Prosecuting Child Soldiers: Should they be given a chance?

Children are often used to man checkpoints when there is no active combat taking place;the soldiers will stand several meters back so if anyone starts to fire a weapon, the child soldiers will be the first ones to get hit.

I believe that child soldiers should not be held accountable for their crimes, only if they can be considered for the possibility of rehabilitation.

Child soldiers, an incredible issue in the continent of Africa; some argue that they should be saved, and others require justice for their lost loved ones referring to them as, “killing machines”. These children are subject to the burden of warfare, and they have become weapons themselves; organizations like UNICEF attempt to reintegrate these children back into society away from the clutches of warfare.

These children can easily be considered the very victims of these war crimes committed.
“If a child under the age of 15 is considered too young to fight them he or she…while associated with armed forces or armed groups,” stated IRIN. As can be seen, this shows how some believe that these are considered too young to fight and are promptly too young to be convicted for war crimes. In fact, these children are victims of these war crimes as they were taken from their families and placed onto the battlefield almost immediately; one could say they deserve to be rehabilitated. While some may state that they will be unstable and might not know hot to interact with others in the modern world. On the contrary with rehabilitation they could slowly learn, and become accustomed to modern society once again. This shows precisely why they should be given a chance. They are often considered to be both victims and perpetrators of such war crimes as a result of the controversy lurking around them.

They are the victims of these war crimes and they should not be prosecuted of horrendous actions they committed and were unaware of.

Another reason as to why one may believe this, is because these children should not be prosecuted for crimes that they may have been incapable of understanding.

“Many believe that child soldiers are not morally responsible for the actions they perform,” stated in *Child Soldiers, an overview of the controversy*. This is true as these very children are subject to taking drugs in order for them to be desensitised, and promptly be unaware of their own actions. Some may state that they have ruined several others’ lives and that those families may seek justice. On the contrary, they still have a chance because they were drugged, and they were unaware of the actions they committed so seeking justice would ultimately serve no purpose.

They are not morally responsible for these actions, but they are still capable of inflicting great pain on many; this is why they should be prevented by committing any more unlawful actions in the future.

A final reason, one may believe this is because, these children should be prevented from committing anymore unlawful actions prior to becoming adults.
Prosecution of a child should always be regarded as a measure of last resort and the purpose of any sentence should be to rehabilitate and reintegrate the child into society,” stated IRIN. This shows that child soldiers should only be prosecuted if all hope is lost as the true goal is to ensure that they don’t commit any more actions in the future. Although some may state that they should be left alone if it is their option and if they continue when older it’s their fault, they may not have direct control over their actions as stated earlier. Furthermore, one shouldn’t let such urgent matters be left in the hands of a youth who lacks a stable psychological state, instead they should be rehabilitated as to avoid further crisis and possible trauma in the future. This is because, leaving such a decision to children would result in several of them declining such an offer.

There are a plethora of reasons as to why child soldiers should not be held accountable for their deeds, in the end it all leads back to such a notion.

Child soldiers shouldn’t be held responsible for their actions as child soldiers only if they can be deemed fit for the reasons prior.

They shouldn’t be prosecuted for a plethora of reasons, but the following consist of the fact they could be considered the very victims of these war crimes,they were incapable of comprehending their actions, and that they should be prevented from carrying out these actions in the future.

One can’t hide the past, but it’s very possible to prevent their future in such a field.

In conclusion, they may bear weapons and all, but there is a chance to prevent their future where future atrocities may be committed; rehabilitation emerges the superlative in doing such.