(i) means immediate and actual action on the battlefield likely to cause harm to the enemy because there is a direct causal relationship between the activity engaged in and the harm done to the enemy; and (ii) does not mean indirect participation in hostilities, such as gathering and transmitting military information, transporting weapons, munitions, or other supplies, or forward deployment.
4. Abuses and Duty of Care of Recruits under 18 In armed forces, new recruits are liable to suffer abusive treatment whether from their superiors in the form of punishment or from fellow recruits in the form of bullying. In most countries, abuse often takes place in a broader context of denying young soldiers adequate food and access to medical care. This phenomenon has reached worrying dimensions in some OSCE participating States, where there has been grave concern about the number of alleged suicides or other unexplained deaths of recruits (see Chapter 16 “Proper Treatment of Armed Forces Personnel”). In the UK, an independent report was published in 2004 to review the deaths of four soldiers at the Princess Royal Barracks at Deepcut in Surrey between 1995 and 2002. Two of the soldiers were 17 at the time of death, and a third, a female recruit, had just turned
Box 15.4 The Deepcut Review Report 2006: Preventing Abuses and Duty of Care Related to Recruits under 18 (Selected Recommendations) (1) Young people … should continue to be able to enlist at 16 … so long as their training takes place in a suitable environment dedicated to the needs of such young people, and particular care is taken for their welfare. (2) Those under 17 should be trained in establishments exclusive to this age group. (3) The Army should plan to eliminate the need for soldiers to join their units in the field army on completion of Phase 1 and 2 training until they reach the age of 18. … (7) Recruits who joined the Army as minors [and who are] unhappy with pursuing a military career before they reach the end of their Phase 2 training … should be able to discharge as of right. (8) ATRA [Army Training and Recruiting Agency] should maintain a regular audit of its training estate. … (10) ATRA should require all its training segments to identify the supervisory ratios it needs to train future generations of trainees in accordance with the effective duty of care principles … (12) Instructors should be vetted for their suitability to work with young people, applying standards that are no less rigorous than those applied to civilian establishments educating or training people under 18. (13) A single booklet should be issued … [explaining] (i) what is meant by bullying and harassment; (ii) example of the type of conduct that is considered inappropriate or unacceptable; … (iv) that blanket punishments imposed on a group for the failings of an individual are unacceptable; (v) what a soldier should do if he or she witnesses a breach of these principles. (14) Cancellation of weekend leave by an NCO … [and] the allocation of guard duty should never be used as a punishment … (15) The standards set by the ATRA Code of Practice for Instructors should be enforced by formal disciplinary sanctions. … (18) Failure to report any sign of abuse of power should itself be a matter for disciplinary sanction; … (26) There should be established a commissioner of Military Complaints (the Armed Forces Ombudsman) who should be a person independent of the three services …
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