CHAPTER
01: INTRODUCTION
“Over 20 million children of conflict are out
of school. Education is often forgotten.”
~
Angelina Jolie, UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador
A child soldier
is anyone under the age of eighteen who is part of any kind of regular or
irregular armed force or armed group in any capacity. Child soldiers are boys
and girls who fight in adult wars, missing out on the safe childhood that many
of us take for granted, but to which every child is entitled according to the
Convention on the Rights of the Child.[1]
According to the Coalition
to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers:
“Child soldiers perform a range of tasks
including participation in combat, laying mines and explosives; scouting,
spying, acting as decoys, couriers or guards; training, drill or other
preparations; logistics and support functions, portering, cooking and domestic
labor; and sexual slavery or other recruitment for sexual purposes.” [2]
