Handbook on Children
Recruited and Exploited
by Terrorist and Violent
Extremist Groups:
The Role of the Justice System
Cover photo: ©iStock.com/pixelprof
Handbook on Children Recruited and
Exploited by Terrorist and Violent
Extremist Groups:
The Role of the Justice System
UNITED NATIONS OFFICE ON DRUGS AND CRIME
Vienna
UNITED NATIONS
Vienna, 2017
© United Nations Oce on Drugs and Crime, 2017
e designations employed and the presentation of material in this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion
whatsoever on the part of the Secretariat of the United Nations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or
area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitations of its frontiers or boundaries. Mention of rm names and com-
mercial products does not imply the endorsement of the United Nations.
Publishing production: English, Publishing and Library Section, United Nations Oce at Vienna.
Contents
Acknowledgements ............................................................................................................v
Introduction .......................................................................................................................1
A. Challenges .....................................................................................3
B. e Handbook ..................................................................................4
C. Terminology ...................................................................................7
Chapter 1. Strategies for preventing recruitment of children by terrorist and violent
extremist groups ................................................................................................................9
A. Recruitment and exploitation of children ........................................................10
B. Adopting a holistic approach: preventing violence against children .................................16
C. Preventing recruitment of children by terrorist and violent extremist groups ........................21
Chapter 2. Child victims of recruitment and exploitation: their treatment in the justice system ............39
A. Recognizing as victims children recruited and exploited by terrorist and violent extremist groups ....40
B. Protecting child victims and witnesses during investigations and trials ..............................47
C. e right of child victims to reparation ..........................................................58
Chapter 3. Justice for children accused of terrorism-related oences ..................................................69
A. Specialized juvenile justice system ...............................................................70
B. Pretrial stage ...................................................................................82
C. Trial and sentencing ............................................................................90
D. Children deprived of their liberty ...............................................................97
Chapter 4. Rehabilitation and reintegration of children recruited and exploited by terrorist
and violent extremist groups .......................................................................................... 105
A. Reintegration of children recruited and exploited by terrorist and violent extremist groups .........106
B. Promoting comprehensive reintegration policies and programmes ................................110
C. Demobilization and release ....................................................................121
D. Cross-border cases ............................................................................129
E. Rehabilitation and reintegration as a key purpose of the justice process ............................135
Annex. Relevant international legal framework ........................................................................... 144
Vv
Acknowledgements
e preparation of this Handbook was made possible by the cooperative eorts and invaluable
contributions of several individuals and Governments.
e United Nations Oce on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) wishes to extend its gratitude to the
Member States who contributed to the consultation process. UNODC is grateful to the Chairs of the
regional groups for identifying experts to participate in the expert group meeting on the treatment by
the justice system of children recruited and exploited by terrorist and violent extremist groups, held in
Vienna from 13 to15 December 2016.
UNODC is grateful to the participants of the expert group meeting for their extensive contributions.
In particular, UNODC is most thankful to Carolyn Hamilton for her invaluable background research
and substantive input. e experts who aended the meeting were Mahmood Fadhil Masyab Al
Bayati, Abdelaziz Ahmed Abdalla Alhajri, Jamie Bell, Abderezak Bensalem, Soane Bessadok, Hanae
Boughdad, Hade Boulakras, James Cooke, Valerio de Divitiis, Swen Dornig, Hamza Essaid, Abdoul
Kassim Fomba, Imma Guerras Delgado, Carolyn Hamilton, Ibrahim Jean Etienne, Rose Marie Kerkor,
Kai Li, Carlos Magadán Martínez, Angela McCabe, Rolando Melo Latorre, Tim Molyneux, Naïma
Müller, Rose Oka Oji, Siobhan O’Neil, Reynante Orceo, Alexandra O Müller, Daniel Palmer, Stephen
Ramwell, Guenther Sablanig, Ibrahim Sesay, Dmitry Titov and Renate Winter. e following
UNODC sta members contributed to the meeting: Aldo Lale-Demoz, Valérie Lebaux, George
Puthuppally, Ulrich Garms, Alexandra Martins, Anna Giudice and Giulia Meloi.
e Handbook was wrien by Giulia Meloi, Alexandra Martins, Ulrich Garms and Katharina
Peschke, using as a basis the contributions of the expert group meeting. e production of the
Handbook was guided by: Valérie Lebaux, Chief of the Justice Section, Division of Operations; George
Puthuppally, Chief of Implementation Support Section II (Sub-Saharan Africa) in the Terrorism
Prevention Branch; and Mauro Miedico, Acting Chief of the Terrorism Prevention Branch, Division
for Treaty Aairs.
