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Samir Shad

Samir Shad
In Programmes

The Adverse Experiences of Child Soldiers

Armed conflict can be one of the most destructive events known to humankind. From the stone age until the present day, wars have been fought over resources, territory, power, and riches in an almost constantly recurring cycle. It damages infrastructure, topples economies, destroys social networks, and has particularly harmful consequences on children and young people regarding their well-being and development.

However, whilst wars and conflicts have always raged there has invariably always been a distinction drawn between combatants and civilians[i]; a bargain struck so that the most vulnerable of society would be granted immunity from the horrors of war. Unfortunately, this sentiment does not represent the realities of war, nor how those most vulnerable often act in the face of conflict – in particular, how children act.

Children in modern conflicts have unfortunately become intrinsic to warfare and how it is waged with the most basic laws of the Geneva Convention being violated in every major warzone as children are targeted in efforts to inflict terror on populations. This callous tactic not only poses a severe physical threat to children, as they may be killed or injured but also a psychological threat to wellbeing and life post-war. What has become most worrying in modern times is how the impacts of conflict do not always affect children as passive actors. In many countries where war is present, children are increasingly assuming more active roles in the conflicts that persist in their communities.

Children brandishing arms is indeed by no means a new development. The Spartans took boys from their family homes at the age of seven to train in the military whilst the Ottoman Empire stole children from its subjects in the Balkan states to fill out the ranks of its Janissary army through a system referred to as the devshirme[ii]. In more recent history, when the Iranian regime began to falter in the Iran-Iraq war of the 1980s children from the ages 12 upward were called up to fight Saddam Hussein’s Iraq in the new ‘Holy War’[iii]. But in present times, the training and use of child soldiers has become more commonplace than ever.

In 2017 it was estimated that more than 100,000 children were currently being forced to play active roles in conflicts[iv] in the fifteen UN-identified countries Yemen, Somalia, Myanmar, Sierra Leone, Colombia, Afghanistan, South Sudan, Sudan, the DRC, Iraq, Mali, Nigeria, Syria, the Philippines, and the Central African Republic. However, these are only the recognised countries and there are many more nations where groups are suspected of cultivating children as active participants in violence and crimes across the globe; even in some Western countries where terror cells, separatist groups and nationalists lurk beneath the visage of peace.

Today most active child soldiers are enlisted in rebel militia groups in developing nations in Africa, Asia, and South America. Militia groups often rely on a steady stream of voluntary recruits to sustain their operations. But when this voluntary stream runs dry some do resort to forced recruitment – a strategy that has become particularly prevalent among those groups that operate with children in their ranks. The extent and scale of this recruitment can, and does, differ between groups as conflicts run their course as some may employ children for individual missions whereas others will utilise them throughout.

It is important to note that this is not a problem limited to young males. The role of child soldiers is played by both boys and girls; and whilst it is commonly assumed that children recruited by militia groups are automatically handed weapons and trained as soldiers, it is not always the case. Children often take up other roles within these groups such as cooks, spies, or messengers. Young girls are particularly vulnerable when recruited as they can also face the burden of sex work resulting in physical and mental damage that lasts a lifetime even when emancipated. Regardless of how they are recruited or what role they play, child soldiers are victims of war and poverty. A child enacting a role that does not send them to the front lines of a conflict is still exposed to varying levels of violence, abuse, risk, and hardship – even though it may take different forms.

But what is most worrying about the current station of child soldiers is that not all of them are taken by force from their domiciles, or even coerced. A large quota voluntarily join armed conflicts with little resistance. The reasons for this all link back to poverty and deprivation in times of conflict.

Recruitment vs Voluntary Conscription

Whilst many children are recruited by armed groups, it is not enough to simply condemn those groups responsible for recruitment; especially when it is also the case that many children voluntarily and willingly join up. Children who join armed groups voluntarily are often already experiencing the impacts of war or conflict which can push them towards fighting. Traumatisation and brutalisation are two key experiences that push some children to join up. Children can experience high levels of trauma when witnessing violence through shelling strikes, shootings, landmine explosions and other atrocities in their communities that provoke them to conscript with armed groups to fight back – whether against a civil enemy of one further afield. Similarly, brutalisation is experienced as children are targeted by warring factions and are subject to search operations, improper detention in unlawful circumstances and sometimes torture – all of which contribute to a decision to fight the perceived inducer of these experiences.

But the main contributing factor that pushes children and young people to join armed conflict is deprivation and poverty. Families who have been displaced by conflicts and who are lacking income, jobs, food, and other necessities for survival often encourage children to voluntarily join armed groups as a way to make ends meet in extreme circumstances. Employment in armed groups affords children the potential for a roof over their heads, food, and, to a lesser degree, protection from the war outside. The choice to fight therefore becomes a plea to change their position in society and improve their opportunities for growth and development – or rather, at least it is perceived that way. The reality when living and participating in armed groups is often far different.

But what if war hasn’t devastated a child’s home; why do they then still choose to conscript? An answer for this lies in the Middle East at the tip of the Arabian Peninsula, in Yemen. Yemen is a country whose civil war has been ongoing since 2014 and child soldiers have become an intrinsic part of the Houthi rebel group’s (and to a lesser extent government forces too) tactics. Since 2015, there have been nearly 4000 verified child soldiers active in the region[v] – with the actual unverified number expected to be much higher. The UN says that over 10,200 children have been killed or maimed in the war since its start nearly a decade ago which has pushed many others into the fighting. But what is most concerning, however, is the unusual socially prescribed relationship young men and boys have with guns.

Acquiring and owning weapons is engrained in Yemeni culture historically[vi] and the link between gun ownership and manliness is an intrinsic part of Yemeni tradition that has stood for hundreds of years. Even before guns, men used to carry curved daggers known as jambiya as a sign of strength and manhood. Firing guns in celebration of weddings, birthdays and more is common practice and a sign for rejoice among many. But whilst traditional tribal law prohibited the use of these weapons by and against women and children, these rules have been bent and broken over the last decade, especially with young boys.

