He then provided a brief historical backgrounder regarding the establishment of his office, stating that the genesis of his mandate was a 1996 report dealing with children and armed conflict. According to Mr. Otunnu, there are many faces of the suffering of children and the universal purpose of his office is to protect their vulnerability in all phases of conflict including prevention and rehabilitation. Consensus agreement for raising the age limit of conscription from 15 to 18 years old. New awareness of illicit trade involving children, such as the diamond trade. Mr. Otunnu emphasized that the indigenous community is affected by conflict in particular ways.
Poverty is a contributing factor for the recruitment of indigenous child soldiers.
Furthermore, in such situations indigenous traditions are disrupted. For these reasons, in his view, the mandate of his office as well as the progress made in the area of children and armed conflict need to be translated into an economic, social and political movement that strengthens local capacity building. 2- Mr. Garcia shared his personal experience of the war in Guatemala. Gross violations of fundamental rights occurred in this period such as deprivation of freedom of minors, extrajudicial executions and violations of physical integrity of new born children. Furthermore, the whole of indigenous cultural life was severely violated.