IV
106TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. CON. RES. 209
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 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
OCTOBER 26, 1999
Mr. LANTOS (for himself, Mr. PORTER, Mr. GILMAN, Mr. PAYNE, Mr. SMITH
of New Jersey, Ms. MCKINNEY, Mr. HASTINGS of Florida, Mrs.
MORELLA, Mr. ABERCROMBIE, Mr. ALLEN, Mr. BOEHLERT, Mr. CLAY,
Mr. CROWLEY, Mr. CUMMINGS, Mr. FARR of California, Mr. HALL of
Ohio, Mr. HILLIARD, Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas, Mr. KILDEE, Mr.
KUCINICH, Mrs. LOWEY, Mr. LUTHER, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. GEORGE
MILLER of California, Mr. OWENS, Mr. ROMERO-BARCELO´, Mr. SABO,
Mr. SANDERS, Mr. SERRANO, Mr. STARK, Mr. TIERNEY, Mr. VISCLOSKY,
and Mr. WAXMAN) submitted the following concurrent resolution; which
was referred to the Committee on International 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
•HCON 209 IH
more are at risk of being conscripted at any given mo-
ment;
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;
Whereas many military commanders frequently force child
soldiers to commit gruesome acts of ritual killings or tor-
ture against their enemies, including against other chil-
dren;
Whereas many military commanders separate children from
their families in order to foster dependence on military
units and leaders, leaving children vulnerable to manipu-
lation, 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 car-
rying overweight loads, and respiratory and skin infec-
tions;
Whereas many young female soldiers face the additional psy-
chological and physical horrors of rape and sexual abuse,
being enslaved for sexual purposes by militia com-
manders, and forced to endure severe social stigma
should they return home;
Whereas children in northern Uganda continue to be kid-
napped 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;
•HCON 209 IH
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-
tions, torture, rape, and amputations for the rebel Revo-
lutionary United Front;
Whereas the international community is developing a con-
sensus 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 Peace-
keeping, Bernard Miyet, announced in the Fourth Com-
mittee of the General Assembly that contributing govern-
ments 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) con-
demning the use of children in armed conflicts;
•HCON 209 IH
Whereas in addressing the Security Council, the Special Rep-
resentative 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 chil-
dren in armed conflict: first, to raise the age limit for re-
cruitment and participation in armed conflict from the
present age of 15 to the age of 18; second, to increase
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 socio-
economic collapse to become child soldiers; and
Whereas the United States delegation to the United Nations
working group relating to child soldiers has opposed ef-
forts to raise the minimum age of participation in armed
conflict to the age of 18 despite the support of an over-
whelming majority of countries: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate
concurring), That—
(1) the Congress joins the international commu-
nity in condemning the use of children as soldiers by
governmental and nongovernmental armed forces
worldwide; and
(2) it is the sense of the Congress that—
(A) the United States should not oppose
current efforts to negotiate an optional inter-
national agreement to raise the international
minimum age for military service to the age of
18;
•HCON 209 IH
(B) the Secretary of State should address
positively and expediently this issue in the next
session of the United Nations working group re-
lating to child soldiers before this process is
abandoned by the international community; and
(C) the President and the Congress should
work together to enact a law that establishes a
fund for the rehabilitation and reintegration
into society of child soldiers.
Æ