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UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs

LIBERIA: Release child soldiers, UNICEF tells fighting groups

MONROVIA, 9 October 2003 (IRIN) - UNICEF has demanded that the Liberian government and rebel groups release and demobilise more than 15,000 child soldiers who are estimated to be part of their fighting forces.

"Liberian children associated with fighting forces must be released and demobilised. Recruitment of children for armed combat and sexual abuse are the most graphic violations of childrens' rights," UNICEF-Liberia said in a situation report on children released on Wednesday said.

"A rapid assessment conducted [in Liberia] in June 2003 found that there has been an escalation in forced recruitment of children," the report said.

Both the government and the two rebel groups, Liberians United for Reconciliation and Democracy (LURD) which operates in the north and west, and the Movement for Democracy in Liberia (MODEL) which operates in the southeast are known to use thousands of child soldiers.

"In some factions, up to 70 percent of the combatants are children. Approximately 80 percent of these children were involved in direct combat," it added.

In order to expedite the release of the child soldiers, UNICEF said it would provide basic education and life-skills training to the children who would leave the battle field to facilitate their reintegration into Liberian society.

"UNICEF and other child protection groups have been holding regular consultations so as to have child soldiers demobilised as part of the disarmament, demobilization and reintegration program in Liberia," the UNICEF-Liberia communication officer, Durudee Sirichanya, told IRIN on Thursday.

Meanwhile UNICEF was also carrying out a massive sensitisation programme as part of its Back-to-School programme. Together with the government, UNICEF expects to launch free, compulsory primary education in Liberia on 3 November. It is targeting 750,000 war-affected children.

The Back-to-School program also plans to train and support 20,000 qualified teachers and 3,700 schools.

"Thus far, UNICEF has ordered 4,300 school-in-a-box kits, tents, teachers kits and chalks boards for the implementation of the Back to-school program. The World Food Program (WFP) will support school feeding and food for work for teachers," the report said.

On emergency nutrition, the UNICEF report said: "There are indications of increased and widespread severe malnutrition.". It added that supplementary and therapeutic feeding was needed for about 10,000 malnourished children in accessible areas of rural Liberia.

UNICEF, together with other relief agencies have since September ventured into most parts of rural Liberia except the northern Nimba and Lofa counties.

Themes: (IRIN) Children, (IRIN) Conflict

[ENDS]

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