UN Names Six Child Right Violations In South Sudan

This article was last updated on April 16, 2022

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These findings came following the visit of the UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, Radhika Comaraswamy to South Sudan early last week. 

“Recruitment of child soldier into the South Sudan army, SPLA, sexual violence against girls, destruction of hospitals and schools violating right to education, child abduction, killing of children and denying humanitarian access to Nongovernmental organizations to conflict areas are violations,” Comaraswamy told press last Friday at the UN main office in Juba. 

She said that since 2006 South Sudan’s name still exists in the UN list of countries with child soldiers. Radhika warned that, unless South Sudan reduces in violation of child rights; there is a possibility of a UN sanction against the country. 

“The SPLA has been in this list since 2006 and it’s very important that we delist this as soon as possible now that they are a national army,” Radhika said. 

“At least 2,000 children exist in the South Sudan army with others in the different militia groups in the country,” she said. 

Early this week, the South Sudanese Ministry of Defence signed an action plan with the United Nations to ensure that the country is free of child soldiers by 2013. 

Comaraswamy pointed out that, the action plan entails identification and release of children from the army, UN verification process to ensure that there are no children in the army and provision of reintegration priorities. 

With recent killing and abduction of children in some parts of the country fuelled by intertribal conflicts, she noted that the United Nations is concerned over the matter. She said that, “we want to ensure that in future there will be no impunity for those who abduct.” 

Since 2005 prior to the establishment of the then government of Southern Sudan, (GOSS) 3,000 child soldiers have been demobilized from the SPLA. 

South Sudan becomes the latest country to join the United Nations last year after securing independence from her long foe, Sudan.