Kropotkin (1897) once commented that, Either the State for ever, crushing individual and local life, taking over in all fields of human activity, bringing with it all its wars and domestic struggles for power, its palace revolutions which only replace one tyrant by another, and inevitably at the end of this development there is … death!
In the wake of Ukraine and Russia conflict, we are reminded yet again of other regions in the world such as Yemen, Nigeria, Syria, South Sudan, Somalia, Myanmar, Mali, Burkina Faso, Central African Republic, Afghanistan, and many others where devastation through wars and palace revolutions adversely affected children’s rights as has enshrined in the UNCRC 1989. While armed conflicts tend to affect people of all ages, children are particularly susceptible to the debilitating effects of war.
In these conflicts children have experienced mass killings, maiming, raping, trafficking, recruitment of child soldiers, use of children as human shields, denial of aid and medical care and bombing of schools and hospitals on a scale unmatched for decades. Since 2000, the number of children living in conflict zones has dramatically increased with almost 1.6 billion children (over two thirds) living in countries affected by conflict, and one in six children living in conflict-ridden countries. Some children living in these zones have seen conflict their entire lifetime, especially in the African region (Save the Children International 2018; UNICEF 2018; ReliefWeb 2020). Since Africa has tended to experience the brunt of several wars, due to political leadership failure thus impacting on children’s rights, my recent interest and study have been in this area as reflected in my March 2022 publications; ‘Global Trends on Citizenship: Future Implications for Political Leadership in Africa’ and ‘Children’s Rights and the Cultural Nexus in the African Context: Abuses and Policy Implications’ https://www.igi-global.com/book/interdisciplinary-approaches-future-africa-policy/273147
For far too long, the warring parties, including some governments, have been committing atrocities with utmost impunity, and the trends reflect a global situation that is getting worse.
Amid all these tragedies, impacting children’s rights, the role of political leadership must be brought into question. We know from philosopher Bell Hooks that a government that has no love for the people it oversees is vulnerable to tyranny and failure. Generally, democracy has faced a crisis over decades, but more so in 2017, as some would argue. The basic tenets of freedom, such as free and fair elections, the rights of minorities, freedom of the press, and the rule of law have waned around the world with 71 countries registering net declines in political rights and civil liberties, and only 35 registering gains. This marked decline in global freedom has been caused in part by the United States’ internal decline in political rights and civil liberties and retreat from its traditional role as ‘policeman’ of the world (Freedom House, 2018).
While the UN Security Council may have condemned children’s rights abuses in some conflict zones, some of its members have often blocked concrete measures against violators. Furthermore, some governments have reneged on their commitments to protect children’s rights by providing military aid to parties using child soldiers or some children as informants or spies. Evidence is awash of governments that have killed, tortured, or arbitrarily detained children suspected of supporting armed opposition. When it comes to global conflicts the world has generally witnessed moral turpitude and double standards from political leadership, especially powerful nations. In a global system that is tilted in favour of profit-making by multinational corporations, it is not uncommon to find some authoritarian regimes being propped up in quid pro quo arrangements that have only served to nest, nurture, and drive conflicts.
Many policy-based organisations working with children believe that more can and must be done to protect and secure children’s welfare. There is a need to undertake concerted and collective efforts to turn back the tide of brutality and indifference experienced by children in conflict, and it starts with political leadership. This may mean developing a comprehensive international agenda that produces child-centred policies and is influenced by impact assessments, civil societies, and children themselves.
- Icarbord Tshabangu, Leeds Trinity University