Human Rights Group: South Sudanese Government Enlisting Child Soldiers

The South Sudanese government has been using children as soldiers. The Human Rights Watch reported on Wednesday that both government and rival forces have recruited children as young as 13 years old into the military.

These children are often forced to join the military, though some enlist on their own accord. The children are forced to join in armed combat, cook, and transport supplies.

The South Sudanese military, known as the Sudanese People’s Liberation Army, was known for its recruitment of child soldiers, but decided to forbid the practice in August of 2013. The minimum age for recruitment was set at 18 years of age.

However, in December of 2013, armed conflict had again become prominent in South Sudan. The President of South Sudan, Salva Kiir, is vying with rival Riek Machar for control of the country. With the increase in armed conflict, the frequency of child soldiers resumed. The United Nations Children’s Fund reported that thousands of children had already fought in the South Sudan war. Since the start of the conflict in 2013, some 516 children have been recruited.

It is currently a war crime to recruit children under the age of 15 into the military. The Human Rights Watch suggests that United Nation agencies should work with the military leaders to set the minimum age of recruitment to 18 and release child soldiers from service.

“Despite renewed promises by both government and opposition forces that they will stop using child soldiers, both sides continue to recruit and use children in combat,” said the Africa director Human Rights Watch, Daniel Bekele. “In Malakal, government forces are even taking children from right outside the United Nations compound … South Sudanese children’s lives are being devastated by conflict, with children once again going to war instead of to school,” he said.

Reportedly, both government and rival forces recruit children even near a United Nations site. Children reportedly run into the UN “protection of civilian” site (POC) whenever the military is seen. The Human Rights Watch recorded accounts of young boys being abducted and sent directly to the battlefield to engage in combat.