PRESSE : Editorial du NY Times sur les enfants soldats

Catherine MAIA 

Le NY Times a publié, le 12 octobre 2006, un éditorial sur les enfants soldats et la Cour pénale internationale.

Cet article met en exergue l’effet dissuasif qu’aurait désormais la CPI sur les officiels gouvernementaux et chefs de milices qui recrutent les enfants pour les combats, en particulier avec la poursuite devant la Cour de Thomas Lubanga Dyilo, chef de l’UPC (Union des patriotes congolais), un mouvement politique et militaire accusé d’avoir recruté à grande échelle des enfants combattants.

Comme le note l’article : "Much good can come from the court’s focus on child soldiers. The decision by the international tribunals for Rwanda and Yugoslavia to treat rape as one of the most serious international crimes has changed legal attitudes and practice worldwide. The International Criminal Court is now drawing attention to another widespread, yet widely ignored, horror. Guerrilla leaders in Colombia, Sri Lanka, West Africa and elsewhere, and government officials in Myanmar, should pay close attention".

• Voir l’article en question : « Armies of Children », Editorial, NY Times, 12 octobre 2006.

Editorial: Armies of Children

October 12, 2006

The recruitment of child soldiers is one of the most heinous war crimes, and among the most forgotten. Perhaps a quarter-million children — most in their teens but some as young as 7 — are forced to serve in government or insurgent armies in 20 countries around the world. Not only are they ordered to kill and torture, they often become victims of physical and sexual abuse. When they do return to civilian life, they are walking ghosts — damaged, uneducated pariahs.

But now something has happened that may force guerrilla leaders and government officials who recruit children to think again. The new International Criminal Court, established to bring the most serious international criminals to justice, is beginning its first prosecution — of a defendant charged with the use of child soldiers. He is Thomas Lubanga Dyilo, leader of a Congolese militia responsible for ethnic massacres, torture and rapes in the eastern part of the country.

At the height of the violence in eastern Congo, in 2003, around 30 percent of militia fighters were children. Many were forcibly recruited, but others enlisted, seeking protection or food. About 30,000 have been demobilized nationwide, and groups like Unicef and Save the Children are helping them get back into school and rejoin their communities. But the militias that are still fighting are still using child soldiers, sometimes forcing demobilized children back into the war.

Much good can come from the court’s focus on child soldiers. The decision by the international tribunals for Rwanda and Yugoslavia to treat rape as one of the most serious international crimes has changed legal attitudes and practice worldwide. The International Criminal Court is now drawing attention to another widespread, yet widely ignored, horror. Guerrilla leaders in Colombia, Sri Lanka, West Africa and elsewhere, and government officials in Myanmar, should pay close attention.