Often referred to as “child soldiers,” these boys and girls suffer extensive forms of exploitation and abuse that are not fully captured by that term”
War has developed into such an unavoidable part of life that we repeatedly overlook or neglect its outcome on adolescent’s minds. Even though millions of children all around the world endure pain from the psychological repercussion of armed conflict, thousands of others reluctantly partake in the same and are damaged for a lifetime. Ishmael Beah, a former child soldier describes the condition of these children as this: “When children are subjected to war whether by witnessing atrocities, forced into a life of violence or becoming victims of the countless suffering brought about by war, they are not only traumatized, psychologically and physically damaged, but they lose faith in their own humanity, their ability to be children again, to trust,
On top of that almost all child soldiers are drugged, to subdue them so that they will do what they are told without hesitation. Also while they are drugged the child soldiers are brainwashed by the commanders everyday to trick the kids into thinking what they are doing is good. CNN reporter states that “Once recruited, many are brainwashed, trained, given drugs and then sent into battle with orders to kill.”(O'Neill Paragraph 3) .
“Tens of thousands of children are estimated to be recruited and used by armed groups. In 2019 alone, more than 7,740 children, some as young as six, were recruited and used as soldiers around the world, according to the United Nations. Most are recruited by non-state groups.” (Wuilbercq). There are more than seven thousand forty children that were child soldiers in twenty nineteen alone.
Most are younger than fifteen and do not know what they are getting themselves into. In the article, “Should Child Soldiers be Prosecuted for Their Crimes?” by Johannesburg, it states “Children are often desired as recruits because they can be easily intimidated and indoctrinated. They lack the mental maturity and judgment to express consent or to fully understand the implications of their actions… and are pushed by their adult commanders into perpetrating atrocities,” the report said. This quote shows us why so many armies are recruiting children to fight.
One day I was told a story of something horrible. My Grandmother told me a story about her mom’s childhood. The reason why it was so sad is, that she grew up in the times where children her age were getting pulled away from their families to be a child soldier. It was hard for her, she described it as something her mom would remember forever because her own best friend his family barely had money in order to gain very little money, they sent her away to be a child soldier. However, my grandmother was only so young she didn’t know how to fend for herself
Many young children under aged have been taken in by the government. They are being held captive tell they are drugged enough and brainwashed to go out and kill or to be killed. They are forced to train to kill under the influence of drugs and they are hardly aware of what they or doing. Child soldiers should be given amnesty because of the absents of their minds and them not being able to process what they are doing. These children are often seen as targets because they are under aged and not able to take responsibility for their actions so they are targeted to be able to kill without punishment.
An unhealthy obsession with guns, being drugged to make killings seem normal, and being undoubtedly loyal to commanders is only part of what a child soldier is. Child soldiers can be dangerous and make up many armies in war-torn countries. In much of the world, usually in unstable countries, when conflict breaks out, children can quickly be swept up and put on the front lines to fight. Children may carry ten-pound guns and use bullets twice the size of their fingers. Some children are old enough to understand what they are doing, and others have no idea.
They are regularly raped by the commanders, the girls who give birth to any of commanders children have practically no chance of ever escaping these armed groups because they were their sexual pleasure. In Uganda the children are usually kidnapped or abducted by force. Usually children in Uganda are used as soldiers to fight off government forces or attack certain places they feel the need to attack. After children commit massacres, they are told by leaders like Kony 's deputy, Vincent Ottthat that what they did was not all bad because it was for a bigger purpose and that they would do a ritual that will cleanse them from all crimes they had done (CITE).
First off, a piece of evidence from “Somalia Upfront Magazine” by Jeffrey Gettleman in Mogadishu it states,”’These kids can be so easily brainwashed,’ Ali says. ‘They don't even have to be paid.’” In short, this shows that kids are being picked up very easily and that they are very easy to brainwash. Ordinarily, all of these qualities make child soldiers very common which affect them mentally because the children are being taught that what they’re doing is the right thing. Which most of the times these child soldiers are taking down towns and ransacking a lot of places along with the slaughter of many people if they are told to do so.
The Unexplored Horror of War There have always been men who use children to fight their wars. No matter the era, these cowards have hidden behind the people we see as pure and innocent to do their dirty work, instead of being men and doing it themselves. The Ottoman Empire wasn’t any different, especially with the Janissaries. They were Christian boys turned into soldiers to fight for the Ottoman Empire. Child soldiers are still being used today, as seen in Mozambique’s civil war.
Have you ever imagined growing up on a life of drugs, war, crime, and seeing things that many adults won’t dare to ever see? In many countries around the world, this is what many children have to deal with. There is an occurring issue of people across Africa and parts of Asia using children as soldiers in war. They act and take upon the roles of real combatants, causing the people of the public to act in different ways. It’s been well documented that these children have used guns and war tactics, and committed various illegal and illicit acts of violence.
Assignment page Video Where many children all over the world merrily and freely live under the protection of the law, for others, this is a distant reality, they live in a world where they’re battling poverty, stripped of their childhood and basic human rights are expunged, they’re the innocent victims of conflict, and war is made to seem their one and only duty, not to mention that these are children no more than 10 years of age. They are put into a situation where it’s to kill or be killed. The United Nations defines a child soldier as, “Any person under 18 years of age who is part of any kind of regular or irregular armed force or armed group in any capacity.” Since the past 15 years, child soldiers are being used in almost every region of the world. Unlike most children, who go to school, they’re abducted from their families and forced into becoming a child soldier, where living conditions are beyond imaginable.
In the world today, there is more than 25 countries who still actively use children in warfare. Child soldiers are human beings under the age of 18 who participate in military actions. They are evidently cheaper to maintain and to train than adult soldiers. They are also more loyal and obedient because the young respect their elders. It has been noted that estimately, 300 thousand children were recruited to fight and perform in war (Child Soldiers.)
Afghanistan, contrary to popular belief was once a flourishing and beautiful sovereign state, which was eventually destroyed when the Soviet troops entered the country. The USSR entered Afghanistan to help the government fight the foreign mercenaries. The war with the USSR led to tremendous
