III

106TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION S. CON. RES. 72

Expressing condemnation of the use of children as soldiers and the belief

that the United States should support and, where possible, lead efforts

to establish and enforce international standards designed to end this

abuse of human rights.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

NOVEMBER 10, 1999

Mr. WELLSTONE submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was

referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations

CONCURRENT RESOLUTION

Expressing condemnation of the use of children as soldiers

and the belief that the United States should support

and, where possible, lead efforts to establish and enforce

international standards designed to end this abuse of

human rights.

Whereas in 1999 approximately 300,000 individuals under

the age of 18 are participating in armed conflict in more

than 30 countries worldwide and hundreds of thousands

more are at risk of being conscripted at any given moment;

Whereas many of these children are forcibly conscripted

through kidnapping or coercion, while others join military

units due to economic necessity, to avenge the loss of a

family member, or for their own personal safety;
2

•SCON 72 IS

Whereas many military commanders frequently force child

soldiers to commit gruesome acts of ritual killings or torture against their enemies, including against other children;

Whereas many military commanders separate children from

their families in order to foster dependence on military

units and leaders, leaving children vulnerable to manipulation, deep traumatization, and in need of psychological

counseling and rehabilitation;

Whereas child soldiers are exposed to hazardous conditions

and risk physical injuries, sexually transmitted diseases,

malnutrition, deformed backs and shoulders from carrying overweight loads, and respiratory and skin infections;

Whereas many young female soldiers face the additional psychological and physical horrors of rape and sexual abuse,

being enslaved for sexual purposes by militia commanders, and forced to endure severe social stigma

should they return home;

Whereas children in northern Uganda continue to be kidnapped by the Lords Resistance Army (LRA) which is

supported and funded by the Government of Sudan and

which has committed and continues to commit gross

human rights violations in Uganda;

Whereas children in Sri Lanka have been forcibly recruited

by the opposition Tamil Tigers movement and forced to

kill or be killed in the armed conflict in that country;

Whereas an estimated 7,000 child soldiers have been involved

in the conflict in Sierra Leone, some as young as age 10,

with many being forced to commit extrajudicial execu-
3

•SCON 72 IS

tions, torture, rape, and amputations for the rebel Revolutionary United Front;

Whereas the international community is developing a consensus on how to most effectively address the problem,

and toward this end, the United Nations has established

a working group to negotiate an optional international

agreement on child soldiers which would raise the legal

age of recruitment and participation in armed conflict to

age 18;

Whereas on October 29, 1998, United Nations Secretary

General Kofi Annan set minimum age requirements for

United Nations peacekeeping personnel that are made

available by member nations of the United Nations;

Whereas United Nations Under-Secretary General for Peacekeeping, Bernard Miyet, announced in the Fourth Committee of the General Assembly that contributing governments of member nations were asked not to send civilian

police and military observers under the age of 25, and

that troops in national contingents should preferably be

at least 21 years of age but in no case should they be

younger than 18 years of age;

Whereas on August 25, 1999, the United Nations Security

Council unanimously passed Resolution 1261 (1999) condemning the use of children in armed conflicts;

Whereas in addressing the Security Council, the Special Representative of the Secretary General for Children and

Armed Conflict, Olara Otunnu, urged the adoption of a

global three-pronged approach to combat the use of children in armed conflict: first, to raise the age limit for recruitment and participation in armed conflict from the

present age of 15 to the age of 18; second, to increase
4

•SCON 72 IS

international pressure on armed groups which currently

abuse children; and third, to address the political, social,

and economic factors which create an environment where

children are induced by appeal of ideology or by socioeconomic collapse to become child soldiers; and

Whereas the United States delegation to the United Nations

working group relating to child soldiers has opposed efforts to raise the minimum age of participation in armed

conflict to the age of 18 despite the support of an overwhelming majority of countries: Now, therefore, be it

1 Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives

2 concurring), That—

3 (1) the Congress joins the international commu4 nity in condemning the use of children as soldiers by

5 governmental and nongovernmental armed forces

6 worldwide; and

7 (2) it is the sense of the Congress that—

8 (A) the United States should not oppose

9 current efforts to negotiate an optional inter10 national agreement to raise the international

11 minimum age for military service to the age of

12 18;

13 (B) the Secretary of State should address

14 positively and expediently this issue in the next

15 session of the United Nations working group re16 lating to child soldiers before this process is

17 abandoned by the international community; and
5

•SCON 72 IS

1 (C) the President and the Congress should

2 work together to enact a law that establishes a

3 fund for the rehabilitation and reintegration

4 into society of child soldiers.

Æ