UNODC is grateful to the following individuals for their comments on and contributions to the dra-
ing of the Handbook: Renate Winter, Stephan Husy, Naïma Müller, Imma Guerras-Delgado, Alexandra
O Müller, Merel Molenkamp, Irina Scheitz, Jessika Soors, Abdoul Kassim Fomba, Rose Marie
Kerkor, James Cooke, Tim Molyneux, Aimee Comrie, Panagiotis Papadimitriou, Anna Giudice, Dayan
Farias Picon, Rouzbeh Moradi and Rohan Sinha.
UNODC is most grateful to the Governments of Austria, Canada, Denmark and Switzerland for
providing the funding to enable the development, translation into Arabic and French, reproduction
and dissemination of this Handbook.
Introduction
In the past few years, the international community has been increasingly confronted with the recruit-
ment and exploitation of children by terrorist and violent extremist groups. Numerous reports have
shed some light on the extent of this disturbing phenomenon.
Estimates indicate that, since 2009, about 8,000 children have been recruited and used by Boko
Haram in Nigeria.
1
According to a report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human
Rights, some boys have been forced to aack their own families to demonstrate loyalty to Boko Haram,
while girls have been forced to marry, clean, cook and carry equipment and weapons. e Oce of the
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights received consistent reports that some boys
and girls were increasingly being used as human shields and to detonate bombs. In May 2015, for
example, a girl about 12 years old was used to detonate a bomb at a bus station in Damaturu, Yobe
State, killing seven people. Similar incidents were reported in Cameroon and the Niger. During aacks
by Boko Haram, abducted boys were used to identify those who refused to join the group, as well as
unmarried women and girls.
2
In 2015 alone, the United Nations veried 274 cases of children having been recruited by Islamic
State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) in the Syrian Arab Republic. e United Nations veried the exist-
ence of centres in rural Aleppo, Dayr al-Zawr and rural Raqqah that provided military training to at
least 124 boys between 10 and 15 years of age. Verication of the use of children as foreign ghters has
increased signicantly, with 18 cases involving children as young as 7 years of age. e use of children
as child executioners was reported and appeared in video footage. In Iraq, in two incidents in June and
September 2015, more than 1,000 children were reportedly abducted by ISIL from Mosul district.
3
While the lack of access to areas in conict undercuts the possibility to gather precise data, it is known
that recruited children were used to act as spies and scouts, to transport military supplies and equip-
ment, to conduct patrols, to man checkpoints, to videotape aacks for propaganda purposes and to
plant explosive devices, as well as to actively engage in aacks or combat situations.
4
ese gures are likely to be signicant underestimates because of the limited opportunities to gain
access and monitor violations against children. Child recruitment is also perpetrated by Al-Shabaab in
Kenya and Somalia,
5
by the Movement for Unity and Jihad in West Africa, Ansar Eddine and Al-Qaida
in the Islamic Maghreb in Mali and neighbouring countries and by the Abu Sayyaf Group in the
Philippines,
6
to name a few.
Owing to the expanding reach and propaganda of terrorist and violent extremist groups, child
recruitment and exploitation are in no way limited to conict-ridden areas. More and more children
are travelling from their State of residence to areas controlled by terrorist and violent extremist groups,
in order to join them. ey may travel with their families or by themselves, and obtaining comprehen-
sive data on their participation in hostilities is oen dicult. In the case of ISIL, for instance, informa-
tion oen becomes available only aer the children’s death, when they are eulogized as martyrs and
their country of origin is revealed.
7
Data collected for more than one year, during the period 2015-2016,
concerned 89 children who died in hostilities. ey included not only nationals of Iraq and the Syrian
Arab Republic, but also nationals of Australia, France, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia,
1
Report of the Secretary-General on children and armed conict in Nigeria (S/2017/304), paras. 29 and 30.
2
Report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights on violations and abuses commied by Boko Haram
and the impact on human rights in the aected countries (A/HRC/30/67), para. 44.
3
Children and armed conict: report of the Secretary-General (A/70/836-S/2016/360), paras. 65, 149 and 150.
