December 2019 – In a joint policy note, Watchlist on Children and Armed Conflict and Human Rights Watch highlight the increasingly worrying trend of military detention of children affected by armed conflict, a trend documented in at least 15 countries affected by armed conflict. The policy note, Military Detention of Children in Armed Conflict: The Role of Handover Protocols in Protecting Children’s Rights, examines how governments are increasingly treating children affected by armed conflict as criminals and security threats, rather than as victims of serious violations who require rehabilitation and social reintegration.
The policy note describes the role of handover protocols as a practical tool to avoid military detention children, ensure their rehabilitation and reintegration, and protect their rights. It offers concrete recommendations for addressing military detention of children to states affected by armed conflict, those providing them with security assistance, regional and international security alliances, the UN Security Council and its Working Group on Children and Armed Conflict, and UN country teams.
Read the full report: https://watchlist.org/wp-content/uploads/2362-watchlist-military-detention-policy_note-lr.pdf.
Watchlist acknowledges the generous support of the Federal Republic of Germany for the publication of this policy note.
