PAPER E7PEACE EDUCATION

case study of areas where conflictsof different kinds have led todisplacement, violence or persistentsocial turmoil

CHILDHOODIN CONFLICTSETTINGS

Syrian children are seen at a tent schoolmade by volunteer teachers at Harnabushi

refugee camp in Idlib Province [AnadoluAgency]

Picture Source: Aljajeera

OVERVIEW

KEY TOPICS

Kashmir Syria

Nigeria

What is Childhood? Childhood in Conflict Settings

What are Grave Violations?Case studies:

1.2.3.

SOURCES AND REFRENCESINTERNET SITES1.

Website: UNICEF, Childhood Under Threat: State of the world's children 2005

2. ARTICLES/PRESS RELEASE

Mannaan, Anub. Education Paralysis in Kashmir: Need to protect the future. ORF. SEP 20 2019Hunter, Elaine. Toxic stress spells disaster for many children in Syria and other conflict countries. Their World.AUGUST 03, 2017Watt, Evan. Seven years of Syrian conflict leaves thousands of children and young people with disabilities. Their World. MARCH 12,2018UNICEF Media Team. No end in sight to seven years of war in Syria: children with disabilities at risk of exclusion. MARCH 12, 2018AUDU BULAMA BUKARTI. Nigeria’s Child Veterans Are Still Living a Nightmare. Foreign Policy. 15 AUGUST 2019

3. PAPERS/REVIEWSPrasad, A N, and P L Prasad. “Children in Conflict Zones.” Medical journal, Armed Forces India vol. 65,2 (2009): 166-9.doi:10.1016/S0377-1237(09)80134-2Isokpan, Aisosa Jennifer, & Durojaye, Ebenezer. (2016). Impact of the Boko Haram insurgency on the child's right to education inNigeria. PER: Potchefstroomse Elektroniese Regsblad, 19(1), 1-43. https://dx.doi.org/10.17159/1727-3781/2016/v19n0a1299CHILDREN AND CONFLICT IN A CHANGING WORLD. MACHEL STUDY 10-YEAR STRATEGIC REVIEW

WHAT IS CHILDHOOD?Childhood means much more than just the space between birth and the attainment of adulthood.

It refers to the state and condition of a child’s life, to the quality of those years.

It is the time for children to be in school and at play, to grow strong and confident with the love and

encouragement of their family and an extended community of caring adults. It is a precious time in

which children should live free from fear, safe from violence and protected from abuse and

exploitation.

In 1989 , the Un i ted Nat ions Genera l Assembly adopted the Convent ion on the

R ights of the Ch i ld .The Convent ion is the f i rs t in te rnat iona l human r ights t reaty

to br ing together the un iversa l se t o f s tandards concern ing ch i ld ren in a un ique

inst rument , and the f i rs t to p resent ch i ld r ights as a lega l l y b ind ing imperat ive .

THE CONVENTIONDEFINED

CHILDHOOD AS ASEPARATE SPACE

FROM ADULTHOODAND RECOGNIZED

THAT WHAT ISAPPROPRIATE FOR

AN ADULT MAYNOT BE SUITABLE

FOR A CHILD.

THEY CALLED ONGOVERNMENTS TO

PROVIDEMATERIAL

ASSISTANCE ANDSUPPORT TO

FAMIL IES AND TOPREVENT

CHILDREN FROMBEING SEPARATED

FROM THEIRPARENTS.

THEY RECOGNIZEDTHAT CHILDREN ARE

THE HOLDERS OFTHEIR OWN RIGHTS

AND ARETHEREFORE NOT

PASSIVERECIPIENTS OF

CHARITY BUTEMPOWERED

ACTORS IN THEIROWN DEVELOPMENT.

Source: UNICEF

CHILDHOOD UNDER THREATEver since the convention came into being the concept of childhood has never been stronger, clearer or

more detailed. Yet childhood remains under threat. In the last decade there has been more than 30

wars going on around the world. In the case of an occurrence of any kind of conflict children become

inextricably a part of the experience of conflict and how it pans out. UNICEF released a report on 31

December 2019 that was titled “2019 concludes a ‘deadly decade’ for children in conflict, with more than

170,000 grave violations verified since 2010”.