The eternal pairing of weapons and manliness has resulted in the self-arming of many young boys who visualise their coming-of-age with fantastical ideas of guns and masculinity reinforced by a needless war that only provokes conscription to armed groups. For Yemeni boys, not having a gun would lower their status in social circles and limit their opportunities for development whilst transitioning into adult life. It is therefore as intrinsic a possession as the shoes on your feet and is why the country has such a prolific gun culture. There are an estimated 2 guns for every 1 person in the country with a population of roughly 23 million[vii]. Focussing the blame onto rebel groups, therefore, ignores the systemic problem that causes voluntary conscription in the first place and ignores an opportunity to challenge the issue at its roots.

The Dar Al-Salam Organisation: منظمة دار السلام (DASO) – or ‘House of Peace’ in English – is an indigenous Yemeni non-governmental organisation (NGO) focused on conflict resolution and disarming practices. The organisation has developed over 250 grassroots peace committees across the country working with over 4000 tribal leaders to conduct multiple youth peace-building workshops across the country. The workshops aim to promote the ethos of peaceful coexistence as an alternative to war[viii] to combat the doctrine of guns and manhood among the country’s young boys (and girls, although to a slightly lesser extent). The organisation also runs campaigns to stop youth conscription into violence to prevent further young people from involving themselves in the war.

But whilst campaigning and education on disarming practices are pivotal to the country’s fight against gun culture and child soldiers, the problem persists. As a result of the war, children experience issues of traumatisation and brutality as a common occurrence whilst also experiencing deprivation and poverty. All this pushes people to sign up to play more active roles in conflict – a position only reinforced by Yemen’s deeply enshrined hegemonic gun culture. This unfortunate cycle of adverse experiences only serves to push more young people into the midst of war and conflict. But despite now having a position to earn both economic and social capital, the experiences of children in these situations are far from improved.

Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs)

The experiences we have in our early life, particularly those in childhood, play a significant role in individual growth and development. Both our physical and mental health; our behaviour and emotions; and our ability to form meaningful attachments and relationships can be drastically altered and impacted by our situational experiences both as a child and in later life.

The concept of adverse childhood experiences or ACEs is central to a discussion about child soldiers. The concept defines and encompasses the potentially traumatic experiences that some children live with between the ages of 0-17. The term incorporates various experiences, including domestic abuse, neglect, witnessing and partaking in violence; substance misuse, mental health concerns and consistent instability in the home and the community[ix].

Whilst the impacts of ACEs are significant while young, people who experience ACEs in early life often suffer from the adverse effects of it in later life – particularly with their mental and physical health. People often suffer from an increased risk of certain health conditions in later life such as heart disease and cancer whilst also experiencing greater levels of mental health conditions such as depression and anxiety – of those people who are diagnosed with mental health conditions in adulthood, 1 in 3 have previously experienced ACEs[x]. ACEs are also linked to issues of toxic stress (both as a child and as an adult) which can have adverse effects on various aspects of a person’s life[xi], including a further risk to physical health.

Poverty is itself an ACE. Children living in poverty are already at greater risk of experiencing significant physical and mental health problems which negatively impact their well-being. Poverty brings with it a multitude of economic and social insecurities such as lacking the necessary resources to feed or clothe oneself efficiently, heat their home, or properly engage with wider social actors resulting from inefficient opportunities to socialise and social stigmas and labels of the poor. The effects of poverty on a child are devastating on their own but when combined with localised violence and crime, the impacts can be even greater.

Most importantly, children who experience a combination of ACEs and poverty can have their integral understanding of social interaction thwarted and often struggle to understand various emotions (both personally and when exhibited by others). This makes it extremely complicated to process thoughts and feelings both as a child experiencing ACEs and as an adult. Young people experiencing ACEs often, therefore, find it hard to form attachments with others. This can be the result of an unsafe home ensuing from neglect or abuse but can further translate into wider social interaction. When lacking attachment, people are known to struggle as we are inherently sociable creatures[xii] and this is a key contributing factor as to why some children voluntarily join militia groups or gangs. These collectives can provide children with the support and attachment missing from their lives growing up experiencing poverty, neglect, and various other ACEs in the home. If voluntary, joining an armed group like this can instil a sense of connection and attachment that is otherwise vacant in the lives of impoverished children[xiii]. However, the reality of life inside an armed group is far from this and often involves the experience of multiple other ACEs.

How do ACEs Affect a Child Soldier’s Development and Adult Life?

The ACEs that children experience whilst playing their role in warfare are proven to drastically impact their psychological and social development whilst young and leave long-lasting legacies on their mental and physical health as they grow up – some of which are gender specific.

Whilst acting as soldiers, children face various ACEs such as a loss of access to school and healthcare, poor access to food and suitable shelter, forced displacement, and separation from family[xiv]. They further witness and endure physical and sexual abuse. But the most traumatic ACE that affects children both as active and passive actors in armed conflict is witnessing, and partaking in, violence. Children in militia groups are routinely exposed to varying levels of death and injury in war. Some experiences come from the side-lines, acting as medics to injured peers, others come looking down the barrel of a gun on a battlefield. Regardless of how they may be experienced, witnessing such atrocities causes significant harm to children while still serving in armed groups and for a long period after adulthood.

The psychological distress of fighting in wars is well documented with various studies concluding a strong link between the violence experienced in combat and the diagnosis of multiple different mental health concerns such as depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)[xv]. But how experiences of conflict operate in the psyche of children post-war is not as widely understood. Both adult soldiers coming home from combat tours and child soldiers in post-war situations experience psychological issues exhibited in sleep disturbances, eating disorders, aggressive behaviours, and a dramatic increase in suicidal behaviour maintained by high levels of toxic stress. Individuals are unable to turn off their body’s fight or flight response to previously experienced stressful situations and therefore exist in a constant state of stressful anxiety. This is particularly potent among children who have experienced multiple ACEs and is especially evident among ex-child soldiers.

For example, between 1991 and 2002, Sierra Leone experienced one of the worst civil conflicts in recent history that displaced over 75% of its population[xvi] resulting in both a poverty and refugee crisis. The conflict was notorious for the roles that children played throughout whether as combatants or in other positions. In 2021, the country had a Human Development Index (HDI) score of 0.477[xvii], placing it 181stout of 191 countries published on the list; and whilst health professionals in the country are justifiably prioritising their focus on the country’s high rates of infant mortality, there has been a lack of attention paid to the fragile psychological state of the country’s ex-child soldiers who were active in the 90s.

