643 Child Soldiers Demobilized: SPLA Confirms

This article was last updated on April 16, 2022

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Since the realization of peace in South Sudan in 2005 after decades of civil war, the Sudan People’s Liberation Army, (SPLA) have demobilized 643 child-soldiers in their forces.

Since the realization of peace in South Sudan in 2005 after decades of civil war, the Sudan People’s Liberation Army, (SPLA) have demobilized 643 child-soldiers in their forces.

Brig. Chaplain Khamish in-charge of demobilization and re-integration of child-soldiers in the SPLA General Headquarters in Juba told Gurtong yesterday in an interview that, the demobilization was an effort of the SPLA’s commitment to comply with the United Nation’s (UN) call to de-associate child soldiers from the armed forces.

“Since the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) in 2005 we have released 643 child-soldiers from the SPLA and re-integrated them into their various communities,” Chaplain confirmed.

Chaplain was speaking during a three-day workshop held in Juba, objectively scheduled to intensify comprehensive plans and programs to demobilize and re-integrate child soldiers in South Sudan following its commitment to the UN.

The workshop was organized by the SPLA department of child-soldier demobilization and re-integration in collaboration with the United Nations Mission to South Sudan, (UNMISS). It brought together senior SPLA officials in the seven army divisions, Government officials, representatives of other UN agencies and UNMISS to intensify the demobilization program.

However, Chaplain pointed that a number of child soldiers whom the UN estimates to be at least 1,000 still exist in the SPLA and the army was working on how to demobilize and successfully re-integrate them into their communities.

“Our main problem is the rebel groups that sprung up. They are the ones now recruiting a number of child-soldiers. However, while re-integrating the rebels into the SPLA, we screen out the child soldiers before re-integrating them,” Chaplain explained.

However, he added that due to the vulnerability of the child-soldiers’ families and the community, they offer inadequate support to the child-soldiers when re-integrated.

Meanwhile, Lise Grande the Residential Representative of the United Nations (UN) and Country Representative of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) who spoke to the press during the opening of the workshop said that, the UN was committed to ensure that SPLA was not associated with child soldiers. “The UN is going to support this program as long as it takes,” said Lise.