As a result of conflict in several regions, the advances made in the fullfillment of children’s rights –

such as reductions in child mortality rates, increased net primary school enrolment, lower numbers of

orphans, and important strides in creating a protective environment for children – appear at risk of

reversal from three key threats: poverty, armed conflict and HIV/AIDS. Other threats to children’s

survival and development persist because of poverty, armed conflict and HIV/AIDS.

Poverty is the root cause of high rates of child mortality and morbidity. The rights of over 1

billion children – more than half the children in developing countries – are violated when

they are severely underserved of at least one or more of the basic goods and services that

would allow them to survive, develop and thrive.

Hundreds of thousands of children are caught up in conflict as soldiers; many are forced to

become refugees or internally displaced persons, suffer sexual violence, abuse and

exploitation, or are victims of explosive remnants of war.

Worldwide, AIDS is already the leading cause of death for people aged 15 to 49; in 2003

alone, 2.9 million people died of AIDS and 4.8 million people were newly infected with the

HIV virus.

Source: UNICEF

GRAVE VIOLATIONS

Killing and maiming of children

Sexual violence against children

Recruitment and use of children byarmed forces and armed groups

Attacks against schools orhospitals

Abduction of children Denial of humanitarian access forchildren

The grave violations against the rights of a child as listed by the UNITED NATIONS Convention onthe Rights of the Child are:

Source: UNCRC

CHILDHOOD IN CONFLICT SETTINGS

The nature of war has changed dramatically. Its horrors are no longer experienced only by soldiers

fighting on front lines and battlefields. Wars are being fought not between countries but within them. In

addition, children are being deliberately recruited as combatants. Coupled with the rapid social change

which often precedes or accompanies war, armed conflict leads to a breakdown in the family support

systems, which is so essential to a child's survival and development. During crisis government

protection and community support systems also slip away. As a result, children are being denied the

protection promised to them in the ‘Convention on the Rights of the Child’.

War violates every right of a child - the right to life, the right to be with family and community, the right

to health, the right to the development of the personality and the right to be nurtured and protected.  

Reference: AN Prasad

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Case Studies

KASHMIR SYRIA N IGERIA

KASHMIRTHE IMPACT OF CONFLICT ON EDUCATION

Even before the abrogation of article 370, long breaks due to strikes and curfews havebeen a recurring feature in Kashmir. As per data compiled by the Jammu and Kashmirpolice based on media reports, since 1990 Kashmir has lost significant working daysdue to conflict. There is a high academic cost student pay due to long periods ofclosure. Even in the context of non-conflict, studies show that there is a decline inachievement scores (particularly in reading and math) on returning to the classroomafter a long break.Education in times of conflict can be a sustainable tool for achieving post conflict peaceand providing stability and normalcy to the region. It is also a means of instilling hopeand positivity as well as offering opportunity to the youth who are surrounded byviolence. One of the major challenges of education in situation of conflict is the discontinuities itcreates. These impact students’ academic performance as well as their psycho–socialdevelopments. 

Source: Mannaan, Anub

Breaks in education faced by the children of Kashmir are unpredictable, surrounded byfear, trauma and lack of stimulating activity. All these factors are severely detrimentalfor learning and development and is unsettling for students, making it tougher toreorient themselves in regular school routine.The most tangible impact of long closures is the pressure on institutions to complete

the prescribed syllabus in shorter time periods. However, we need to understand that

learning is not just a function of information gathering, it is reliant on many factors such

as parent’s education, environmental stimulation, nutrition and peers amongst

others. Children are not empty containers that can be filled with information; they are

inquisitive, meaning-making individuals who learn through the process of interacting

with their environment rather than ‘remedial classes’. 

Education needs to be holistic development of the child that goes beyond basic literacy.

In an environment of conflict even the goal of basic literacy for all cannot be met. It is

important to reiterate that education matters and its effective use can break the legacy

of violence and mistrust.

SYRIA IMPACT OF V IOLENCE AND DISPLACEMENT ON CHILDDEVELOPMENT

After 9 years of increasing conflict and violence, the Syrian civil war now constitutes the

largest displacement crisis in the world, with more than 6 million people who have been

internally displaced. 

The Syrian crisis remains first and foremost a protection crisis. Grave violations of

children’s rights – recruitment, abductions, killing and maiming continue

unabated. Unexploded weaponry is a deadly threat for millions of Syrian children, while

around 5 million children still require some form of humanitarian assistance.

