Rwanda, Dallaire Institute recommit to end use of child soldiers in Africa

The Ministry of Defence and the Dallaire Institute for Children, Peace and Security have renewed a five-year Memorandum of Understanding for their commitment to the prevention of the recruitment and use of children in armed conflicts in Africa and around the globe. On June 13, 2022 in Kigali, Minister of Defence, Maj Gen Albert Murasira and Shelly Whitman, the Executive Director of the Dallaire Institute for Children, Peace and Security, signed this agreement that seeks to eradicate child soldiers. This particular document, a statement from the Ministry of Defence says, helps to define the roles that each of the institutions play in creating the African Centre of Excellence [for Children, Peace, and Security] that is in Kigali and the various activities that they will continue to carry out together. Both delegation pose for a group photo after signing the agreement in Kigali on Monday, June 13. Courtesy The Centre of Excellence exists to strengthen African capacity for research, training, and policy development and to foster innovative, regionally appropriate strategies to prevent the recruitment and use of children as soldiers. The Institute was founded by Lt. General (retired) Roméo Dallaire, a humanitarian, retired Canadian senator and former Force Commander of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Rwanda between 1993 and 1994. According to Institute, Dallaire confronted the unthinkable during the [1994] genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda where children were recruited and used to commit atrocities. From this experience, it said, he suffered moral and operational stress injuries. He used his personal mental health struggles to help catalyse a broader movement to destigmatise post-traumatic stress disorders among veterans. This also motivated his life-long commitment to end the recruitment and use of children worldwide. Speaking to The New Times on Monday, Francisca Mujawase, Acting Director for the African Centre of Excellence for Children, Peace, and Security – Rwanda said that using children in armed conflicts perpetuates wars and violates their rights, pointing out that the Institute takes the prevention-oriented approach from the security sector perspective. She said that Dallaire holds that the transformation that has happened in Rwanda these many years [28 years] after the genocide against Tutsi, are a result of the fact that Rwanda is being the champion of creating and building peace in countries where insecurities and hostilities are still persisting. Currently, she said, there is no issue of child soldiers; but observed that they want Rwanda to champion this concept to ensure that no child is used in any form of violence in the future in Rwanda, the region and beyond. The signed this agreement seeks to eradicate child soldiers. Courtesy But in countries where actually the use of children [in violence] is prevailing, like in South Sudan, Central African Republic, Mozambique, we have all these stories where thousands and thousands of children are still being used to fight wars. And, she said, Rwanda is playing a key role in contributing to the restoration of peace in those countries in question. “So, this MoU that we signed actually, we aim to achieve two things: One is to enhance the capacities of the troops that are set for deployment to have this knowledge on the concept of how they can actually prevent children from being used during the wars and conflicts where they are conducting the field missions, and also facility to respond to the incidences where children are already in use [either in the armed forces or the rebel groups],” she said. The second thing, she indicated, is that Rwanda champions the implementation of the Vancouver Principles on Peacekeeping and the Prevention of the Recruitment and Use of Child Soldiers [which were launched in Canada in November 2017]. These are a set of political commitments, endorsed by Member States, focused on child protection in peacekeeping, including all stages of a conflict cycle. So far, Mujawase said that the Vancouver Principles have been signed by 105 countries globally. “By effectively implementing the Vancouver Principles, Rwanda becomes the champion in the World of actually standing for rights of children at home and also internationally where they [its troops] serve,” she said. The state of use of children in armed conflicts globally On November 3, 2021, UNICEF (the UN’s International Childrens Fund) stated that West and Central Africa has been the region in the world with the highest number of children verified as recruited and used by armed forces and non-state armed groups and the highest number of children verified as victims of sexual violence. Since 2016, it exposed, West and Central Africa had recorded more than 21,000 children verified by the United Nations (UN) as recruited and used by armed forces and non-state armed groups, and more than 2,200 children victims of sexual violence.

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Rwanda, Dallaire Institute recommit to end use of child soldiers in Africa