Research by Theresa Betancourt, the leading expert on Sierra Leone’s child soldiers, found that ex-child recruits in the country are experiencing high levels of trauma since the conflict ended in 2002. Of those children who had joined armed groups, 63% had witnessed violent death; 62% had been beaten by armed forces; 39% had been forced to take drugs; and 27% had killed or injured others in war[xviii]. Experiencing these kinds of atrocities at a young age can impair the development of the prefrontal cortex which affects logical thinking and memory. This can contribute to a greater risk of suffering from depression and anxiety among war-exposed youths as they disassociate their feelings from their experiences and therefore struggle to logically tackle social encounters when the feelings resurface in later life. These, in turn, impact other areas of life such as finances, attachment and social interaction – especially when there are lasting stigmas attached to their actions whilst in service.

Multiple other external stressors influence how individuals behave post-conflict. Perceived stigmas from external actors play a massive role in how ex-child soldiers perceive themselves and measure their self-worth. It also limits their opportunities to socialise as other actors do not accept or accommodate them in a way that allows them to reintegrate into mainstream society. This can ultimately result in individuals retreating to the fringes of civilisation so as not to feel judged. But this reinforces their perceptions of themselves and how they feel society views them and amplifies the potential spiral of an individual’s mental health.

But despite the odds stacked against them, the rehabilitation and reintegration of child soldiers back into mainstream society is possible. Evidence suggests that despite the trauma many ex-child soldiers live with resulting from the numerous ACEs they have experienced, positive developmental outcomes are achievable if the right resources and support available[xix]. There is a multitude of humanitarian aid and support that incorporates holistic trauma-led approaches to helping children after wartime that can and do help children who have actively participated in conflicts.

The United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone set out a peacebuilding mandate that focussed on the demobilisation, disarmament, and reintegration of child soldiers’ post-civil conflict. The agency disarmed 75,000 ex-fighters, many of whom were children and in efforts to promote peace, alongside other UN agencies, set up numerous projects to provide jobs to thousands of unemployed youths rebuilding schools, medical centres and more[xx]. Most importantly, the projects provided a safe space overseen by UN peacekeepers where young children involved in fighting could reintegrate into wider society without the stresses or stigmas that may have otherwise been present if excluded.

More generally across the world, UNICEF, commissioned by the UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, provides psychological support during this transition period. They run courses on sensitisation and reconciliation efforts so that children can cognitively process what they have experienced and begin to live with the trauma they may possess.[xxi]. Furthermore, once children have completed these courses, some programmes attempt to reunite them with their families so that they can receive the love, support and attachment that is so desperately needed to promote stability and good mental well-being.

There are also many other NGOs acting to combat the impact of ACEs on ex-child soldiers. The Children and War Foundation is a non-profit organisation that helps children in communities that were previously affected by war. They have developed numerous study-proven interventions and support groups for ex-child soldiers to discuss their experiences and develop coping strategies in life after war. War Child is another agency that does similar work but also additionally runs multiple rehabilitation programmes for children suffering from drug addiction as a result of doping in armed militia groups that aim to reduce their reliance on using and instead focus on positive growth outcomes.

It must be noted that the rehabilitation of ex-child soldiers is highly gendered and whilst the above services are available for both genders, young women and girls face additional challenges when reintegrating back into wider society – especially when they have been victims of sexual abuse. 1 in 6 children in war zones are victims of sexual abuse; of that statistic, 98% are young women[xxii]. With a lack of state systems to report the crime, social stigmas, and the fear of retaliation by the perpetrator; young women can often feel extremely isolated when conflicts resolve and, like other ACEs, the impacts of the abuse can have long-lasting negative effects. UNICEF runs programmes the world over for child victims of sexual abuse. These include support for safe and accessible reporting, reliable medical support, and gender-based violence recovery sessions where both physical and mental well-being support is available for survivors living with the impacts of abuse and exploitation.

The Bigger Picture

What becomes clear is that condemning those who recruit child soldiers is not a complete solution. Children, in many instances, will fight voluntarily. And whilst in some cases this may be a desired position of status, such as for young men in Yemen; in many instances, the life of a child soldier is thrust upon its participant as a result of wider social processes. War itself alongside vulnerability, insecurity, deprivation, and poverty are all key push factors for the voluntary conscription of children into armed groups. When this is combined with the forceful nature of militia recruitment tactics, it produces a recipe for a cycle of abuse that will continue unless addressed as a whole.

The work that is being done by the UN and various other NGOs around the world to help ex-child soldiers confront the adverse experiences they encounter whilst fighting is pivotal to their rehabilitation and assimilation back into wider social practices. But if we are to prevent children from fighting in conflicts in the future, then we need to eradicate the root societal causes as well as address the post-conflict fallout whilst condemning and fighting the groups that recruit in the first place. But in a world order where ‘the original sin of humanity is its inability to live at peace’[xxiii]; will this ever be a plausible and encompassing solution?

[i] Singer, P.W. (2005). Children at War. Pantheon Books, New York.

[ii] Alvarez, J. (2020). Devshirme, the recruitment of Christian children by the Ottoman Empire to become soldiers and officials. LBV Magazine Cultural Independiente. Retrieved from: https://www.labrujulaverde.com/en/2020/08/devshirme-the-recruitment-of-christian-children-by-the-ottoman-empire-to-become-soldiers-and-officials/

[iii] University of Chicago. (2011). The Graphics of Revolution and War: Iranian Poster Arts Exhibition. University of Chicago Library, Chicago.

[iv] Mulroy, M. et al. (2020). Begin with the children. Child soldier numbers doubled in the Middle East in 2019. Middle East Institute. Retrieved from: https://www.mei.edu/publications/begin-children-child-soldier-numbers-doubled-middle-east-2019

[v] Nasser, A. (2023). Child Soldiers in Yemen: Cannon Fodder for an Unnecessary War. Arab Center Washington DC. Retrieved from: https://arabcenterdc.org/resource/child-soldiers-in-yemen-cannon-fodder-for-an-unnecessary-war/#:~:text=UNICEF%20reported%20at%20the%20end,have%20been%20recruited%20since%202015.

[vi] Root, T. (2013). Gun Control, Yemen-Style. The Atlantic. February, 12.

