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Remarks as Prepared
Children in the Crossfire: Prevention and
Rehabilitation of Child Soldiers Grand Hyatt Hotel Washington,
D.C. May 7, 2003
Good afternoon, and thank you all for coming.
Id like to begin by asking you to do something a little
unusual.
Imagine that you are an African boy only 11 years old. A rebel army
captures you and your family and takes you to their camp. When you arrive, you
are greeted by the sight of decomposing bodies strewn everywhere. The soldiers
shoot your father. Seeing this, another captive tries to escape. She is caught,
assaulted, and brutally murdered. You are taken away and forced to fight for
the people who killed your parents. When you try to resist, you are mercilessly
beaten.
Or imagine that you are an innocent 16-year-old girl abducted by
soldiers on the way home from school. You dont want to go with them, but
they threaten to take your clothes and shame you before strangers. You break
down in tears, but they are unmoved. You are taken far away from home. You
dont know if you will ever see your parents again.
Or imagine that you are a child, forced to fight for a commander who
saysas one commander actually didChildren make good fighters
because they think its all a game, so theyre fearless.
These are just a few of the terrible stories of the worlds 300,000
child soldiers. These young people are forced to fight by government-sponsored
armed forces or by other armed groups in more than 30 conflicts around the
globe. And we believe these numbers are conservative estimates.
The plight of child soldiers offends the worlds sense of decency
and the code of conduct of civilized nations. These children are forced to
become soldiers, spies, guards, human shields, human minesweepers, servants,
decoys, and sentries. Young girls are forced into prostitution. And when
violence fails to intimidate, many children are drugged to make it easier to
force them to perform horrendous acts of violence and cruelty. Some victims are
as young as 7 or 8, and many more are 10 to 15. Children who are orphans,
refugees, or victims of poverty or family alienation are particularly at
risk.
But today, by our presence at this conference, we are telling the world
in no uncertain terms that these horrors must end. The compulsory recruitment
of children for use in armed conflict is a barbaric practice condemned by the
community of civilized nations. No child should have to experience the
atrocities that child soldiers must face every day of their lives.
This conference sends a message of hope to these children. Over the next
day-and-a-half, we will discuss ways to help these children reclaim their lives
through education, rehabilitation and reintegration. This conference brings
together key stakeholders in the concerned community, which is an important
step towards global action. We have hundreds of representatives with us from
nations and agencies around the world. I want to recognize the governments,
U.N. agencies, non-profit organizations, researchers, members of the media, and
concerned individuals who have come here to work together. I want to thank each
of you for accepting the invitation of the U. S. Department of Labor to
participate.
The Department of Labor is involved in this issue for two reasons.
First, as you know, the United States is a signatory to the International Labor
Organization Convention No. 182. This convention names the forced recruitment
of children for used in armed conflict as one of the worst forms of child
labor. And second, President George W. Bush believesas you dothat
children have human dignity and must be protected from exploitation.
I pledge to you today that the U. S. Department of Labor will work with
our counterparts around the world to help save children from the brutal life of
a child soldier. The United States strongly believes that all nations should
join together to pursue effective solutions. Many developing nations are
showing their commitment to this cause by attending this conference, and we
appreciate their participation.
There are two faces of the child soldier issuethe face of despair,
and the face of redemption. In the next few moments, I want to show you both
faces. First, in some video footage shot in Africa. And then, in the faces and
voices of some very brave guests who are with us here today.
First, please join me in watching this video supplied by World Vision
about Uganda. In this video, we visit a child soldier rehabilitation center. I
want to commend the government of Uganda for its commitment to rehabilitating
these children. This video is particularly interesting because it shows
children engaging in mock battles. This kind of therapy allows them to safely
express their feelings about their experiences. Lets watch.
As Im sure you can imagine, overcoming such horrors requires great
courage. We are fortunate that 9 such courageous young peopleformer child
soldiersare with us today. These remarkable young people have traveled
from all around the globe to present the reality of their experiences as only
they can. They are here to bear witness for the children who are still in
captivity and cannot speak for themselves. But they can also provide us with a
blueprint for change and a message of hopeby proving that it is
possible to rebuild shattered lives.
At this time, I want to introduce each of these brave youngsters and ask
them to stand as I call their names.
Fabrice, from Burundi. Radjabu, from Burundi. Eider, from Colombia.
Berta, from El Salvador. Steven, from Sierra Leone. Emilia, from Sierra Leone.
Mohan, from Sri Lanka. Grace, from Uganda. And Paul, from Uganda.
I also want to thank the parents, guardians, and representatives from
government and non-profit organizations who accompanied these children to the
conference.
Our young guests are participating in a program with students from
schools in the Washington area. Im delighted that young Americans are
getting involved in this issue. Exposure to this information will help them
gain new insights about the benefits of liberty, basic human rights and the
rule of law.
We cant give child soldiers their childhood back, but we can help
them to rebuild their lives. That is why this conference will examine
all of the strategies at the community level.
As Secretary of Labor, I have a particular interest in education and job
training programs to help rehabilitate former child soldiers. This is the only
way to ensure that these brutalized children will someday have a chance to
become productive members of their societies. And I also have a strong interest
in developing special protections and facilities for young girls, who have
particular vulnerabilities that deserve our attention.
Today, Im pleased to announce that the U. S. Department of Labor
is launching a new $13-million global initiative to help educate, rehabilitate
and reintegrate former child soldiers.
This initiative includes a $7-million project funded through the
ILOs International Program on the Elimination of Child Labor. It will
develop comprehensive strategies to help former child soldiers in Burundi, the
Democratic Republic of Congo, the Republic of Congo, Rwanda, Uganda, the
Philippines, Sri Lanka and Colombia. This project builds upon and expands a
Department of Labor project in the four Central African countries.
The initiative also includes a $3-million project to address the
education needs of former child soldiers and children living in northern
Uganda, an area that was featured in the video. Just this morning, I signed a
Memorandum of Understanding with representatives of the Ugandan Government to
launch this program. The Department of Labor looks forward to our future
collaboration with the Ugandan Ministry of Gender, Labor and Social Welfare,
and the Ministry of Education and Sports.
The third part of the initiative is a $3-million project focusing on the
education needs and reintegration of child soldiers in Afghanistan. This
project will be implemented by UNICEF, an international organization with a
long history of helping children.
Child soldiers suffer in many waysoften in silence.
As one young girl said after witnessing the wanton slaughter of men and
women, So many times I just cried inside my heart because I didnt
dare cry out loud.
Child soldiers cannot cry outbut we can speak up for them, with
clarity, compassion and resolve. That is why we are here today. As part of our
commitment, let us also pledge ourselves to address the root causes of child
soldiers, which is the absence of basic human rights and fundamental
freedomsa situation all too prevalent in the world today. I look forward
to working with you to give these children back their future, and to bring them
the hope and opportunity that is every childs birthright.
Thank you very much.
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