4
Report of the Secretary-General on children and armed conict in Iraq (S/2015/852), para. 29.
5
A/70/836-S/2016/360, para. 118.
6
Report of the Secretary-General on children and armed conict in the Philippines (S/2017/294).
7
Mia Bloom, John Horgan and Charlie Winter, “Depictions of children and youth in the Islamic State’s martyrdom propa-
ganda 2015-2016”, CTC Sentinel (February 2016).
CHILDREN RECRUITED AND EXPLOITED BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS: ROLE OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
CHILDREN RECRUITED AND EXPLOITED BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS: ROLE OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
the Sudan, Tajikistan, Tunisia, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and Yemen.
ese gures do not include children taken to ISIL territory by their families.
Finally, children may also be recruited to support the groups, or even carry out aacks, in countries
that are not experiencing armed conict.
A priority on the international agenda
Children who have been recruited and exploited by terrorist and violent extremist groups are victims
of violence at multiple levels. ey are oen victims of extreme violence during their association with
the group; which includes ferocious recruitment methods, enslavement, sexual exploitation, exposure
to constant fear, indoctrination and psychological pressure. ey are oen injured or killed in combat.
At the same time, because of their young age and psychological malleability, such children may become
particularly dangerous instruments of the groups that recruited them, as the children may be used for
commiing criminal oences, including, in certain cases, acts of terrorism, war crimes or crimes
against humanity.
Regardless of the variations of the phenomenon, according to the international legal framework,
the recruitment and exploitation of children by terrorist and violent extremist groups are to be consid-
ered a serious form of violence against children.
While the nature and gravity of violence against those children may vary from case to case, the
short- and long-term implications for both children and society as a whole are severe. e conse-
quences of violence can be devastating. Above all, it can result in early death. But even those children
who survive that ordeal must cope with terrible physical and emotional scars. Indeed, violence places
at risk not only their health, but also their ability to learn and grow into adults who can create sound
families and communities. Furthermore, those children’s association with the groups entails stigmati-
zation and a high risk of becoming victims of violence perpetrated by communities, law enforcement
and military forces and others following the children’s return, demobilization or apprehension.
is phenomenon and its consequences have become a key concern to States and society as a whole
and the need to address the phenomenon through coordinated eorts has been internationally recog-
nized as a priority. States have the primary responsibility to take all measures to prevent and counter
terrorism. At the same time, States hold the primary responsibility for protecting children from vio-
lence, including serious forms of violence such as recruitment and exploitation by terrorist and violent
extremist groups.
e need to promote the safety of children is recognized in the Sustainable Development Agenda as
a precondition of global development. Target 16.2 of the Sustainable Development Goals (General
Assembly resolution 70/1), which calls for puing an end to all forms of violence against children,
including the abuse and exploitation of and tracking in children, serves as a reminder of the crucial
role played by children in the creation of peace, justice and robust institutions.
INTRODUCTION
A. Challenges
Old and new challenges
e use of children in hostilities is not a new phenomenon. Nearly 20 years ago, the report of the expert
of the Secretary-General on the impact of armed conict on children, known as the Machel Report,
8
brought to international aention the extent and consequences of recruitment and use of children by
armed forces and armed groups. Even today, the recruitment of children largely takes place in situations
of conict, though terrorist and violent extremist groups are by no means the only ones perpetrating such
grave violations against children.
e involvement of terrorist and violent extremist groups entails numerous new challenges for
States. First, prevention has become particularly complex, as evidenced by the innovative methods of
propaganda and recruitment employed specically by such groups. is is a primary concern to eorts
to eectively tackle a security threat while, at the same time, limiting the victimization of such children.
Secondly, because of their association with terrorism-related activities, which are classied in
international and national law as serious oences, an increasing number of children come into contact
with national authorities, in particular with justice authorities. In this context, the questions range
from the applicable international legal framework to the legal status of the children and the competent
authorities and procedures to deal with them. Such children are commonly regarded as a security risk
and subsequently exposed to further violations of their rights.
Finally, there is a lack of understanding regarding the rehabilitation and reintegration measures that
can be eective in addressing the particular stigma associated with terrorism, while taking into account
the extreme violence that has always characterized recruitment and exploitation of children. Also in
this context, a key challenge is how to build upon the lessons learned from the reintegration of children
who have been used in conict situations and also address the specic issues related to terrorism.
e underlying concern, which is at the core of the present publication, is how States can preserve
public safety and, at the same time, eectively protect the rights of the child.
