Last year when the Kony video went viral in 2012, I became aware of the alarming global use of child soldiers and decided to further research the subject. The Kony video is a film created by the organization Invisible Children, to raise public awareness about Joseph Kony [so that he would] be arrested. Joseph Kony kidnaps children and forces them to kill their parents and work for him and his army (Craine). This paper explores the deeper physical, social and psychological effects of war on the children and whether they can ever return to living a normal life.
The employment of child soldiers dates back to the Second World War, when Germany drafted adolescents (Gettleman). Iran also used children during the war between Iran and Iraq in the 1980s. They are sometimes forced or captured into service against their will. According to Richard Williams, a prominent author, it is a war crime to recruit children under 15 to armed forces and according to the UN Convention of the Rights of the child, [the] standard of 15 [is] the minimum age for military service (Child Soldiers). According to the United Nations in 2011, twenty-two countries use children in warfare (Child Soldiers).
Children are recruited in the army for a variety of reasons. The use of light, easy to-handle weapons allowed children to participate in war (Child Soldiers). Children take the place of adult soldiers killed in war. They are easy to feed and are usually obedient and loyal. They become child soldiers when they are separated from their families. When poverty stricken parents cannot feed their families, they often sell their children into the army (Gettleman). They are sometimes drafted into armies or arrested and forced into service (Child Soldiers). Governments that spend more money on their militaries as well as authoritarian governments are more likely to recruit child soldiers (Early and Tyne). Also, In addition, children are sometimes used as spies.