[vii] Abdullah, K. (2010). Yemen Gun Culture Harms Stability, Helps Militants. Reuters Online. Retrieved from: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-yemen-arms-idUSTRE6B73FJ20101208

[viii] Dar Al-Salam Org. (2023) Education for Peace project. منظمة دار السلام. Retrieved from: https://peace-yemen.org.ye/?p=12757

[ix] CDC. (2023). Fast Facts: Preventing Adverse Childhood Experiences. Centre for Disease Control and Prevention CDC. Retrieved from: https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/aces/fastfact.html

[x] NHS. (2023). Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and Attachment. Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust. Manchester.

[xi] Center on the Developing Child. (2023). What are ACEs? And how do they relate to toxic stress? Harvard University. Boston. Retrieved from: https://harvardcenter.wpenginepowered.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/ACEsInfographic_080218.pdf

[xii] Young, S. (2008). The neurobiology of human social behaviour: an important but neglected topic. Journal of Psychiatry and Neuroscience. Sep; 33(5): p. 391-392.

[xiii] AACAP. (2017). Gangs and Children. American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. Sep; 98. Retrieved from: https://www.aacap.org/AACAP/Families_and_Youth/Facts_for_Families/FFF-Guide/Children-and-Gangs-098.aspx

[xiv] Betancourt, T, et al. (2020). Stigma and Acceptance of Sierra Leone’s Child Soldiers: A Prospective Longitudinal Study of Adult Mental Health and Social Functioning. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. Vol. 59; No. 6: p. 715-726.

[xv] Applewhite, L., Arincorayan, D., Adams, B. (2016). Exploring the prevalence of adverse childhood experiences in soldiers seeking behavioural health care during combat deployment. Military Medicine, Vol. 181; No. 10: p. 1275–1280.

[xvi] Betancourt, T. et al. (2011). Sierra Leone’s Child Soldiers: War Exposures and Mental Health Problems by Gender. J Adolesc Health. Jul; 49(1): p. 21-28.

[xvii] UNDP. (2021). Human Development Index: Explore HDI. UNDP Human Development Reports. Retrieved from: https://hdr.undp.org/data-center/human-development-index#/indicies/HDI

[xviii] Harvard T.H. Chan (2011). Life after death: Helping former child soldiers become whole again. Harvard School of Public Health. Retrieved from: https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/news/magazine/child-soldiers-betancourt/

[xix] Betancourt, T, et al. (2020). Stigma and Acceptance of Sierra Leone’s Child Soldiers: A Prospective Longitudinal Study of Adult Mental Health and Social Functioning. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. Vol. 59; No. 6: p. 715-726.

[xx] UNAMSIL (2005). Sierra Leone – United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone – Background. UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations. Retrieved from: https://peacekeeping.un.org/mission/past/unamsil/background.html

[xxi] Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary General for Children and Armed Conflict. (2023). Questions and Answers on the Recruitment and Use of Child Soldiers. UN. Retrieved from: https://childrenandarmedconflict.un.org/2023/02/questions-and-answers-on-the-recruitment-and-use-of-child-soldiers2/

[xxii] Fairfield, C. (2021). One in Six Children Living in Conflict Zones at Risk of Sexual Violence by Armed Groups. Save the Children. Retrieved from: https://www.savethechildren.org/us/about-us/media-and-news/2021-press-releases/one-in-six-children-in-conflict-zones-at-risk-of-sexual-violence

[xxiii] Singer, P.W. (2006). The New Faces of War. American Educator, Winter 2005-2006.

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Samir Shad
In Programmes

Refugee Poverty and the Children of War

It is a commonly accepted fact that war and conflict perpetuate the displacement and mass movements of populations subjected to its violence. The term refugee’s first noted use was in 17th century France to refer to the Huguenots – French protestants who fled to surrounding nations when their religious liberty was threatened with violence – and has been an unfortunate recurrent staple in both academic and media discourses ever since[i].

Despite its common usage, many people often use the terms refugee and migrant interchangeably – a mishap heavily utilised in the UK Brexit campaign in 2016. However, the terms denote two different situations, and it is important to distinguish between the two. Migrants are defined as those who choose to leave their homes; refugees, on the other hand, are forced by the threat of persecution or violence.

Poverty has become a well-known, often long-term outcome of forced displacement. Whether this is historical or contemporary, refugees are forced to deal with hardships in both living standards and social exclusion when fleeing conflict. Despite some states having asylum and social policies for refugees, a growing Western shift towards right-wing social views and the adoption of isolationist national policies on migration have had detrimental effects on the living standards and well-being of refugee populations living in new countries in search of greater stability and welfare. Those most susceptible to these issues are children.

The Issues at a Glance

Poverty is multifaceted by nature and there is a myriad of issues that stem from its base that refugees face, particularly when living in unstable, makeshift refugee camps. Securing necessities such as medicine, fuel, shelter, food, and water is a constant struggle for displaced families, especially given that many of those fleeing conflicts lack the economic funds required to obtain these resources. The issue is only worsened when families are split up or children are orphaned by war – there are over 170,000 unaccompanied and forcibly displaced children worldwide today[ii]. The lack of these necessities further impacts the cognitive and psychological welfare of children which can, and does, stunt both physical and cognitive growth in the long term.

Whilst these are major issues that must be addressed if we are to combat the levels of poverty refugees face, they are (despite their monetary derivative) somewhat controllable amenities. By this, I do not mean that they are readily available – as they are not – and to say so would disregard the hardships refugees face trying to acquire them and their importance for survival. Rather, they are things that can be sought with the right resources. However, as stated, most refugees do not possess the economic or social capital for this. Whilst some may work jobs (which are often poor-paying, insecure 0-hour contracts), many instead become heavily reliant on foreign humanitarian aid – especially those in camps.

Humanitarian organisations such as The Red Cross and Lighthouse Relief, particularly UNICEF for children, send aid packages to refugees worldwide to help address some of the issues they face, primarily in the form of food packages and hygiene toiletries. Children are often the ones to receive a large proportion of this aid which allows them to secure the basic necessities for survival – although this is not always the case.

But, whilst humanitarian aid may offer some relief in certain instances, it struggles to meet the needs of all those who require it and is not an answer for all the issues that poverty presents. Children living in foreign countries often struggle with sociability because of language barriers and a difference in cultural hegemony. In other words, they lack the social skills required to socialise in that specific region as it is often different from what they are used to at home. This in turn means they lack the necessary social interactions required for social growth which only serves to isolate them from the wider society in which they now reside. This can lead to the creation of isolationist diasporic refugee communities that live on the outskirts of their new host country, limiting a child’s capacity for growth.

