Children and Armed Conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

IN JUNE 2004, SIX FIGHTERS FROM THE CONGOLESE RALLY FOR DEMOCRACY-GOMA gang-raped a woman in the presence of her husband and children, while another soldier raped her three-year-old daughter, according to Human Rights Watch. In June 2005, a 17-year-old boy was arrested by a Mai-Mai officer after he refused to draw water for the military stationed there and was severely tortured while he was held in detention in the camp. A local non-governmental organization (NGO) reported that the boy was released only after a large fine was paid. In November 2005, three soldiers from the United Congolese forces tied an 11-year-old girl with an electric cable and repeatedly raped her in a military camp, according to the United Nations Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC).

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These cases are examples of the brutal violations against Congolese children, as documented by the Watchlist on Children and Armed Conflict in its April 2006 report, Struggling to Survive: Children in Armed Conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The country continues to endure the world's deadliest humanitarian crisis and, according to the International Rescue Committee, more than 38,000 people die every month as a direct and indirect consequence of the armed conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). As many as 45 per cent of these deaths occurred among children who fell victim to intolerable human rights violations committed in an atmosphere of almost complete impunity.

Despite the presence of MONUC--the largest UN peackeeping operation so far--and billions of dollars spent for post-conflict reconstruction in the country, as well as the nationwide elections held on 30 July 2006, most Congolese children are not faring any better than they were when Watchlist published its first report in 2003, titled The Impact of Armed Conflict on Children in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. In fact, for some children, health, safety and well-being have drastically deteriorated: the rape and mutilation of girls, recruitment and use of children by armed groups and other appalling abuses against them continue. In addition, children are dying every day from preventable diseases and are missing out on educational opportunities that would contribute to their development into healthy and able individuals. These violations are committed against a backdrop of outward progress towards reconstruction, such as the demobilization of thousands of children and the arrest by the International Criminal Court of Thomas Lubanga of the Union des Patriotes Congolais on charges of enlisting, conscripting and using children in hostilities.

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Watchlist has documented the continued pervasive and egregious violations against children in the DRC in each of the major categories identified by the United Nations Security Council resolution 1612 (2005) on children and armed conflict. The following are highlights of Watchlist's findings between 2003 and January 2006:

Killing and maiming: Extreme violence and fighting have continued throughout the DRC. Children are not spared as armed forces and groups in the country continue to kill and maim. Documented cases recount gross atrocities, such as shooting, mutilating, stabbing and burning of children alive by armed combatants.

Rape and other forms of sexual violence: Armed forces and groups continue to perpetrate rape and other forms of sexual violence against girls and women, and victims are believed to number in the hundreds of thousands. In many cases, rapes are characterized by severe cruelty against young girls and sometimes boys, such as gang rape, mutilation of genitalia, insertion of objects into the victim's genitals, forced rape by one victim upon another, and rape-shooting. Some girls are held in captivity as sexual slaves for extensive periods of time. The majority of victims suffer severe injuries that require surgery and can lead to venereal diseases, HIV infection, sterility and other serious health problems; many girls are abandoned by their families and communities and are condemned to live in poverty. Most of the survivors of gender-based violence do not receive medical treatment after the assault.

Denial of access to humanitarian aid: Humanitarian agencies continue to face attacks and other obstacles by armed forces and groups, such as looting, destruction of humanitarian resources, contingency stocks and field bases, confiscation of vehicles, harassment of expatriates and national staff, and complication of administrative procedures. In some instances, humanitarian workers have been forced to delay or suspend aid, deeming that local recipients are likely to be targets of military or political harassment following the aid delivery.

Attacks on schools and hospitals: Armed forces and groups have seriously damaged, pillaged, burned and destroyed schools, including supplies, in eastern DRC. During the attacks on schools, combatants have forcibly recruited boys at gunpoint, especially in the most conflict-affected areas. These attacks and other problems with the educational system have deprived an estimated 4.6 million children of their right to education, including 2.5 million girls. Hospitals and other medical facilities were also pillaged and looted, resulting, in addition to the general devastation of the health-care system, in children dying each year from preventable health problems, such as malnutrition, malaria, diarrhoeal diseases, acute respiratory infections, tuberculosis and others. The war has left the country largely without drugs, medical equipment and skilled medical personnel, with the national health infrastructure in a state of collapse.