The role of the justice system
In order to tackle the very complex and multifaceted phenomenon of children recruited and exploited
by terrorist and violent extremist groups, it is essential to count on the coordinated eorts of a variety
of actors and institutions, from dierent systems. Even if the justice system is not the only system that
has responsibilities in protecting children, its role is crucial.
e justice system is not only essential for ending impunity and ensuring accountability mecha-
nisms, but also instrumental in promoting preventive measures to counter violence against children.
While it is important to note that not all children recruited and exploited by terrorist and violent
extremist groups are in contact with the justice system, oen actors working within that system are the
rst ones to have contact with those children. For this reason, they have an undeniable responsibility
to protect, respect and full children’s rights, to prevent revictimization and to take action to ensure
that other systems (i.e. child protection, health and education) provide suitable responses.
8
Note by the Secretary-General transmiing the report on the impact of armed conict on children (A/51/306 and Add.1).
CHILDREN RECRUITED AND EXPLOITED BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS: ROLE OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
CHILDREN RECRUITED AND EXPLOITED BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS: ROLE OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
B. The Handbook
Objective
is Handbook was developed with a view to providing coherent and consistent guidance to national
authorities on the treatment of children recruited and exploited by terrorist and violent extremist
groups, with emphasis on the role of the justice system.
The role of the United Nations Oce on Drugs and Crime
Based on its long-standing expertise in the areas of violence against children and counter-terrorism
and prompted by an increasing number of requests for technical assistance, the United Nations Oce
on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) has been supporting Member States in their eorts to provide eec-
tive responses to the complex challenges associated with children recruited and exploited by
terrorist and violent extremist groups.
e work of UNODC in the areas of violence against children and counter-terrorism has been
aimed at ensuring that children recruited and exploited by terrorist and violent extremist groups are
beer protected from violence and are treated in accordance with international law. In particular,
UNODC has made eorts to strengthen the capacity of justice systems to achieve this aim, also in
cooperation with relevant institutions and actors from other systems. It recognizes that it is the duty of
States to protect members of society, in particular children, from the threats associated with terrorism and
violent extremism, in accordance with international law, and standards and norms relating to child rights.
UNODC has the mandate to support Member States in ensuring that children are beer served and
protected by justice systems.
9
UNODC aims to ensure the full application of international standards
and norms regarding children in contact with the justice system, whether as alleged oenders, victims
or witnesses. In line with the 2008 guidance note of the Secretary-General on the United Nations
approach to justice for children,
10
UNODC works to ensure that the protection of children is inte-
grated in broader rule of law reform and that children have access to fair, transparent and child-sensitive
justice systems through which their rights can be enforced and protected.
In addition, with the adoption by the General Assembly of the United Nations Model Strategies and
Practical Measures on the Elimination of Violence against Children in the Field of Crime Prevention and
Criminal Justice (resolution 69/194, annex), UNODC has received the mandate to assist Member States
in implementing measures aimed at preventing and responding to violence against children in the eld of
crime prevention and criminal justice. In particular, it is stated in the Model Strategies and Practical
Measures that the risk of violence associated with tracking in children and various forms of exploitation
by criminal groups should be addressed by specic prevention measures, including measures to prevent
the recruitment, use and victimization of children by criminal groups, terrorist entities or violent extrem-
ist groups (Assembly resolution 69/194, annex, para. 15 (a)).
In the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy (General Assembly resolution 60/288),
UNODC is mandated to provide to States, upon request, assistance in developing and maintaining
eective and rule of law-based criminal justice systems. In particular, in its most recent resolution on
the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy Review (resolution 70/291), the Assembly
9
e mandate and role of UNODC in providing assistance in the area of justice for children has been rearmed throughout
the years in resolutions of the General Assembly (in particular, resolutions 62/158, 63/241, 65/213 and 69/194), the Economic
and Social Council (in particular, resolutions 2007/23 and 2009/26) and the Human Rights Council (in particular, resolutions
7/29, 10/2 and 18/12).
10
Available at www.unodc.org/.
