Child Soldiers and the Law
Amman Declaration on the Use of Children as Soldiers
April 2001
Participants in the Amman Conference on the Use of Children as
Soldiers, held in Amman, Jordan from 8-10 April 2001; Deeply
appreciating the call for a world free of child soldiers made by Her
Majesty Queen Rania Al-Abdullah in her speech to the Conference;
Affirming that no child under 18 years should be the instrument or
object of violence; Appalled that more than 300,000 children
(girls and boys) under 18 years of age are currently participating as
soldiers in armed conflicts worldwide; Recalling that all
children are entitled to all the rights and freedoms in the Convention
on the Rights of the Child without discrimination of any kind,
irrespective of the child's or his or her parent's or legal guardian's
race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion,
national, ethnic or social origin, property, disability, birth or other
status; Welcoming the adoption by the United Nations (UN)
General Assembly of the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the
Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict
which prohibits the use of children under the age of 18 years in armed
conflicts; Acknowledging the causes leading to armed conflict
and the participation of children, including foreign occupation and
forced displacement; poverty, neglect, injustice and economic disparity;
lack of access to education and other opportunities; a culture of
militarisation and violence, including through toys, computer games,
violent films and cartoons, and media images; the proliferation of small
arms; intolerance and discrimination; Stressing the obligation
of the States Parties to the four Geneva Conventions of 1949 and their
Additional Protocols of 1977 to both respect and ensure respect for the
provisions of these Conventions, in particular the situation of
civilians in times of occupation according to the 4th Geneva Convention;
Reaffirming the UN Charter commitment "to save succeeding generations
from the scourge of war" and the need to seek peaceful alternatives,
promote human security and involve children in building peace and
reconciliation; Noting the UN Security Council's call in
Resolutions 1261 (28 August 1999) and 1314 (11 August 2000) for
concerted international action to stop the use of children as soldiers,
its strong condemnation of the targeting of children and places that
have a significant presence of children, and willingness to take steps
to minimise the potential harm to children when imposing sanctions;
Recalling Resolution 16/9-C(IS) on Child Care and Protection in the
Islamic World of the Ninth Session of the Islamic Summit Conference in
Doha, State of Qatar in November 2000 which called for "the
non-involvement of (refugee) children in any armed conflict and not to
enlist them in the armed forces or for any other actions which might
expose their personal safety and security to danger";
Welcoming the Resolution for a Framework on the Rights of the Child
adopted by the Summit of the League of Arab States in Amman in March
2001; Welcoming the adoption of the Statute of the
International Criminal Court which makes the conscripting or enlisting
of children under the age of 15 years or using them to participate
actively in hostilities a war crime, both in international and internal
armed conflict and whether by armed forces or armed groups;
Welcoming the inclusion of forced or compulsory recruitment for use in
armed conflict as one of the worst forms of child labour in ILO
Convention 182; Welcoming the entry into force of the African
Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child which prohibits all
recruitment and direct participation in hostilities of children under 18
years; Noting the UN Secretary-General's decision that UN
peacekeepers should be at least 21 and in no case less than 18 years of
age; Welcoming the declarations on the use of children as
soldiers from previous regional conferences in Maputo (April 1999),
Montevideo (July 1999), Berlin (October 1999) and Kathmandu (May 2000);
Mindful of preparations for the UN General Assembly Special Session on
Children in September 2001 which will further underscore the
international community's resolve to protect children from all forms of
exploitation, violence, discrimination and abuse; Determined
to put an end to the use of children under 18 years of age as soldiers:
(1)
1. Solemnly declare that the use in hostilities of any child
under 18 years of age by any armed force or armed group is
unacceptable; 2. Urge all states to ratify or accede to the
Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on
the involvement of children in armed conflict, without reservations
and declaring at least 18 years as the minimum age for all forms of
voluntary recruitment; 3. Encourage states to use the forthcoming
United Nations General Assembly Special Session on Children
(September 2001) as an opportunity for signature or to announce
their ratification or accession to the above Optional Protocol; 4.
Call upon all armed forces and armed groups to end the recruitment
and use of children under 18 and to immediately demobilize or
release into safety children already being used as soldiers; 5.
