Specially Protected Persons in Combat Situations (new title)

[Adam L]

Mike - Great examples.

So, what would our strategy, or more importantly, our rules of engagement be, if, say during a "humantarian" intervention into Darfur or Ethiopia we were confronted with hordes of child soldiers?

Let's hope that the child soldiers find CS gas terrifying and incapacitating. If not, the operation will end as soon as the photos of a dozen dead child soldiers killed by the peacekeeping forces hits the media. As interesting and important of an issue this is, what our rules of engagement will be is less critical than what our information campaign will be domestically. It is inevitable that despite our best preparations we will end up killing child soldiers at some point. It doesn't matter whether it's 15 or 100, it will be a nightmare.

Adam L

[M-A Lagrange]

Mike - Great examples.
Let's hope that the child soldiers find CS gas terrifying and incapacitating. If not, the operation will end as soon as the photos of a dozen dead child soldiers killed by the peacekeeping forces hits the media. As interesting and important of an issue this is, what our rules of engagement will be is less critical than what our information campaign will be domestically. It is inevitable that despite our best preparations we will end up killing child soldiers at some point. It doesn't matter whether it's 15 or 100, it will be a nightmare.

Adam L

The problematic of child soldiers acceptance by the masses is interesting at several levels.
Few years ago, Save The Children made a survey on DDR programs for children; What came out is:
- no one is ready to accept the idea that under 15 children could be warriors. This despite reallity. It seems that for most of the military cultures under 15 boys are too young to be "soldiers/killers".
- Even less people are ready to accept the idea that under 15 girls could be child soldiers and not just sexual slaves. The idea that a 7 years old boy carrying a weapon is more acceptable than a 10 years old girl fighting.
- Most, if not all, communities around the world banished the use of child soldiers as a rule of stump. (Which does not mean that no one is using them.)
- All professional soldiers were shocked by having to conduct demobilisation activities with under 15 years old children (boys and girls). But demobilizing under 15 years old girls is considered as even more traumatising that demobilizing young boys.

The main exception to this, as far as I know during the seccond half of 20st century, has been the use of children by Iran during the Irak/Iran war. But even then, it was not that popular inside the Iran’s population.
My point is that using only children would be a strong challenge even inside the supporting population.

And finally, it is interesting to define what a child soldier is? A 17 years old boy or girl (A cadet even less) taking side is finally very much acceptable. It's illegal but the moral question is not really there.
But what to do when you face a group of 10 boys between 8 and 13 years old? With a 10 years old girl as commander...

NB: there is an interesting point on the definition of child soldier. Under 7 years old, children are considered as useless for war. This limit of childhood in war is very ancient as you find notes on this in the Bible (Deuteronom) and even more ancient law texts on war (Manu code…). Nowadays, it is considered that a below 7 child is not strong enough to carry a gun or shoot with.