Palestinian displacement in Lebanon

The civil unrest in Israel-Palestine has left the eastern coastal plain of the Middle East in conflict since the state’s partition in 1948. It has created displacement of refugees on a massively unprecedented scale. A large proportion of those forced from their homes in the West Bank have fled to neighbouring Lebanon. An estimated 300,000 Palestinian refugees are currently living in Lebanon[iii]. Of these 300,000, approximately 93% are living in poverty[iv]. The situation is the same for those in Jordan and Syria.

The Israeli state ‘opposes their return to Israel as it would alter the country’s Jewish character whilst the Lebanese state opposes their implantation in Lebanon’[v] as their practice of largely Sunni Islam is perceived to threaten the already fragile coalition of constituencies governing the country. The result leaves Palestinian refugees in a limbo state, living in camps, struggling to obtain necessities, and existing as outsiders not only to Palestine but to their new hosts too. Living in such ostracising conditions can and does have negative effects on the levels of well-being and esteem experienced by those on the outskirts of society.

When it comes to basic needs, food insecurity is strife amongst the children of these populations with 23.8% of those under 5 being malnourished leading to long-term growth stunting[vi] and a further 25% prevalence of anaemia. Disease is a common issue produced mainly by inadequate housing. Cholera and cardiovascular disease are highly prevalent among Palestinian children because of indoor pollutants, infestation, mould, and dampness in the home – issues impossible to deal with when you are not formally recognised by the state in which you reside.

Many children do not have any form of formal education – an issue largely exacerbated by lacking electricity. In the Lebanon camps, households are only supplied with 2 hours of government-regulated electricity a day meaning children have little else to do but hang around in the alleys between buildings in camps to play and wander, exposing them to dangers of abuse, abduction, and trafficking – an issue that particularly affects young girls.

The conditions in which these children live do not serve to better their position in society since leaving the conflict zones of the West Bank and Gaza. They place them at a disadvantage by removing their opportunities for socialisation with wider social actors which only condemns them to live at arm’s length from their native Lebanese peers, whether that be in school or work or play.

Whilst there is still a great deal to be done, multiple agencies are working to improve the position and livelihoods of young Palestinian refugees. Last year, ANERA helped 1,357 Palestinian refugee graduates in Lebanon get jobs in the vocational sector after leaving one of their multiple schools in the region[vii].  The skills they use not only benefit them immediately but also help the wider refugee community in which they live by injecting money into the area to fund development. Furthermore, future generations will benefit from the skills taught to them by employed young adults. Having a job also lessens the reliance on foreign aid and helps to develop an individual’s cultural capital by exposing them to wider social inclusion through work, which can, in turn, reduce the stigmatisation of refugee populations in host nations.

The biggest humanitarian force in the region is the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA). Established in 1949 following the first Arab-Israeli conflict post-partition, the organisation currently provides education to over 39,000 Palestinian child refugees living in the 12 camps of southern Lebanon – a number which rises to 545,000 students when incorporating those in Jordan, Syria, Turkey and more[viii]. A similar picture is painted about healthcare with 550,000 registered patients each year visiting one of 27 different healthcare clinics in southern Lebanon[ix] helping to combat the issues of disease that too commonly prevent children from living until adulthood. The organisation is currently in the process of reforming its healthcare policy to bring a new holistic family health team approach to better suit the needs of refugee populations.

However, the issue is that the United Nations general assembly has had to continuously renew the UNRWA’s mandate since its establishment in the absence of a solution to the refugee crisis that Palestine’s population has faced for decades now. Whilst it is the case that some have gained valuable skills in education and work, there are still many others who have not and continue to live in poor, unsafe conditions ostracised by wider society. And whilst the work that NGOs do is pivotal to Palestinian society’s survival and upkeep, its efforts are negligible until such a time that a long-lasting peace can be brokered and enforced – something that has had little success thus far.

The Syrian Refugee Crisis

Probably the most well-known example of modern displacement of refugees lies just north of Israel/Palestine. In the 10 years following the start of the Syrian civil conflict in 2011, over half the country’s population have been displaced across 130 countries around the world – 70% of whom are living in poverty producing what the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi, has called ‘the largest refugee crisis in modern times’[x].

In September last year, UNICEF released a report noting that there are currently 5,900,000 Syrian children living as refugees who need support[xi]. Like the Palestinian populations mentioned above, many Syrian refugees reside in large camps riddled with incidents of poverty. Lacking education, work, poor health, and security are just some of the similarities in issues that Syrian refugees face. What tends to go under the radar most often in the discussion of Syrian displacement is the social and psychological influence that life as a refugee has on the children who flee.

Notions of national pride are cracking under the weight of a refugee crisis that is still very much ongoing. This is particularly true for young men and boys living as refugees from Syria, especially as Syrian nationalism is allied strongly with traditional perceptions of masculinity to fight for the ‘fatherland’[xii] – a somewhat colloquial spin on the commonly used phrase ‘motherland.’ Syrian boys have struggled to adjust their ideas of manhood and masculinity when living as a refugee as their function of masculinity has been challenged by western ideals on changing gender norms[xiii] which has caused a rise in anxiety and depression among young male refugees.

Similarly, living as a refugee, especially for long periods, can, and does, influence and form a child’s perception of both themselves and their country. A recent report found that a group of children who have been displaced and are living in makeshift refuges on the outskirts of Idlib in north-western Syria have been struggling to identify with their cultural heritage after 10 years of conflict has thwarted their sense of home[xiv]. Despite the country’s rich heritage, Syrian children today do not see their war-scarred country as holding any future opportunities for them and most would rather move elsewhere in the hopes of better education, well-being and standard of living. The desired location for most is in Europe.

But the past 10 years have seen Syrians in Europe face xenophobia and hate crime at an alarmingly high rate. Largely a result of Western political and media representations, some young Syrians have been victims of crimes by those native to the host society. In August of 2021, Turkish Nationalists gathered near an enclave of Syrian refugees and began to attack their homes and businesses[xv]. In the UK in 2018, a 15-year-old male Syrian student was attacked by his peers after school whilst a young Syrian girl was pushed in front of a train in North London[xvi]. Many incidents go unreported to the police as they feel they either won’t be believed or fear that cultural and language barriers prevent them from seeking help.

