Nations and listed parties. While too many violations against children are verified every year, even more children are able to avoid such tragic fate, thanks to our common work to protect them. Twenty-five years of actions and commitments has resulted in tangible progress for conflict-affected children: over 170,000 children have been released from armed groups and armed forces following United Nations‘ advocacy. Thirteen (13) resolutions and multiple Presidential Statements on children and armed conflict have been adopted by the United Nations Security Council. Hundreds of commitments have been undertaken by parties to conflict to end and prevent grave violations against children, including 37 Action Plans, of which 20 are currently under implementation. Furthermore, the international community has supported the mandate through a series of initiatives that act as powerful preventive tools: the Paris Principles, the Safe Schools Declaration and the Vancouver Principles, among them. In January 2022, as we commemorated the 25th anniversary of the Children and Armed Conflict mandate, my Office launched the Study on its evolution throughout the period 1996-2021.[3] By looking at all the important achievements made, and by identifying the challenges that impacted the implementation of the mandate, the study provides an in-depth view of 25 years‘ work for conflict-affected children. The study further presents opportunities to improve the protection of children in the short and long term; for the mandate anniversary is beyond all an opportunity to look forward and imagine strategic actions to inspire the future we want for the mandate. So, what do we want for the mandate in the years to come? Allow me to share a few ideas which emerged from the consultative process undertaken for the development of the study. The Children and Armed Conflict mandate has always had partnerships as its foundation and our joint advocacy and outreach can be strengthened through enhancing such strong alliances. A bolstered collaboration amongst all partners, including Member States, Regional and sub-regional Organizations, civil society organizations, academia, Groups of Friends on children and armed conflict, as well as media, can further amplify our advocacy efforts in the years to come. Reinforcing the focus on prevention should also be a priority as mandated by the last two Security Council CAAC resolutions (in 2018 and 2021). The proactive engagement with parties to conflict working with the Country Taskforces on Monitoring and Reporting (CTFMRs) and other early warning systems in situations not on the children and armed conflict agenda, can be decisive in preventing grave violations against children from occurring in the first place. In that sense, making sure that emerging crises are added quickly as situations of concern could allow the CAAC mandate to play an early warning role. Lastly, not only maintaining but also reinforcing child protection capacity in United Nations missions and country teams is of utmost importance. Our work is only possible because of the fully dedicated child protection staff on the ground. The COVID-19 pandemic has also shown that strengthening child protection capacity should also include taking advantage of digital technology. Such tools could help us improve data analysis, as well as reintegration initiatives and the inclusion of child protection elements in peace processes and mediation efforts. These are only some of the recommendations that we might want to consider as we envisage the next 25 years to better protect children affected by conflict. And many questions remain for which I hope we can work together and explore possible answers. How can we build better coalitions of child protection champions? How can the CAAC mandate influence cultural and social perceptions to change behavior for the protection of children? How can we ensure that the mandate and its tools remain relevant and up to date in the evolving dynamics of armed conflict? How can we ensure that communities are more resilient in the face of grave violations? The Dallaire Institute has been an important partner to the CAAC office in the past and I hope that it can continue to shed light on these important questions. It is our responsibility as a global community to propose innovative solutions to improve the protection and wellbeing of conflict-affected children in the years to come to end grave violations once and for all. Let us do this together. [1] United Nations General Assembly (1997). Resolution 51/77 (A/RES/51/77). https://undocs.org/A/RES/51/77 [2] United Nations Security Council (1999). Resolution 1261 (1999) (S/RES/1261). http://unscr.com/en/resolutions/doc/1261 [3] Office of the Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict (2022). Study on the evolution of the Children and Armed Conflict mandate 1996-2021. New York: United Nations. https://childrenandarmedconflict.un.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/Study-on-the-evolution-of-the-Children-and-Armed-Conflict-mandate-1996-2021.pdf
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Celebrating 25 Years of the UN‘s Children and Armed Conflict Mandate: How Far Have We Come, and Where Do We Go from Here?
(The Dallaire Institute for Children, Peace and Security, 2022) Adrianne Lapar
Twenty-five years ago, the international community issued an urgent call to protect children affected by armed conflict. Horrified by the findings of Graça Machel‘s historic study on the impacts of war on children, the United Nations General Assembly established the Children and Armed Conflict (CAAC) mandate in December 1996. Since then, the CAAC agenda has expanded and become one of the most significant, dynamic, and broadly supported multilateral initiatives within the UN system. It provides international policymakers a unique set of tools for promoting the protection of children in war and addressing grave violations of their rights. Even in today‘s increasingly polarized world, policymakers can rally around the notion that no child should suffer the horrors of war. Despite progress, children continue to face the devastating impacts of armed conflict. In 2020, the UN documented nearly 24,000 grave violations against children. More children are living in conflict zones than at any time in the previous two decades. At the same time, the rapid expansion of the global counterterrorism agenda threatens to unravel established laws and norms for protecting children‘s rights. The COVID-19 pandemic has further exacerbated children‘s vulnerability to rights violations and other forms of exploitation and abuse. This commentary reflects on the progress made over the past 25 years, remaining gaps and challenges, and emerging concerns for children in war. It also provides recommendations for the years ahead.
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Reflecting on 25 Years of the Children and Armed Conflict Agenda
(The Dallaire Institute for Children, Peace and Security, 2022) Laura Cleave; Abdikarim Hassan; Myrah Oloo; Achaleke Christian Leke
Editors‘ Note: This commentary is in a somewhat different form from others published in Allons-y and reflects our commitment to methodological pluralism and the importance of experiential knowledge. It takes the form of a transcribed discussion between three members of a youth advisory committee established as part of the Knowledge for Prevention research project on the early warning of the recruitment and use of children in armed violence at the Dallaire Institute, and the Dallaire Institute‘s research advisor Laura Cleave.
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Understanding perennial recruitment of child soldiers in the Democratic Republic of Congo
(The Dallaire Institute for Children, Peace and Security, 2022) Munyayiwashe Shumba
Recruitment of child soldiers in armed conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has become a perennial problem despite efforts by local and international actors to put a stop to it. This paper launches a critical investigation into the underlying causes behind the continued recruitment of children as soldiers. More so, in light of economic challenges in a war tone country, where there is no school, no recreational facilities and no proper services, this paper seeks to establish how the implementation of the Vancouver Principles can be made a total success in such conditions.
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Belgium‘s Chairmanship of the Security Council Working Group on Children and Armed Conflict (2019-2020)
(The Dallaire Institute for Children, Peace and Security, 2022) Annelies Verstichel
Children‘s rights in general and the UN‘s Children and Armed Conflict (CAAC) Agenda in particular have been a foreign policy priority of the Government of Belgium for decades, both in financial and in policy terms. As a result, awarding Belgium the chairmanship of the Security Council Working Group on CAAC (SCWG-CAAC) was the logical result of this commitment and a unanimous decision by the UNSC members when distributing chairmanships of subsidiary bodies to the incoming non-permanent UNSC members at the end of 2018. This article looks at the objectives of Belgium‘s chairmanship of the SCWG-CAAC (2019-2020) and to what extent they were achieved. It furthermore analyzes the SCWG-CAAC conclusions, their structure, and the traditionally challenging points in the negotiations. Finally, the article concludes by reflecting on gaps and opportunities moving forward.

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