Reimagining child soldiers in international law and policy
By: Mark A. Drumbl
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Published: 2012
Place of publication: Oxford; New York
Language: eng
Number of pages: 239
ISBN-13: 9780199592654; 9780199592661
Subjects: Child soldiers; Legal status, laws
Description: "The international community's efforts to halt child soldiering have yielded some successes. But this pernicious practice persists. It may shift locally, but it endures globally. Preventative measures therefore remain inadequate. Former child soldiers experience challenges readjusting to civilian life. Reintegration is complex and eventful. The homecoming is only the beginning. Reconciliation within communities afflicted by violence committed by and against child soldiers is incomplete. Shortfalls linger on the restorative front. The international community strives to eradicate the scourge of child soldiering. Mostly, though, these efforts replay the same narratives and circulate the same assumptions. Current humanitarian discourse sees child soldiers as passive victims, tools of war, vulnerable, psychologically devastated, and not responsible for their violent acts. This perception has come to suffuse international law and policy.

Toward forgiveness instead of excuse, thereby facilitating reintegration and promoting social repair within afflicted communities. Toward a better understanding of child soldiering, without which the practice cannot be ended. This book also offers fresh thinking on related issues, ranging from juvenile justice, to humanitarian interventions, to the universality of human rights, to the role of law in responding to mass atrocity"--Provided by publisher.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (p. [216]-234) and index.
Table of contents: title: Coming of age in atrocity; title: Children who soldier : practices, politics, and perceptions; title: Not so simple; title: Child soldiers and accountability; title: Unlawful recruitment and use of children : from proscription to prevention; title: Rights, wrongs, and transitional reconstruction; title: Reinvigorating the international legal imagination.