Are child soldiers effective?
Are child soldiers effective? Yes. In combat, children can be daring and tenacious, particularly when under the influence of drugs—a common practice—or when compelled by political or religious zeal. Child units can greatly add to confusion on battlefields, slowing opposing forces’ progress.
How many girls are child soldiers?
There are an estimated 250,000 child soldiers in the world today in at least 20 countries. About 40% of child soldiers are girls, who are often used as sex slaves and taken as “wives” by male fighters.
How many children are forced to be soldiers?
In 2017, the advocacy group Child Soldiers International estimated that more than 100,000 children were forced to become soldiers in state and non-state military organizations in at least 18 armed conflicts worldwide. The UN further reported that a majority of these children were actually under the age of 15 and that 40 percent of them were girls.
What can a child do as a soldier?
A child soldier does not necessarily wear a uniform or carry a weapon: he can be recruited into an armed group as a cook, carrier, guard, spy, messenger, bodyguard, sex slave, mine “detector”… Children are recruited because they are more manageable, more obedient, and more easily manipulated than adults.
Where are most child soldiers in the world?
According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, up to half of the child soldiers in the world are in Africa. A lot of these are “invisible children” who were orphaned because of AIDS, violence and war.
How old are child soldiers in World War 1?
Their recruitment begins from the age of 10. Child soldiers are used as instruments in war machines that execute even parents and friends. “Children, my dear brother, are the best fighters of the century.