The Coalition to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers has
published its new Global Report which finds that child soldiers are still being used
in over 20 conflicts world-wide. This report represents the most comprehensive
global survey of child soldiers to date. It says that children are fighting in
almost every major conflict, in both government and opposition forces. They are
being injured, subjected to horrific abuse and killed.

The Coalition accused governments at the European Union, G-8 and UN Security Council
of a failure of leadership. It called for the immediate enforcement of a ban on the
use of child soldiers. "Children should be protected from warfare not used to wage
it. Instead generations are having their childhoods stolen by governments and armed
groups," said Casey Kelso, head of the Coalition to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers.
"A world that does not allow children to fight wars is possible, but governments
must show the political will and courage to make this happen by enforcing
international laws."

'Child Soldiers Global Report 2004' reviews trends and developments since 2001 in
196 countries. Despite some improvements the situation remained the same or
deteriorated in many countries. Wars ending in Afghanistan, Angola and Sierra Leone
led to the demobilisation of 40,000 children, but over 25,000 were drawn into
conflicts in Côte d'Ivoire and Sudan alone.

Opportunities for progress, including the creation of and growing support for a UN
child soldiers treaty, the creation of demobilisation programs in some countries and
momentum towards prosecutions of those recruiting children, have been undermined by
governments actively breaking pledges or failing to show political leadership.
Although the UN Security Council has condemned child soldiering and monitors those
using children in war, some members have blocked real progress by opposing concrete
penalties for violators. The Coalition said that the Security Council should take
immediate and decisive action to get children out of conflict by applying targeted
sanctions and referring child recruiters to the International Criminal Court for
prosecution.

Armed groups, both government-backed paramilitaries and opposition forces, are the
main culprits in recruitment and use of child soldiers. Dozens of groups in at least
21 conflicts have recruited tens of thousands of children since 2001, forcing them
into combat, training them to use explosives and weapons, and subjecting them to
rape, violence and hard labour. Governments, including Burundi, Democratic Republic
of Congo, Myanmar, Sudan and the USA, used children on the front lines in at least
10 conflicts. Others, including Colombia, Uganda and Zimbabwe, backed paramilitary
groups and militias that used child soldiers. States such as Indonesia and Nepal
used children as informants, spies or messengers. Some governments, including
Burundi, Indonesia and the Russian Federation, killed, tortured or arbitrarily
detained children suspected of supporting armed opposition. Palestinian children
detained by Israeli forces were tortured or threatened to coerce them to become
informants.

Western governments broke commitments to protect children by providing military
training and support to governments using child soldiers, such as Rwanda and Uganda.
The Coalition called on governments to ban all recruitment of under-18s into any
armed force and to ratify and fully implement the UN child soldiers treaty, which is
helping to reduce the numbers of children used in hostilities. At least 60
governments, including Australia, Austria, Germany, the Netherlands, the United
Kingdom and the USA, continue to legally recruit children aged 16 and 17.[Source: CRIN]

For more information, contact:

Coalition to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers
International Secretariat
2-12 Pentonville Road, 2nd Floor, London N1 9HF, UK
Tel: + 44 (0)20 7713 2761; Fax: + 44 (0)20 7713 2794
Email: info@child-soldiers.org
Website: http://www.childsoldiers.org