INTRODUCTION
reiterated that, given their potential status as victims of terrorism and of other violations of international
law, every child alleged as, accused of or recognized as having infringed the law, as well as child victims
and witnesses of crimes, should be treated in a manner consistent with his or her rights, dignity and
needs, in accordance with applicable international law, in particular obligations under the Convention
on the Rights of the Child
11
and urged Member States to take relevant measures to eectively reinte-
grate children formerly associated with armed groups, including terrorist groups. Moreover, the Plan
of Action to Prevent Violent Extremism
12
highlights the importance of preventing the radicalization of
young persons, including children, and their recruitment by violent extremist groups, including terrorist
groups. In the Plan of Action, (para. 52 (f)), the Secretary-General recommended that Member States
ensure that a portion of all funds dedicated to addressing violent extremism are commied to projects
that address young people’s specic needs.
e Economic and Social Council, in its resolution 2016/18 on mainstreaming holistic approaches
in youth crime prevention requested UNODC, in view of its specic mandates in crime prevention
and criminal justice and in terrorism prevention, to continue its work on the prevention of the
recruitment and exploitation of children and youth by any violent criminal group or terrorist group.
e Council, in its resolution 2017/17, recommended to the General Assembly the adoption of a
dra resolution on technical assistance for implementing the international conventions and protocols
related to counter-terrorism. In that dra resolution, the Assembly would request UNODC, through
its Global Programme on Violence against Children, to continue to support requesting Member States,
in accordance with relevant national legislation, in ensuring that children alleged to have, accused of
having or recognized as having infringed the law, particularly those who are deprived of their liberty, as
well as child victims and witnesses of crime, are treated in a manner that observes their rights and
respects their dignity in accordance with applicable international law, in particular according to the
obligations under the Convention on the Rights of the Child, and that relevant measures are taken to
eectively reintegrate children formerly associated with armed groups and terrorist groups.
Multidisciplinary eld of work
e development of the present Handbook required multidisciplinary expertise to tackle issues ranging
from counter-terrorism to child rights and violence against children, as well as an understanding of the
complex international legal framework that should be taken into account.
e elaboration of the Handbook was informed by three key objectives: (a) preventing the recruitment
of children by terrorist and violent extremist groups; (b) identifying eective justice responses to children
recruited and exploited by such groups, whether they are in contact with the justice system as victims,
witnesses or alleged oenders; and (c) promoting the rehabilitation and reintegration of those children.
e analysis and case studies presented are based on the following sources:
• International legal instruments that are relevant to the issue of children recruited and exploited
by terrorist and violent extremist groups. ese are to be found mainly in: international human
rights law; international instruments related to terrorism; international humanitarian law; inter-
national criminal law; and international instruments related to organized crime;
• National legislation of selected countries relevant to child rights, including the juvenile justice
framework, as well as to counter-terrorism, and their interaction;
11
United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 1577, No. 27531.
12
A/70/674.
CHILDREN RECRUITED AND EXPLOITED BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS: ROLE OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
CHILDREN RECRUITED AND EXPLOITED BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS: ROLE OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
• Promising policies and practices related to prevention; justice measures for child victims; justice
measures for children alleged to have commied oences; reintegration programmes; and moni-
toring and evaluation mechanisms.
e validation of the information collected and of the UNODC approach was pursued through
two consultation processes. e rst one took place in December 2016, when an expert group meet-
ing was held in Vienna and a consultation was carried out with over 30 experts in the areas of counter-
terrorism and child rights, from all regions. e experts contributed views and comments on three
discussion papers outlining the key aspects to be addressed in the Handbook. A second consultation
process with selected experts followed the expert group meeting.
is Handbook targets primarily law- and policymakers and is intended to provide overall guidance
on the implementation of the multilayered international legal framework and on the design of coher-
ent, comprehensive and eective policies for the prevention and treatment of children recruited and
exploited by terrorist and violent extremist groups. At the same time, the Handbook is addressed to
practitioners dealing directly with those children, mainly justice professionals, not only in the areas of
child rights and counter-terrorism, but also in the areas of law enforcement and child protection, as
well as civil society actors.
Structure of the Handbook
e Handbook contains four chapters. Chapters I-IV combine legal guidance on the relevant inter-
national legal framework with operational guidance aimed at identifying eective approaches in the
dierent areas of intervention, overcoming practical challenges and fostering the identication and
promotion of lessons learned. e case studies featured in each chapter are particularly relevant, as
they provide further insight on the adaptation of general recommendations to specic national and
local contexts.
