Sommaire: January 20, 2004: Statement to the Security Council of the United Nations by H.E. Ambassador Richard Ryan, Permanent Representative of Ireland to the United Nations on behalf of the European Union. Children and Armed Conflict (New York)
Madame President,
The European Union warmly welcomes your decision to mark the high importance of today's debate by presiding over our deliberations.
I have the honour to speak on behalf of the European Union. The Acceding Countries, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia, the Candidate Countries, Bulgaria, Romania and Turkey and the Countries of the Stabilisation and Association Process and potential candidates Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Serbia and Montenegro and the EFTA country, Iceland, member of the European Economic
Area, align themselves with this statement.
I thank you for providing us with an opportunity to debate this important issue and I also wish to express my appreciation to Under-Secretary General and Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, Mr. Olara Otunnu and the Executive Director of the United Nations Children's Fund, Ms. Carol Bellamy for their briefings.
Madame President,
The European Union strongly endorses the continued commitment demonstrated by the Security Council in giving high priority to the protection of children in its regular dialogue on the protection of civilians in armed conflict. Regrettably, young boys and girls continue to be pulled into outright combat and exploitation by armed forces and groups. We welcome in particular the adoption of resolution 1460 on 30 January 2003.
Madame President,
The European Union also wishes to thank the Secretary-General for his report on Children and Armed Conflict of 10 November 2003 and agrees that 'The annual review and debate by the Security Council on this issue should be mainly devoted to a comprehensive review of the state of compliance on the ground'. The recommendations contained at the end of the report warrant careful consideration, in particular when it comes to non-compliance. Targeted measures should be taken by the Council where
insufficient progress has been made by parties in accordance with resolutions 1379 and 1460, as proposed in the Secretary-General's report. All relevant parts of the United Nations system must shoulder their respective responsibilities in a coordinated manner, both for systematic monitoring and reporting of violations and compliance, and for preventative and rehabilitating actions for these child victims of armed conflict.
Madame President,
We reiterate again that the recruitment and use of girls and boys in armed conflict is an atrocity that must end violating as it does international humanitarian law as well as human rights law. The EU strongly urges the States and other parties to armed conflict, listed in Annex I and II of the Secretary-General's report immediately to stop the recruitment and/or use of girls and boys in situations of armed conflict. In this context, we urge States to accelerate the process of ratification or
accession to the Rome Statute of the ICC, which includes, as a war crime, conscripting or enlisting children under the age of 15 or using them to participate actively in hostilities in both international and non-international armed conflicts. As such, we fully subscribe to the views and recommendations contained in the Secretary-General's report with respect to the role of the International Criminal Court in this arena and we endorse the statement that concrete steps should be taken to ensure
the early prosecution of persons responsible for war crimes against children.
Madame President
In the last decade more than 2 million children have been killed in armed conflict and more than 6 million have suffered physical mutilation. Reliable estimates suggest that some 300,000 child soldiers are currently engaged in war operations. Millions of children have become orphans or left homeless as a result of war. The cruel irony, that in armed conflict it is the innocent who are often the first casualties, remains intact.
The Convention on the Rights of the Child and its Optional Protocols set out clear legal standards pertaining to the protection of children. The EU urges those States that have not yet done so to accede to the Convention as a matter of priority and to sign and ratify the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict.
Madame President,
Allow me to reflect briefly on some recent initiatives undertaken within the European Union.
Firstly, the General Affairs Council of the European Union, on 8 December 2003, approved the EU Guidelines on Children and Armed Conflict. These Guidelines, the culmination of many months of deliberation, were drafted in collaboration with the UN Secretary General's Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict along with UNICEF and a group of relevant NGO experts. The implementation of these Guidelines and their immediate, effective and sustained mainstreaming throughout all relevant
EU policies and actions is a priority of the European Union.
The EU will address the short, medium and long term impact of armed conflict on children in an effective and comprehensive manner, making use of the variety of tools at its disposal and building on past and ongoing activities. These objectives will be pursued through a number of specific initiatives, including, importantly, the monitoring of and reporting on conflict area situations and the continuation and development of technical cooperation programmes for the disarmament, rehabilitation and
reinsertion of children into civilian life.
These newly adopted Guidelines were also discussed in Rome on 10-11 December 2003 in the presence of governmental and NGO representatives of 27 European countries on the occasion of the EU Forum on Human Rights organised by the Italian Presidency of the EU and the European Commission. The Forum elaborated a number of proposals aimed at preventing the trafficking and sexual exploitation of minors and their involvement in armed conflicts. The European Union has already indicated the priority it
will attach to Children and Armed Conflict under the EU's Human Rights agenda in the next six months.
Secondly, I might mention "The EU Council Conclusions on cooperation between the EU and the UN on crisis management: protection of civilians in EU-led crisis management operations" which call for mainstreaming a strong child protection perspective in EU-led crisis management operations.
The EU also applauds the efforts of the Secretary-General and the Council to integrate Child Protection Advisers into UN peacekeeping and peace-building operations. The European Parliament has also played a prominent role in the protection of children affected by conflict. At its last meeting in October 2003, the ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly adopted a resolution on "The rights of children and child soldiers in particular."
Madame President,
The EU continues actively to support and work closely with the Office of the Special Representative, UNICEF, UNHCR and other actors, including NGOs, aimed at relieving, to the greatest extent possible, the suffering of children in situations of armed conflict and ensuring that those responsible for horrific crimes are held accountable. We look forward to receiving and giving due consideration to the Secretary-General's comprehensive assessment of the scope and effectiveness of the United
Nations system's response, including recommendations for strengthening, mainstreaming, integrating and sustaining activities in relation to children affected by armed conflict.
Madame President,
Addressing the issue of children victimised in armed conflict must increasingly take place collectively at national, regional and international levels. Momentum generated must not be lost. The Security Council will shortly begin deliberations on a new resolution. It is our hope that a new resolution - among other things - will result in a continuation of the list of all parties to armed conflict that recruit or use soldiers in violation of international obligations in all situations. Also,
guidance from the Council on how to strengthen further monitoring and evaluation of the situation of children in armed conflict would be useful. We hope that many of the concerns articulated today will resonate in these ongoing deliberations and will find voice in the resolution to follow.
Thank you, Madame President.
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