United Nations Children’s Fund Programme Publications 3 UN Plaza
New York, N.Y. 10017 USA
ISBN: 92-806-2089-4
Credits
Oh, world be wise The future lies in children’s eyes.
Donna Hoffman
My Children, All Children, Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis, 1975.
Photo Credits
Children in War a guide to the provision of services
Second Edition Everett Ressler
Anna Ressler Belloncle
Lara Ressler Horst
PRbook group Virginia, USA
Acknowledgements 5
Introduction 9
Conceptual Framework
Armed Conflict 17
Armed Conflict's Impacts on Children—A Photo Essay 37
A Basis for Action 49
Protecting and Caring for Children in Conflict Situations
Loss of Life 65
Injury, Illness, Malnutrition, Disability 79
Torture, Abuse, Imprisonment, Recruitment 113
Unaccompanied Children 141
Psychosocial Distress 165
Education Disruption 209
Annexes
Chapter References 225
Bibliography
Acknowledgements
This book is written first and foremost for all the parents and the children who struggle daily to survive in war.
Oh, world be wise... The future lies in children's eyes.
Preface
Armed conflict shows humankind at its very worst and its very best - worst when social intercourse is reduced to purposeful attempts to kill, injure, deprive, disrupt and impose upon; best when against all odds people strive to ensure the well-being of those in need. This book attempts to accentuate the positive – to remind us of the need to make children’s care and protection a priority, to encourage efforts to better understand the local realities of children, to draw on lessons from the past, and to stimulate action.
The first edition was released in 1993 when global humanitarian efforts were beginning to focus on “children in armed conflict”. The aim of the book then was to provide a conceptual and programmatic overview and framework that gave understanding to essential services and key program strategies.
In 2015 UNICEF gave the principal author the right to update and reissue the book “Children in War: a guide to the provision of services”. Recognizing that armed conflict remains a global scourage engulfing vast numbers of children and families, the need to review and update the content of the earlier version is obvious, as is the importance of getting it into the hands of persons around the world who now continue efforts to ensure the care and protection of children in today’s situations of armed conflict. Preface
Introduction
This book is written for you, if you are concerned with the care and protection of children in situations of armed conflict. It is written for mothers and fathers who are struggling to care for their children in war affected conditions, and you if you are working with community programs, government services, international organizations, civil society organizations on humanitarian or development issues. It is written for you who are students in preparation for the services that you will one day help provide.
The need for this book arises because today vast numbers of children and their families are striving to survive in situations of armed conflict. Armed conflicts and the need for extraordinary counter-measures has remained an ongoing reality for a very long time. Many actions on behalf of children are being taken and new initiatives are continually required. From the deep well of compassion and justice that constitutes the best of humanity, questions are continually raised about how better to support and assist. This book attempts to share current understandings.
Who are the persons who should mobilize to ensure care and protection of children in armed conflict? The dedicated actions of many are required and each responder has potential for making a unique contribution. Family members remain the cornerstone of children’s care and protection. Friends, community and national services and local professionals play key roles. Even during emergency situations, parents and governments remain
the primary duty-bearers for the realization and the protection of child rights. International support (e.g. from UNICEF, other UN agencies, NGOs, private civil society organizations, private enterprise) each can contribute. Children will only be protected if people work together to ensure that their best interests remain a priority.
Be a “searcher.” Encourage the continuing search for a better understanding of the needs and resiliencies of families and children in situations of armed conflict. Collaborate in finding constructive and helpful ways to enhance the protection and care of children, remaining respectful of local actions being taken, of local wisdom as to what is needed and of lessons from the past.
It merits note that contributions can be constructive or destructive. Good intent is not enough. Some of the more egregious violations of rights and well-being of children have come from misguided efforts by individuals, groups, even governments, thinking they were being helpful.
Objectives of the book
The goals are clear - that children in situations of armed conflict do not lose their lives, that they are afforded their rights as human beings and children, that they receive care and basic essentials for development, that their suffering is minimized and that their emergency needs are met. To these ends, this book aims to make the following contributions:
1. It aims to encourage action. It is hoped that the information herein will stimulate informed and creative responses to the needs of children in situations of armed
conflict. It is intended as a source of ideas to help find ways by which food reaches the hungry, basic services are made available in the midst of conflict, children continue to receive essential vaccinations even when routine services are disrupted, schooling is provided even when schools are closed, assistance is available to traumatized children even when trained professionals are few, and so forth.