Even applying for asylum can be a long and arduous task. For refugees in the UK to gain access to healthcare, housing, and many other necessities for life, they need to have applied for asylum or pre-settled status – a task that can be complex, especially when those applying are young adults and families with children who do not speak English. And whilst you can still reside in the UK whilst the application pends, you are still not formally recognised by the state as having asylum and as such do not reap the benefits of stuff, often leaving families in poor financial and housing situations. However, various institutions can offer support in this process; Migrant Help UK, Refugee Council and Shelter all have services dedicated to the support of refugees applying for asylum.

Once asylum is granted the benefits for refugee populations can be massive, especially as some refugees (particularly those with children as they are considered most vulnerable) are eligible for the resettlement scheme. In 2022 alone, 1054 Syrian refugees were resettled in the UK[xvii], 52% of the total scheme.

Of course, it is not always as simple as this and many Syrian children travelling alone in particular do not have the means or skills to make it to the UK and thus end up in insecure accommodations or camps across Europe. The bulk of these exist in Turkey, an area recently struck by an immense earthquake, producing further issues for survival as a refugee. The most well-known Syrian refugee camp, however, exists in Calais, northern France.

The ‘Calais Jungle’ represents a severe example of what Syrian children face when living in refugee camps both alone and with their families. Hunger is commonplace with each person being given only one meal a day. Any food kept by those in the camp cannot be stored effectively as there is minimal electricity and infrastructure, leaving food and water to be contaminated by the high levels of pathogenic bacteria present causing vomiting and diarrhoea.

Hygiene is poor with 1 toilet per 75 refugees, more than three times the acceptable standard recommended by the UNHCR. Furthermore, since there are no effective means to wash clothes or bedding there are mass infestations of scabies and lice throughout the camp.

These issues are concerning for children’s physical health, but it is again important to look at how this burden has detrimental impacts on mental health and how the perception of oneself may change in light of how others perceive you – a notion particularly prominent in European media. Refugees are continuously labelled as the scapegoat for issues in Europe by Western media outlets; a representation that impacts on the well-being and self-esteem of refugee children by reaffirming them as a cultural other[xviii]; as different.

Living with this feeling of otherness only serves to worsen the issues of ongoing psychological trauma, anxiety and depression – which are all common mental health concerns that refugee children in the Calais jungle (and other camps) live with. For Syrian children, these stem from both the pre-displacement experiences of war and conflict in Syria; and the post-refugee life experiences resulting from the separation of families, difficulties in the asylum-seeking procedures, social exclusion and more[xix] in their new host nation (France in this instance).

As such, the concerns are not simply for the immediate impacts of these psychological issues but also the long-term damage they can do to a child’s ability to grow, communicate, socialise, and develop. Children suffering from psychological trauma are more likely than the local population to struggle with social anxiety, preventing them from engaging properly at school or sports clubs or in other social settings. These issues can manifest in later life with many refugees practising avoidance in social networks so as not to re-trigger the memories of lived trauma from before.

There is, however, much being done to assist and help Syrian refugees and children in the form of foreign aid. The UNHCR poverty alleviation coalition is the largest actor in the sphere of Syrian humanitarianism. There are currently upward of 6.8 million internally displaced Syrians and external refugees registered with the UNHCR for aid in the form of cash, food and cooking appliances, medicine, and more[xx]. For those living as refugees abroad, the organisation has a programme for protection and inclusion solutions focusing on increasing engagement between young Syrians and their peers in foreign host nations. Last year the commission conducted 19,888 social activities and social awareness sessions aimed at raising awareness for the mental health concerns that couple with the physical aspects of poverty and the lived experiences of trauma, engaging 16,000+ people[xxi]. The organisation runs specialised mental health groups led by psychiatrists and psychotherapists that aim at openly discussing issues to combat the stigma associated with mental health among young boys and men.

Sessions on family and community support aim to direct support towards child refugees, supporting local community centres to help with development in child-friendly settings. In addition to this, child protection committees consisting of social workers, teachers and other professionals work with Syrian children to identify potential protection issues and trends in refugee communities to help address problems before they develop by referring them to WHO (World Health Organisation) medical professionals for support with their mental well-being.

It hopes within the next year to increase its output and step up its involvement in this area, which is particularly important when addressing the mental health concerns stemming from social ostracism that many refugees face. But whilst these movements towards incorporating mental health support are pivotal in the fight against poverty, only 25% of those involved in the programmes offered were male – the largest sufferers of depression and anxiety in the population. There needs to be a focus on engaging more men, especially young men and boys who are most susceptible to trauma and PTSD which can have long-lasting consequences.

Various other organisations operate relief programmes contributing infrastructural support as well as food. SIRF (The Syria International NGO Regional Forum) brings together a multitude of agencies dedicated to assisting in efforts to help Syrian people live in light of the civil war. The agencies provide a range of support from medical care (both psychological and physical) to the provision of supplies necessary for survival (such as food and water) and are pivotal in helping to keep Syrian children in insecure accommodations safe in the ongoing refugee crisis across the Middle East and the rest of the world.

So, while there are a lot of issues that refugees face, there is a great deal of support available for them – whether that’s direct from the United Nations or NGOs. But is it enough? Whilst it is definitive that governments and NGOs need to continue to address the physical and monetary issues that refugees face, there also needs to be an acknowledgement of the long-term social and mental impacts that life as a refugee inflicts. The UNHCR’s programmes on well-being dedicated to supporting children and adults in refugee settings with managing their mental health are a great start but there is only minimal engagement by refugee populations in comparison to the millions spread worldwide. There is much more that can be done to engage large diasporic refugee communities, especially men and young boys concerning mental health support, and until such a time that these well-being needs are addressed fully, we are unlikely to see a change in the levels of social ostracism that refugees face in the world today.

[i] Bakemore, E. (2019, March 15). What does it mean to be a refugee? Retrieved from National Geographic: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/culture/article/what-is-a-refugee

[ii] UNHCR. (2023). Every day, children are forced to flee conflict alone. Retrieved from The UN Refugee Agency https://www.unhcr.org/uk/no-child-should-be-left-alone.html

[iii] Perdigon, S. (2015). ‘For Us It Is Otherwise’ – Three Sketches on Making Poverty Sensible in the Palestinian Refugee Camps on Lebanon. Current Anthropology, 56(S11), pp. S88-S96.