Chapter I is on the prevention of child recruitment by terrorist and violent extremist groups. Following
an analysis of the key motivations and methods of the groups to recruit children, the chapter focuses on
the need to design and implement comprehensive prevention measures aimed at addressing violence
against children in general, recruitment in particular and the role of the justice systems in such policies.
Chapter II focuses on children recruited and exploited by terrorist and violent extremist groups, in
particular their treatment as victims. e chapter deals with the recognition of their status as victims;
safeguards aimed at fostering participation of children in criminal proceedings while preserving their
safety; and their right to reparations.
e subject of chapter III is the treatment of children who have been recruited and exploited by
terrorist and violent extremist groups and who come in contact with the justice system for allegedly
having commied terrorism-related oences. e chapter focuses on issues regarding the legal status
of those children, the competent authorities and procedures to deal with them, and minimum guaran-
tees that should inform all stages of justice proceedings.
e nal chapter addresses the need to support the rehabilitation and reintegration of children in
dierent contexts. Taking into account the diversity of the phenomenon, the chapter provides overall
guidance on child-sensitive reintegration measures, focusing on issues such as the demobilization and
release of children; cross-border situations; and the reintegration of children who come in contact
with the justice system.
INTRODUCTION
C. Terminology
e guidance provided by the present publication touches upon politically sensitive issues oen
associated with denitional issues that are especially controversial. It is therefore necessary to indicate
at the outset what is meant by certain terms that repeatedly appear in the publication. For the purposes of
this publication:
(a) “Children” means human beings under the age of 18 years, in accordance with article 1 of
the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Policy documents in the area of prevention of violent
extremism oen deal with “youth”. e present publication, given its focus on the role of the justice
system, focuses on the treatment of “children”, which is a term with a precise legal meaning and related
legal framework in international law and most Member States’ legislation;
(b) “Recruitment” refers to compulsory, forced and voluntary conscription or enlistment of
children into any kind of armed force, armed group or terrorist or violent extremist group;
(c) “Exploitation” of a child refers to the use of the child in work or other activities for the benet
of others and to the detriment of the child’s physical or mental health, development and education.
Exploitation includes, but is not limited to, the exploitation of the prostitution of others or other forms of
sexual exploitation, forced labour or services, including the commission of crime, slavery or practices
similar to slavery. e term indicates that advantage is being taken of the child’s lack of power and status.
In the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy Review (General Assembly resolution
70/291), there are references to “terrorism and violent extremism as and when conducive to terror-
ism” or “terrorism and violent extremism conducive to terrorism”. In line with that resolution, the
terms “violent extremist” and “violent extremism” in this Handbook should always be regarded as
referring to “violent extremism as and when conducive to terrorism”.
In the Plan of Action to Prevent Violent Extremism, it is stated right at the outset that the Plan of
Action considers and addresses violent extremism “as, and when, conducive to terrorism”. Violent
extremism is a diverse phenomenon, without clear denition. It is neither new nor exclusive to any
region, nationality or system of belief. Nevertheless, in recent years, terrorist groups such as Islamic
State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), Al-Qaida and Boko Haram have “shaped our image of violent
extremism and the debate on how to address this threat”.
13
ere is currently no universally accepted, comprehensive denition of “terrorism” or “terrorist
group”. As noted in the Plan of Action, denitions of “terrorism” and “violent extremism” are the pre-
rogative of Member States and must be consistent with their obligations under international law, in
particular international human rights law. Just as the General Assembly has taken a practical approach
to counter-terrorism through the adoption by consensus of the United Nations Global Counter-
Terrorism Strategy, the Plan of Action pursues a practical approach to preventing violent extremism,
without venturing to address questions of denition.
14
In the present Handbook, the term “terrorist group” encompasses at least the entities designated by
the Security Council on the ISIL (Da’esh) and Al-Qaida Sanctions List and the Taliban sanctions list,
as well as Al-Shabaab. It may also include other groups that resort to acts proscribed by the universal
counter-terrorism conventions and protocols, as well as groups designated as terrorist groups at the
national or regional level.
13
A/70/674, para. 2.
14
Ibid., para. 5.
Strategies for preventing
recruitment of children by
terrorist and violent
extremist groups
Chapter 1
CHILDREN RECRUITED AND EXPLOITED BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS: ROLE OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
A. Recruitment and exploitation of children
Recruitment of children by terrorist and violent extremist groups is taking place in countries throughout
the world, in situations of armed conict and in the absence of armed conict. Regardless of the condi-
tions in which it takes place, the recruitment usually leads to exploitation and victimization of children.
