Abstract
Children are our future. At a very critical time in world history in 1937, Dietrich Bonhoeffer (2012) stated that society is best measured on its moral integrity in how it treats children. Sadly, since this famous quote, children remain caught in wars and military conflicts initiated by adults in many locations around the world.
When children are killed and harmed as a result of armed conflict, it brings about fundamental questions of morality and civility. In times of war the morality and civility of both sides are called into question. Combatants make claims about moral decline of each other in their acts of violence. Researchers (Mastroianni and Gilbert, 2023) have found that claims of moral decline are in part an illusion. People believe that individuals in their immediate social associations uphold high-level moral, civil, and ethical virtues. Yet they attribute moral decline to non-associates and external groups. Thus, this creates an illusion that people’s own circle of relationships are not subject to the decline they attribute to others outside their civil sphere. There is both comfort and learning from Mastroianni and Gilbert’s (2023) research. For example, building relationships amongst conflicting groups to connect on shared areas morality such as the special respect of children might help to build seeds of peace. This offers hope that we can override other interests for shared morality for things such as the safety of children even in times of armed conflict. The first step in calling for peace is standing with children as simple yet powerful moral stand for civility, for they are the innocent of victims of war.
Children often bear a disproportionate brunt of death and injury in armed conflict (Pearn, 2003). Evidence shows that children sustain a higher rate of injury and death from blasts from explosives such as bombs and missiles (Wild et al., 2021). Children who survive war are often left with significant and lasting negative impacts that can curtail their development and potential (Machel, 1996; Oberg et al., 2022). These realities of war stand in stark contrast to common humanity where children are the love and hope of a family and community. Communities often prioritise the need to build safe, healthy, and quality spaces for children to play, learn, and grow. Parents work so hard to earn a living, create a friendly and homely growing environment. These efforts to speak to our hope to build a better future for our children.
If there are no children, there will be no future. Even though there are different views, confrontations or even wars from various religions, ideologies, ethnic origins, nationalities, and interests; children should not be involved, and should be protected from these conflicts. Children are innocent and they should not bear the responsibilities of wrong doings done by their leaders, parents, and grandparents. However, in many places in the world, right now, there are various forms of wars which endanger and kill thousands of innocent children and destroy their families and homes. So what can we do?
According to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNICEF, 2023), there are 54 articles that aim to protect and secure children’s wellbeing, even in times of war. There are comprehensive declarations and deliberations on the 54 rights and approaches to fulfil the declared rights. A few chapters are related to the children in wars. For example, in Chapter 6, ‘Every child has the right to be alive . . .’. In Chapter 9, ‘children should not be separated from their parents unless they are not being properly looked after . . .’. In Chapter 19, ‘Governments must protect children from violence, abuse and being neglected by anyone who looks after them’. In Chapter 22, ‘Children who move from their home country to another country as refugees should get help and protection . . .’. In Chapter 24, ‘Children have the right to the best health care possible, clean water to drink, health, food and a clean and safe environment to live in’. In Chapter 27, ‘children have the right to food, clothing and a safe place to live . . .’. In Chapter 28, ‘Every child has the right to an education’. In Chapter 31, ‘Every child has the right to rest, relax, play and to take part in cultural and creative arts’. In Chapter 35, it mentions ‘prevention of sale and trafficking of children’ and in the most relevant Chapter 38, ‘Children have the right to be protected during the war’.
In addition to the UNCRC, there are specific requirements of states to protect the lives of children from violence, abuse, and neglect at both civil and political levels. International Humanitarian Law is unequivocal in the case armed conflict that combatants’ have a legal responsibility to protect children in all situations of armed conflict. Under the Geneva Conventions of 1949 and the Additional Protocols of 1977 as stated by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC, 2023), children are covered under the general protection of all civilians not engaged in armed conflict, as well as special protection for children to the ‘object of special respect’. This extends to children who are involved or being used or suspected of being used by combatants as participants armed in conflict.
As social workers, we need to reexamine our stand related to children during the war. We do have moral and legal guides that align with our core humanistic and professional values. Our choice is so clear, it is to stand with the children regardless of their nationalities, ethnic origins, and religions. Children who are affected by war are caught in a situation created by adults.
International social work should have a role in protecting the children from the harm of war. We can advocate for the basic rights of children and disseminate the message for protecting innocent children from the war on the international platforms. In addition, as one of the major stakeholders in running refugee camps, we need to make sure that the children receive the protection and necessary water, food, shelter, and education that they deserve. Community education and solicitation of resources are also important approaches to help children in wars. Although it may be a mission impossible to create a peaceful world, we can make every effort to provide a safer shelter for the children to survive, learn, and grow.
The involvement of children in war is well documented, such as recruitment of children to become armed soldiers, the taking of child hostages, the use children as human shields as well as the targeting of children in acts of revenge, intimidation, and genocide (Singer, 2006). It is important to disrupt any proposition of children being tools, chattels, or targets of war. In fact, children can offer a pathway away from war towards peace. Children can also be part of the solution in building peace (Taylor, 2020), often they dream of a future where life is ‘normal’ and safe. This future is about creating a context of protection and safety, but also fostering their hope and resilience from overcoming adverse experiences such as war (O’Leary et al., 2015).
As social workers, we must ask hard questions and work to protect children in situations of war and armed conflict. It is our obligation to start a conversation about morality of children being killed, harmed or used in war. Finding a place of shared morality about the sanctity of children is the beginning of creating a common understanding of actions to protect them from harm. Focusing this conversation will help differing interests to come together to declare their moral integrity and special respect for children that is not only statue in the international laws of war, but a common human priority across all cultures. Knowing this is easy, acting on this is harder and achieving this remains an aspiration, but can only be achieved if we start to stand with children in times of war. They are our hope.