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New Child Soldier Bill Draws Attention to Global Tragedy |
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Senator Richard Durbin (D-IL) introduced the Child
Soldier Accountability Act of 2007 to the Senate last week. The Act allows for
any person in the United
States who is found guilty of recruiting, enlisting,
or conscripting child soldiers in any country, to be fined or deported if he or
she is not a citizen, or to be sentenced to up to 20 years in prison if he or
she is. Furthermore, if the offense caused death, the person can be imprisoned
for life.
The Child Soldier Accountability Act and the Child
Soldier Prevention Act, also introduced by Sen. Durbin last April, are in
accordance with the optional protocol of the United Nations. The optional
protocol, which was ratified by the US in 2002, raised the minimum age
of soldiers from 15 to 18. Currently, there are two bills in the House of
Representatives entitled “Child Soldier Prevention Act.” The bill clearly
identifies the Lord’s Resistance Army in Uganda, which has been exploiting
children in its armed conflict against the Ugandan government for two decades.
The Child Soldier Prevention Act prohibits the
availability of funds for military training and operations to countries that
are identified by the Country Reports on Human Rights Practices as engaging in
the use and recruitment of child soldiers for government or government
affiliated armed groups. The bill also supports the expansion of demobilization
and reintegration programs for children who participated in armed conflict.
AFJN commends Senator Durbin for taking action to end
this global tragedy. We encourage you to contact your Senator or Representative
to support both the Child Solder Prevention Act and Child Soldier
Accountability Act.
-Mary Hansen
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Children are Targets of Violence in Northern Uganda
Northern Uganda Policies for Peace
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