2. It aims to be authoritative. Concerted effort has been made to ensure that each chapter is an authoritative synthesis of past experience and current thinking on issues related to care and protection. To build on the earlier version, nearly a 1000 reference papers were reviewed, drafts were circulated to practioners and panels of recognized authorities reviewed each chapter. Particular emphasis is given to inclusion of agreed current guidance and standards.
3. It aims to provide a historical overview. Effort is made throughout the book to provide a historic overview, and to draw lessons from past efforts to protect and care for children. Much can be learned from the efforts of others.
4. It encourages a holistic approach. This book attempts to provide an overarching framework for assessing and developing response programs. The framework on pages ..xx.. is the conceptual “heart” of the book. Use of the framework and ensuring an understanding of all the issues considered herein can be helpful in ensuring that the range of critical issues are considered that underpin care and protection.
Children in War is a summary, a quick reference, a broad overview. It is short rather than long, generic rather than specific, practical rather than theoretical. Therefore, while every effort has been made to ensure that it is authoritative, it is purposefully strategic in its aims.
Premises for the Book
First. This book is abashedly positive in its assertion that children’s needs can be met and harm mitigated, even in the midst of armed conflict, if sufficient priority and efforts are given. The greater the challenge, the greater the efforts required.
Second. Child protection is both a moral and legal obligation. Compassion, a sense justice and humanity are driving forces for why we collectively act on behalf of children and families in conflict situations. It is also important to acknowledge that by global consensus, children are rights-holders in law and have the legal right to care and protection to develop to their fullest potential. Parents and governments are legally responsible, even during situations of armed conflict, to realize and protect these rights.
Third. This book is specifically focused on children but rooted in strong belief that children’s needs are best served by helping families provide the necessary care and protection children require. Understanding the needs of children in situations of armed conflict necessitates understanding of the factors that enable or obstruct their families’ abilities to care for them. Children without the care and protection of their families deserve special consideration.
Fourth. One of the most significant shifts over the past decade is increasing recognition that local problems are typically best solved when impacted people and communities themselves are the “drivers” in finding solutions. The need for collaborative action involving local, national and international actors is every more important but the ways of being supportive are shifting. Independent action on behalf of children from external actors (national or international) is increasingly unaccepted.
Fifth. The effectiveness of the systems on which children and families depend remain a critical consideration in care and protection - health, education, social, legal and many other services. In many conflict situations, deaths and suffering of children are more related to inadequate services than to direct conflict action (e.g. often more children die from dirty drinking water and the lack of vaccinations than are directly killed during armed violence).
Clearly armed conflict often deeply impacts such services, but it is also true that the contribution and importance of such local services is often greatly under-estimated.
Sixth. If we want better answers to the care and protection of children, we must ask better questions. A constant search for better understanding of children’s needs and response action is fundamental to the development and maintenance of effective services for children. This book will be successful if it encourages questioning and continuing re-examination of whether the needs of children in situations of armed conflict are really being met, if different interventions are required, if alternative strategies could prove more effective.
Seventh. Each culture, community, family and conflict situation is unique. Therefore, while the topic of children in situations of armed conflict is discussed in general terms, programme strategies must be developed that are appropriate in each situation. Nevertheless, while the ‘lessons learned’ in one situation cannot be rigidly prescribed to another, it would be a misconception to assume that every child, family and conflict situations is so different that lessons learned cannot be shared among experiences and cultures. The needs of each child, family, and culture are both unique and similar to those of all other children. We can learn from each other.
Structure of the Book
The book is structured to provide: I)…, II) a basis for action, and III) thematic overviews. Chapter 1 explores ‘armed conflict’ and ‘childhood’, attempting to provide functional definitions that help to facilitate response action. Chapter 2 entitled “A Basis for Action”, proposes a conceptual framework for response action. It suggests that ….
The second part of the book looks at issues affecting children in armed conflict (e.g., health, education, detention, recruitment by armed groups). Each chapter provides the reader with a historic review of the issue and trends in response strategies as well as a description of the legal framework around the issue.
As a final note, the authors have included an extensive list of reference materials related to the situation of children in armed conflict These resources are divided into three categories: resources for further study, legal instruments and resources, and programming tools.