Refugee children, particularly those who are out of school, are vulnerable to many risks -

including isolation, discrimination and different forms of exploitation. That includes

early marriage, child labour and recruitment by armed forces or criminals.

Exposed to periods of prolonged fear, chronic neglect or abuse, poverty and hunger, a

child’s "stress response" will go into overdrive - with devastating consequences. A

young child’s brain architecture begins to change, leading to physical and mental health

issues later on in life. Doctor M.K. Hamza of the Syrian American Medical Society

(SAMS) describes the unprecedented psychological trauma experienced by Syria’s

children as “human devastation syndrome”. He believes their suffering actually exceeds

the definition of post-traumatic stress disorder.

Sami was at home in Syria when he went outside to play in the snow with his cousins. "A

bomb hit. I saw my cousin’s hands flying in front of me," he said. "I lost both my legs.

Two of my cousins died and one also lost his legs.” Sami, originally from Dera’a in

southern Syria, is now 14 and living as a refugee in Jordan. He is just one of more than

1.5 million Syrian people who are now living with permanent, war-related impairments -

including 86,000 whose injuries have led to amputations.In conflict, children with

disabilities are among the most vulnerable. 

They often require specialised treatment and services. As children, their needs differ

from those of adults. Without access to services, schools and assistive products like

wheelchairs, many children with disabilities face a very real risk of exclusion, neglect

and stigmatisation as the unrelenting conflict continues.

UNICEF says lack of access to proper medical and psychological care has prolonged or

worsened injuries and disabling conditions among children. Children with disabilities are

exposed to higher risks of violence and face difficulties accessing basic services

including health and education.

NIGERIA IMPACT OF INSURGENCY ON CHILD SAFETY

Armed conflict affects the entire populace but it makes a special impact on children as

a vulnerable group. They are made to pay the price for a war that is not of their making,

hence losing out on the beauty of childhood as they to grow up among families and

communities torn apart by armed conflicts, or even partake in the conflicts as child

soldiers.

They are exposed to human rights violations as the conflict affects the provision of

services, including food, health, education and infrastructure, and also affects adults

who are significant to the children, such as fathers, mothers and siblings.

Often children are separated from families and loved ones, left to face the harsh effects

of conflict as refugees or internally displaced persons, and suffer from hunger and

disease as a result of the tactics of the combatants to disrupt the supply of food.

Some children have been killed, abducted, forcefully recruited, and internally displaced,

while others have sought refuge in neighbouring countries. The Boko Haram insurgency

has affected millions of families across West Africa’s Lake Chad region. Children have

been abducted, killed, even used as suicide bombers. Entire villages have been left

without electricity, clean water, health care, schools — or simply burned to the ground.

The terrorist group Boko Haram wants to institute an Islamic caliphate in Nigeria and is

in particular opposed to western-style modern education, which they say lures people

away from following Islamic teaching as a way of life. Boko Haram targeted schools

because of their opposition to Western education, which the militants believe corrupts

the values of Muslims.

On April 14, 2014 276 schoolgirls from a rural secondary school in the town of Chibok

were abducted. The girls’ plight drew worldwide attention. Today, 112 of the young

women remain missing. The lives of the girls who survived are far from normal. Boko

Haram pledged to kill them if they returned to school.

Guards watch their building and follow them whenever they leave. On campus they have

a 24/7 support system: 11 student affairs “aunties” who live in the dorms, a nurse, and a

walk-in psychologist’s office. Some have bullets and shrapnel still lodged in their

bodies. One has a prosthetic leg. Other walks with a cane. Most spent nearly three years

in captivity and wrestle with lingering trauma. The girls kidnapped in Chibok in 2014

represent a small fraction of the number of people taken by Boko Haram.

Non-state armed groups embroiled in the decade-long conflict against Boko Haram

recruited more than 3,500 children between 2013 and 2017 in Nigeria’s northeast,

according to UNICEF.The war against Boko Haram saw kids drafted by both sides.

Although the group often targets children, the abduction of schoolgirls in Chibok took

the international spotlight. While acknowledging the full weight of female suffering,

responding to the trauma of boys cannot continue to be a major blind spot for those

seeking to counter the insurgency without negative consequences for Nigeria’s ability to

move beyond the conflict.

The CJTF was created in 2013 by the communities worst affected by Boko Haram. Its

volunteers spend most of their days on the road going house to house in search of the

group’s fighters, and their nights in the Sambisa Forest—Boko Haram’s stronghold.

