UN: Children and Justice During and in the
Aftermath of Armed Conflict

In situations of armed conflict, children are increasingly brought before the justice system, both on an international and national level, either as victims and witnesses or to stand trial as defendants. This has exposed the grey areas in legal and judicial systems where children’s participation in armed conflict has been rarely anticipated.

This working paper of the office of the UN Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict attempts to bring more conceptual clarity to this issue. It attempts to articulate how children who have suffered grave violations during armed conflict can access justice and how the current system deals with child victims and witnesses. It also explores the issues surrounding responsibility of children who may have committed international crimes during conflict.

Watchlist

Policies to prevent child recruitment by armed groups in Colombia have been put in place since 2010, and a recently enacted Victims Law offers reparations for victims of violations committed by all parties to the conflict.

At this crucial juncture, Watchlist conducted two field missions  2011 to Colombia to research and report on the situation of children affected by armed conflict and devise key recommendations to address such violence and
improve response mechanisms.

Human Rights Watch

 Separatist Tuareg rebels, Islamist armed groups, and Arab militias who seized control of northern Mali in April 2012 have committed numerous war crimes, including rape, use of child soldiers, and pillaging of hospitals, schools, aid agencies, and government buildings, Human Rights Watch said today. 

Human Rights Watch interviewed over 100 victims and witnesses to the abuses, as well as local religious authorities, medical personnel, traditional leaders, members of local rights groups, government officials, and aid workers.