Announcing Launch of Deed of Commitment on Children and Armed Conflict
2 novembre 2010
Announcing Launch of Deed of Commitment on Children and Armed Conflict
2 November 2010
Geneva Call is pleased to announce the launch of the Deed of Commitment under Geneva Call for the Protection of Children from the Effects of Armed Conflict. This standard and universal instrument aims to provide Armed non-State actors (NSAs), which lack the legal capacity to become party to relevant international treaties, with an opportunity to demonstrate their commitment to international norms protecting children from armed conflict.
This is the second such Deed of Commitment under Geneva Call. Its launch comes during the 10 year anniversary of the first – the Deed of Commitment under Geneva Call for Adherence to a Total Ban on Anti-Personnel Mines and for Cooperation in Mine Action with which to date, – 41 NSAs from around the globe have signed and substantially complied.
The new Deed of Commitment has been developed by Geneva Call following focused discussions with NSAs, and under the advice of an expert advisory group including participants from the Coalition to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers, UNICEF, the ICRC, the Quaker UN Office and international legal experts. As with the Deed of Commitment banning anti-personnel mines, the Republic and Canton of Geneva will act as custodian, and when possible, signings will take place in the Alabama Room where the 1st Geneva Convention was signed in 1864.
Elisabeth Decrey Warner, President of Geneva Call, is enthusiastic about the new mechanism, yet stresses the need for patience. “While we believe that the launch of the new Deed of Commitment represents an important step forward in efforts to protect civilians in armed conflict, our experience suggests that engagement on child protection will be a complex and, at times, demanding process. Signatures are only the first step, and even this could take some time”.
Geneva Call would like to take this opportunity to thank all of those who contributed to the development of this Deed of Commitment, and looks forward to working with all interested stakeholders towards helping to protect children from the effects of armed conflict.
For more information, please contact
Jonathan Somer, Programme Coordinator on Children and Armed non-State Actors
+41 22 879 10 50 or info@genevacall.org