While Boko Haram’s exploitation of children is common knowledge, the CJTF’s use of

young people is rarely discussed. But thousands of children have passed through its

ranks.

Insurgents by 2017 had destroyed almost 1,400 schools, killed nearly 2,300 teachers,

and displaced 19,000 more. The group’s extreme opposition to secular education its

codified into its own name, a mix of Hausa and Arabic that means “Western education

is forbidden.” Its attacks, and the fear and insecurity they have triggered more broadly in

the Lake Chad region, have led to the closure of more than half of all the schools at its

epicenter of operations in northeastern Nigeria, leaving an estimated 3 million children

in need of emergency educational support.

GRAVE VIOLATIONS IN NIGERIA

Recruitment and Use of Children: verified cases of the recruitment and use of children

reached 1,947 (1,596 boys, 351 girls) in 2018.

Detention: In 2018, 418 children were deprived of liberty for their or their parents’ alleged

association with Boko Haram.

Killing and Maiming: verified a total of 432 children killed (175) and maimed (257) in

Nigeria.

Sexual Violence: 46 girls were verified victims of rape and other forms of sexual violence.

Attacks on Schools and Hospitals: 5 attacks verified on schools and 10 attack on

the hospital.

Abduction: 180 children abducted.

Denial of Humanitarian Access: 33 incidents of denial of humanitarian access were

verified, a sharp increase compared to 2017 (5).

REHABILITAION EFFORTSIT IS IMPERATIVE THAT WE DEVISE SOLUTIONS TO ENSURE THAT THE VARIOUSDETRIMENTAL IMPACTS OF , THE DISRUPTION OF NORMALCY IN THE L IVES OFCHILDREN ARE MIT IGATED TO A CERTAIN EXTENT; WHILE AT THE SAME T IMECREATING SYSTEMS TO REHABIL ITATE CHILDREN WHOSE L IVES , HEALTH AND

WELL BEING HAVE BEEN ADVERSELY EFFECTED BY CONFLCIT

The solutions for decline in the quality of education in Kashmir would need to be

adaptable to the deep uncertainties and constantly changing dynamics in the region.

There is a need to mitigate the risk of long distance travel which can be done by

assigning teachers from within the localities to conduct classes in their neighbourhood;

and/or creating satellite schools within walking distance from home. Teachers need to

be specially trained to deal with the needs of the children and understand the demads of

their context.

Children who witness violent brutalities, the horrors of war and physically carry a

reminder on their bodies need physical as well as mental aid.

1.

2.

ATTACHED BELOW ARE L INKS TO VARIOUS INTERVIEWS AND DOCUMENTARIESTASK: WATCH THEM AND COME UP WITH SUGGESTIONS/PLANS FOR

REHABIL ITATION EFFORTS FOR CHILDREN IN CONLFICT ZONES

Rehabilitation for Syrian Children Traumatized by War

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Zi7xTahpQE

Protecting Children in Conflicts: The UN and What You Can Do

https://youtu.be/ccLtq65NNgc

Education in conflict zone

https://youtu.be/5IA2E3NwX0k

Community recovery from conflict through music: Ruha Devanesan at TEDxMontreal

https://youtu.be/xFglvuL6Nuc

Helping Children Recover From Trauma | Mental Health in Violence & War

https://youtu.be/aVCRBE-7S9c

"Children of War" Documents Rehabilitation of Former Child Soldiers

https://youtu.be/EHoltpPBqcg

A new beginning! Nigerian gov't starts rehabilitation of rescued Chibok girls

https://youtu.be/0zhlx---xfI

CONCLUSION

The effects conflict are both direct and indirect and are associated with immediate and

long-term harm. The direct effects of conflict include death, physical and psychological

trauma, and displacement. Indirect effects are related to a large number of factors,

including inadequate and unsafe living conditions, environmental hazards, caregiver

mental health, separation from family, displacement-related health risks, and the

destruction of health, public health, education, and economic infrastructure. Children are

targeted by combatants during attacks, and children are recruited or forced to take part in

combat in a variety of ways. Armed conflict is both a toxic stress and a significant social

determinant of child health.

Please give your responses to the following questions/statements:

What are the possible long term effects of conflict on children?

What are the factors that have rendered international humanitarian laws ineffective in the

case studies mentioned above?