Abductions: Various armed groups, primarily in eastern DRC, including the Mai Mai, the Congolese Rally for Democracy-Liberation Movement, the forces of General Laurent Nkunda and the Democratic Forces for Liberation of Rwanda and its splinter group known as the "Rastas", continue to abduct children. According to local sources, young girls have been held for ransom in order to be sold in exchange for cows or gold and other purposes.

Children associated with armed forces and groups: It is estimated that at least 30,000 boys and girls are taking an active part in combat or are attached to armed forces and groups and being used for sexual or other services. Almost all girls and some boys are sexually abused by the force commanders or other soldiers. Children often fight on the front lines and witness or are forced to participate in serious human rights abuses against civilians. The overall disarmament, demobilization and reintegration (DDR) process for children has been extremely protracted. The National Commission for Demobilization and Reintegration, the governmental body charged with the overall management of the DDR process, does not have the capacity, technical experience and leadership to successfully oversee it.

Other violations: In addition to the six egregious violations identified by the UN Security Council, children in the DRC continue to face a spectrum of other horrific abuses and crimes, which include forced displacement, labour and involvement in the illicit exploitation of natural resources. Approximately 150 cases of sexual exploitation and abuse by UN personnel have been uncovered and investigated. In addition, children, especially girls, are accused of witchcraft or sorcery, forcing them onto the streets or into other dangerous situations, in some cases leading to their murder by family or community members. Children and adolescents are further threatened by the HIV/AIDS epidemic and by violence and insecurity due to the widespread availability and use of small arms and light weapons throughout the country.

In response to these findings, Watchlist makes urgent recommendations to the governing authorities of DRC, as well as all armed groups in the country, the humanitarian and donor communities, the Security Council, MONUC and the International Criminal Court, urging all parties to take immediate and sustained steps to protect Congolese children and adolescents from further violations and to find remedies for those who have already endured imponderable suffering. Among the recommendations made to the Security Council are:

* Call on all parties to the conflict to immediately halt the recruitment and use of all children associated with regular and irregular armed forces and groups.

* Continue giving priority attention to the situation in the country and the effective implementation of Security Council resolutions on the DRC and on children and armed conflict, especially resolutions 1539 (2004) and 1612 (2005).

* Demand that the Special Representative of the Secretary-General in the DRC immediately appoint a focal point to engage in dialogue with all parties who recruit or use children, as listed by the Secretary-General in his 2005 report, "in order to develop a clear time bound action plan to end these practices", as set out in Council resolutions 1460 (2003) and 1539 (2004).

* Call on the nine parties to the conflict in the DRC "to provide information on steps they have taken to halt their recruitment or use of children in armed conflict in violation of the international obligations applicable to them", in accordance with resolutions 1460 and 1539.

* Support and encourage all efforts to seek accountability for crimes against children in the DRC, including recruitment and use of children.

* Call on all parties using children in the illegal exploitation of natural resources to immediately halt this practice, with particular attention to the impact of this exploitation on children.

* Call on all armed forces and groups operating in the DRC, as well as neighbouring and other countries providing arms, to end the illicit trade and stockpiling of small arms and light weapons. Also maintain the arms embargo on the DRC and support the increased mandate of MONUC to monitor compliance, with specific emphasis on the most porous border areas.

A wide gap remains between commitments to protect children in theory and actual practices on the ground. Children in the Democratic Republic of the Congo need immediate and sustained assistance from local, national and international policymakers, who have the power to protect them from further violations and to create tangible changes for children and their communities.

Julia Freedson (left) is the Director and Simar Singh the programme specialist for Watchlist on Children and Armed Conflict, a global network of NGOs that strives to end violations against children in armed conflicts and guarantee their rights. Watchlist also builds partnerships among local, national and international NGOs, enhancing mutual capacities and strengths, and working together. They strategically collect and disseminate information on violations against children in conflicts, in order to influence key decision-makers to create and implement programmes and policies that effectively protect children.

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