[iv] MAP. (2022), Interview: How Palestinian children are bearing the brunt of Lebanon’s economic crisis. Retrieved from Medical Aid for Palestinians https://www.map.org.uk/news/archive/post/1408-interview-how-palestinian-children-are-bearing-the-brunt-of-lebanonas-economic-crisis

[v] Perdigon, S. (2015). ‘For Us It Is Otherwise’ – Three Sketches on Making Poverty Sensible in the Palestinian Refugee Camps on Lebanon. Current Anthropology, 56(S11), pp. S88-S96.

[vi] AbuKishk N, Gilbert H, Seita A, Mukherjee J, Rohloff PJ. (2021) Under-five malnutrition among Palestine refugee children living in camps in Jordan: a mixed-methods study. BMJ Glob Health. Aug;6(8):e005577. doi: 10.1136/bmjgh-2021-005577. PMID: 34348932; PMCID: PMC8340287.

[vii] ANERA. (2021). What We Do: Education. Retrieved from https://www.anera.org/what-we-do/education/

[viii] UNRWA. (2022). Socio-economic situation of Palestinian refugees in Lebanon Crisis Monitoring Report – High-Frequency Survey Results – September 2022. Amman: United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees.

[ix] UNRWA. (2022). Socio-economic situation of Palestinian refugees in Lebanon Crisis Monitoring Report – High-Frequency Survey Results – September 2022. Amman: United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees.

[x] ANSA (2021, March 16). UNHCR: 5.5 million Syrian refugees, 70% in poverty. Retrieved from InfoMigrants https://www.infomigrants.net/en/post/30887/unhcr-55-million-syrian-refugees-70-in-poverty

[xi] UNICEF. (2022). UNICEF Syria Crisis Humanitarian Situation Report July – September 2022. New York: United Nations Children’s Fund.

[xii] Aldoughli, R. (2017). Syrian nationalism is all about masculinity. Manchester University News. Retrieved from https://www.manchester.ac.uk/discover/news/syrian-masculinity/

[xiii] Berg, L. (2021). Masculinity and Syrian Fiction. Bloomsbury Publishing. London.

[xiv] Kivela, L., Tajima-Simpson, M., & Yamin, A. (2021). Anywhere But Syria: How 10 years of conflict left Syria’s displaced children without a sense of home. London: Save the Children.

[xv] Bousaren, D. (2021). A Nationalist Mob In Turkey Attacks Syrian Refugees’ Home And Businesses. Retrieved from https://www.npr.org/2021/08/24/1030561867/a-nationalist-mob-in-turkey-attacks-syrian-refugees-home-and-businesses

[xvi] Hall, R. Agerholm, H. Dearden, L. (2018). Attack on Syrian schoolboy exposes ‘toxic environment’ faced by refugees in UK. Retrieved from https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/syrian-refugee-attack-huddersfield-school-hate-crime-children-asylum-immigration-a8657411.html

[xvii] Home Office. (2022). Immigration Statistics Year Ending September 2022. Retrieved from https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/immigration-statistics-year-ending-september-2022/how-many-people-do-we-grant-protection-to

[xviii] Said. E. (2003 [1978]). Orientalism. Penguin Modern Classics. Penguin Publishers. London.

[xix] Mental Health Foundation. (2022). Refugees and asylum seekers: statistics. Retrieved from https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/explore-mental-health/statistics/refugees-asylum-seekers-statistics

[xx] UNHCR. (2023). Fact Sheet: Syria – Syrian Arab Republic. The UN Refugee Agency, January 2023. www.unhcr.org

[xxi] UNHCR. (2023). Fact Sheet: Syria – Mental Health and Psychological Support. The UN Refugee Agency, January 2023. www.unhcr.org/sy

Samir Shad
In Programmes

From War to Poverty and Poverty to War

Conversations on war and poverty are widespread and crucial to understanding the connection between violence and the global poor. The link is undeniable, and there are many reasons why it remains and persists to this day – most notably in the developing world. From the current crisis in Ukraine and the mass displacement of refugees into neighbouring Poland to the ongoing civil unrest in Myanmar and the recruitment of child soldiers from poor backgrounds; there is no shortage of examples where war leads to poverty and poverty to war.

What is somewhat under-discussed however, is how the phenomenon disproportionately impacts the lives of children who find themselves caught in the middle of conflicts. In 2005, the United Nations Security Council set out six violations of children’s rights to be monitored during times of warfare. These are the killing and maiming of children; recruitment of child soldiers; sexual violence against children; child abduction; attacks against schools or hospitals and the denial of humanitarian aid to children[i].

However, whether it’s through the absence of education and sanitation affecting their social and cognitive development, issues relating to malnutrition and poor healthcare stunting their growth or the myriad of problems associated with living as a refugee fleeing warzones; war and conflict continue to produce incidences of poverty that have heavy and lasting impacts on the children involved.

Two Schools of Thought

When discussing war and poverty there are often two thought processes. One views poverty as a consequence of war and conflict, and the other views war and conflict as a product of poverty. Both are true to a point, but what needs to be understood is how one will, for the most part, always exist in conjunction with the other – especially in the context of civil wars.

Such a picture has never been truer than when it comes to child poverty. Children living in poverty are often pushed to desperate ends to produce capital when other means fail them, often turning to crime which can, in some instances, result in violence and warfare – especially in areas where gang culture presides. Whilst this may present an extreme example, it is not uncommon – especially in the epicentre of the War on Drugs in South American countries such as Mexico, Colombia, and Venezuela where children from poor backgrounds are recruited as drug mules. If the children in these situations manage to escape, they often suffer severely from drug addiction, preventing social reintegration and maintaining their position of poverty.

On the flip side, children living in areas hit by war often find themselves living in abject poverty either as refugees in a strange land or worse still, continuing to live in a war zone with the daily risk of injury or death.

War and Conflict as a Producer of Poverty

War is indisputably a creator and maintainer of global poverty. Generally speaking, war-affected regions have higher levels of poverty. This is because war damages a community’s infrastructure and institutions; causes the destruction of national and personal assets; fragments communities and their communication networks; and causes the debilitation and deaths of a large proportion of the population[ii]. During times of conflict and war, people lose their houses, their land, and their assets usually utilised to produce capital.

