European Parliament urges armed non-State actors to commit against child recruitment

On 12 March, following discussions initiated by Geneva Call, the European Parliament unanimously passed a recommendation to the European Council to support the engagement of armed non-State actors on child protection in armed conflict. The recommendation urges the European Commission to encourage the signing of action plans for the protection of children in armed conflict by concerned States and armed non-State actors, and adherence by armed non-State actors to Geneva Call’s Deed of Commitment protecting children in armed conflict.

Once again, the European Parliament has highlighted the need for humanitarian engagement of armed non-State actors to achieve better protection of children in armed conflict. The Parliament recommends that relevant bodies of the European Commission:

•  (e)    engage directly, or indirectly through specialised NGOs and humanitarian organisations, with armed non-state actors on the issue of the protection of girls and boys, with a view to alleviating child suffering in armed conflict and urging armed non-state actors to sign the Deed of Commitment under the Geneva Call for the Protection of Children from the Effects of Armed Conflict;
• (f)  support humanitarian organisations that engage in dialogue with armed non-state actors in order to promote respect for international humanitarian norms in armed conflict, in particular the protection of children through political, diplomatic and financial means…”

This recommendation strengthens opportunities to engage armed non-State actors on child protection and brings more support to specialized NGOs such as Geneva Call.

The full text of the recommendation can be found here:

English:http://bit.ly/1g7isvi
French: http://bit.ly/1lajkV4