Call upon states who have not already done so to ratify the four
Geneva Conventions of 1949, the two Additional Protocols of 1977,
the 1951 Refugee Convention and its 1967 Protocol, the Rome Statute
of the International Criminal Court, the Ottawa Landmines Treaty,
the ILO Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention,182; 6. Call upon
the states parties to the 4th Geneva Convention to take all
necessary measures to ensure full respect for its provisions, in
particular in relation to the protection of children under
occupation; 7. Call upon all states to ensure the effective and
universal implementation of these international standards and
protection for children, including refugee and displaced girls and
boys, in national legislation and practice, including through:
Reviewing national legislation to ensure conformity with
international standards;
Criminalising the use in hostilities and recruitment of
children under 18 in their national laws;
Strengthening the international human rights mechanisms, in
particular the Committee on the Rights of the Child;
Establishing or strengthening national mechanisms for the
rights of the child;
Ensuring compulsory and comprehensive birth registration;
8. Call upon all states to ensure the special protection of all
children living under occupation, child detainees and child
participants in armed conflict or civil strife, through the strict
application of international human rights and humanitarian law,
including international standards on juvenile justice and the use of
lethal force; 9. Call upon all states and other relevant bodies to
ensure the translation, raising of awareness and widespread
dissemination of these standards at all levels of society and
effective training of military and police personnel, peacekeepers
and officials in child rights and protection, and to incorporate
these into educational and military curricula; 10. Call upon all
states, including those outside the region, not to supply small arms
or light weapons to any government or armed group which recruits or
uses children as soldiers, and to take steps to prevent individuals
and companies from doing so; 11. Urge states to adopt legislation
holding companies accountable for activities which directly or
indirectly involve children in hostilities or military activity and
call on companies to adopt and abide by codes of conduct to this
effect; 12. Urge armed groups to make written commitments to abide
by the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the
Child on involvement of children in armed conflict; 13. Call on
religious scholars to conduct studies showing the positive role
religion can play in combating child soldiering and its negative
impact on children; 14. Call on religious and community leaders to
promote a culture of peace, tolerance and understanding and raising
awareness about the rights of the child; 15. Encourage states to
enhance preventive measures for all children, especially those at
risk, by addressing the causes of child soldiering, in particular
poverty, discrimination, displacement, injustice and lack of
education, including by:
Creating educational and vocational opportunities
Ensuring education for tolerance, non-discrimination and
respect for others
Empowering children to be actively engaged in
community-building without resorting to violence
Ending military training programmes for children, which
encourage the militarisation of society, aggressive attitudes
and entrenchment of occupation;
Strengthening the family as the main protective unit for the
child;
16. Call on the national, regional and international media to
promote positive images and attitudes instead of focussing on
violence; 17. Call upon all states to ensure the special needs of
former child soldiers are met through effective and appropriate
programmes of rehabilitation and reintegration into society, taking
account of the specific needs of particular groups of children, such
as girls, refugees and disabled children; 18. Call upon all
governments, including those outside the region, the UN system and
international institutions to provide adequate assistance to ensure
the implementation of the above aims, in particular by providing
short-term and long-term resources to support alternative employment
and demobilization, rehabilitation and reintegration for child
soldiers; 19. Request the League of Arab States, the Organization
of Islamic Conference, the Gulf Cooperation Council, the Arab
Maghreb Union, the Organization of African Unity, the
Euro-Mediterranean Partnership and other regional bodies to endorse
and work for the implementation of this Declaration; 20. Call on
the Directorate of Childhood of the Arab League to promote this
declaration, particularly to all participants of the meetings of the
Technical Consultative Committee for the Arab Child; 21. Call upon
all states, international organizations, NGOs and civil society, in
particular those of the Middle East and North Africa region, to work
for the implementation and monitoring of this Declaration, including
through the participation of children themselves and the creation of
national, regional and international networks; 22. Encourage His
Majesty's Government of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan to present
this Declaration to the Human Security Network Ministerial Meeting
in Petra (May 2001); and 23. Express their warm appreciation to
Her Majesty Queen Rania Al-Abdullah for her patronage of and
participation in this conference and to His Majesty's Government of
the Royal Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan and the Jordan Institute of
Diplomacy for hosting this important event.
Adopted in Amman on 10 April 2001
1. According to
the Commentary on the Additional Protocols, recruitment covers any
means (formal or de facto) by which a person becomes a member of the
armed forces or an armed group, so it includes conscription
(compulsory/obligatory military service), voluntary enlistment, and
forced recruitment. According to the UN Conference Document
A/CONF.183/2/Add.1, participation in hostilities covers both direct
participation in combat and also active participation in military
activities linked to combat such as scouting, spying, sabotage and
the use of children as decoys, couriers or at military checkpoints
and the use of children in a direct support function such as acting
as bearers to take supplies to the front line, and all activities at
the front line itself.
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