What is often overlooked, however, is how the impacts of war often leave lasting legacies on the populations who experience them. Living in the aftermath of war often proves difficult for many people, especially those in hard-hit areas. Whilst on the macro-level, temporary destruction of capital can be circumvented through long-term investment; the micro-level individual, social and psychological effects can be far harder to subvert, especially for the children of war who are displaced, injured, orphaned, or recruited by militia groups who often suffer with their mental health following resolution[iii]. Evidence suggests that the impacts of conflict on education and health at the individual and household level can still be observed decades after conflict resolution[iv].

The risk posed to children by war is in many ways greater than that posed to other members of a community, with one in ten children globally being affected by armed conflict[v] and one in six living in conflict zones[vi]. This is partly because children haven’t fully developed the cognitive agency to understand imminent threats and do not have the resources to remove themselves from them. As such, they often find themselves either caught up in or controlled by war and conflict because they don’t possess the means to escape.

The risk is further increased, in certain instances, when children are targeted by armed groups. When children are targeted or killed it is often done so as a terror tactic to reaffirm brutality and gain notoriety. It shows that a group is willing to engage the most vulnerable in society to confirm its position in a conflict. However, the result of such targeting is not always to kill but rather to abduct and recruit children to fight in wars. Warring factions often kidnap children as they are more easily manipulated and can be indoctrinated to commit crimes without question[vii].

Poverty as a Producer of War and Conflict

Whilst it is obvious that war reproduces existing poverty trends and creates new ones, it is also more than plausible that poverty produces a set of circumstances that exacerbates divides and produces war and conflict itself. This is especially the case for civil war, a phenomenon largely prominent in the developing world. Research suggests that if you reside in a poorer area, you are more likely to be exposed to, and partake in, violence in civil war[viii]. At the state level, poverty compounds vulnerability to an insurgency by lowering the opportunity cost for the mobilisation of violence[ix]. For example, perceived inequality through high levels of unemployment, low levels of education and social development are often prime motivators for violence and a reason to enact a revolt.

When poor groups revolt, they often rely on voluntary recruits at first. But when voluntary recruits dry up, many turn to forced recruitment. Children can be at the centre of this with some rebel groups forcibly recruiting children from poorer backgrounds to fight – a practice that has been particularly utilised heavily in the civil conflicts taking place in Myanmar and Sierra Leone.

Africa has become the epicentre for violent conflict involving child soldiers[x] with 40% of all child soldiers globally active on the continent[xi]. This number is made even greater when the recruitment of children is not just committed by poor militia groups but also by lower-income nation-states.

In 2004 the government forces of Burundi were found to be forcibly abducting and recruiting child soldiers from the country’s poorest regions[xii]. Boys as young as ten were serving in the armed forces and militia whilst girls of a similar age were being sold into sexual slavery. Even when demobilisation schemes were enforced by UNICEF, many children showed signs of trauma with others expressing concerns about the inadequate rehabilitation preparations[xiii]. This resulted in multiple children re-joining armed groups but this time in the form of non-governmental militia factions where they further suffered the impacts of poverty and violence.

The most important thing to note when discussing the link between poverty and war and conflict is the risk of conflict reoccurrence among poor populations. For those living in poverty, there is a greater chance of conflict reoccurrence than that of more economically advanced areas, especially when insurgent civil wars fail to procure the goal that was set to achieve in the first instance. This is especially true when the already low levels of infrastructure in poorer areas are left without investment following times of conflict, only acting to widen the gap between the rich and the poor in societies.

Violating the UN’s Six Violations

Despite the best efforts of the UN and its partner agencies to tackle the issues associated with child poverty and exploitation in times of conflict, there is still a strong relationship between impoverished children and acts of violence. Whether this is the infliction of violence on poor populations by external actors or the taking-up of arms by the global poor in insurgencies to change the status quo, it still remains a fact that poor children pay the price of war and conflict.

 

[i] UN Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict. (2013). Children and Armed Conflict. New York: United Nations.

[ii] Justino, P. (2012). War and Poverty: IDS Working Paper. Brighton: Institute of Development Studies.

[iii] Catani, C. (2018). Mental health of children living in war zones: a risk and protection perspective. In World Psychiatry 17(1): 104-105. https://doi.org/10.1002%2Fwps.20496.

[iv] Shemyakina, O. (2006). The Effect of Armed Conflict on Accumulation of Schooling: Results from Tajikistan. Berlin. HiCN Working Paper 12, Households in Conflict Network, https://hicn.org/working-papers/

[v] Kadir, A. et al. (2019). Effects of armed conflict on child health and development: A systematic review. PLOS ONE 14(2): e0212393, https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0212393

[vi] Save the Children. (2022). Countries in Conflict. https://www.savethechildren.org/us/charity-stories/worst-conflict-affected-countries-to-be-a-child

[vii] Kishi, R. (2015). The Targeting of Children in Conflict Zones, Part 1: General Trends. ACLED: https://acleddata.com/2015/03/13/the-targeting-of-children-in-conflict-zones-part-1-general-trends/

[viii] Mercier, M. et al. (2020). Violence exposure and poverty: Evidence from the Burundi civil war. in Journal of Comparative Economics 48(4). p. 822-840.

[ix] Marks, Z. (2016). Conflict and poverty. GDSRC Professional Development Reading Pack no. 52. Birmingham, UK: University of Birmingham.

[x] Achvarina, V, & Reich, S. (2010). No Place to Hide: Refugees, Displaced Persons, and Child Soldier Recruits. In Gates, S. & Reich, S. (eds) Child Soldiers in the Age of Fractured States. Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh Press.

[xi] Dudenhoefer, A. (2016). Understanding the recruitment of child soldiers in Africa. Conflict Trends 2016(2). https://hdl.handle.net/10520/EJC193349

[xii] Child Soldiers International. (2004). Child Soldiers Global Report 2004 – Burundi, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/4988066f2.html [accessed 29 December 2022]

[xiii] Rapport de la revue à mi parcours du projet enfants soldats au Burundi, avril 2004, Bujumbura, Projet du Gouvernement du Burundi appuyé par I’UNICEF.

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