While the recruitment of children by armed groups has a long history, the recruitment of children
by terrorist and violent extremist groups is a more recent phenomenon and has undergone notable
developments in the past decade. e section below presents an analysis of the reasons for and methods
of child recruitment.
. Why are children recruited?
e reasons for the recruitment of children by terrorist and violent extremist groups are complex and
multifaceted, and they may vary depending on the situation. It also appears that children are not
merely recruited alongside adults, but are specically targeted, as the use of children provides various
advantages to the groups.
Visibility and propaganda
Terrorist and violent extremist groups are prominently exploiting children to boost their visibility,
notable examples being the propaganda of Boko Haram and ISIL. The analysis of a six-month
data set of ISIL propaganda revealed a total of 254 events that included images of children; 38 per
cent of the images were of children engaged in acts of violence or being exposed and normalized
to violence. The images are used to shock the public and, at the same time, to show the power and
ruthlessness of the group.
15
Demography
e demographic shi in poor countries, in part due to the spread of HIV/AIDS, has led to an increase
in the percentage of children vis-à-vis the overall population, making this age group most available for
recruitment and abduction. For instance, in each of the countries aected by the Boko Haram crisis,
children constitute over 50 per cent, and in certain cases 60 per cent, of the overall population.
16
Community expectations
ere are circumstances in which armed groups, including terrorist or violent extremist groups, are
perceived by a community as a defence against the threat of violence from a dierent group or from the
State. In such circumstances, family and communities may expect and push children to join the ranks
of the group.
17
However, where a non-State armed group is unpopular among the population or the
group does not have wide geographical support, adults may be dicult to recruit to the cause. In such
cases, recruiting children proves easier for the groups and guarantees the possibility of continuing to
expand their power base despite the decreasing support.
18
15
Quilliam Foundation, e Children of the Islamic State (2016), p. 18.
16
United Nations Department of Economic and Social Aairs, Population Division, World Population Prospects: e 2017
Revision—Key Findings and Advance Tables, (ESA/P/WP/248).
17
Oce of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Children in Armed Conict, “Root causes for child
recruitment”, available at hps://childrenandarmedconict.un.org/eects-of-conict/root-causes-of-child-soldiering/.
18
P. W. Singer, Children at War (Berkeley and Los Angeles, University of California Press, 2006), p. 54.
CHAPTER 1. STRATEGIES FOR PREVENTING RECRUITMENT OF CHILDREN BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS
Economic considerations and eectiveness
When recruiting children, terrorist and violent extremist groups, as well as armed groups in general,
benet from notable economic advantages. Whether they are used in support roles or as combatants,
children are usually paid less (if at all) and require less food to survive. In parallel, the evolution of
warfare and in particular the prevalence of small arms have reduced the eectiveness gap between a
child and an adult. Not only is the trade in small arms poorly regulated, but the use of small arms is
especially easy, making them more accessible to children.
19
While power and control over weapons
used to be in the hands of older members of society, children are no longer constrained by the age
groupings that limited who could participate in warfare.
20
Accordingly, children remain less expensive
than adult combatants, but not necessarily less eective when used to carry out violence.
Control
Children are more easily intimidated and far easier to control, both physically and mentally, than
adults. Children are more inclined to quickly show loyalty to authority gures and are especially sus-
ceptible to following beliefs and behaviours of those they love and respect, an element that is especially
relevant when families are involved in the recruitment process. e groups, who strive to ensure their
future survival, may see the use of children as an “investment in the future generation”.
21
Tactical advantages
Children, particularly girls, are increasingly being used as spies, for delivering messages, carrying
materials and undertaking suicide aacks.
22
e reasons for this are oen pragmatic: children have less
understanding of the risk they face and therefore display less anxiety. ey are also more likely to do as
they are ordered, and they generally benet from the advantage of arousing less suspicion, which can
be a crucial asset, for instance in geing closer to targets.
. How are children recruited?
While terrorist and violent extremist groups continue to recruit children according to methods that have
been used by armed groups recruiting child soldiers, they have also been increasingly turning to innovative
and rened techniques. e practices employed may vary according to a number of factors, including the
situation of the group and that of the child.
Forced recruitment continues to be prevalent. However, some children may appear to “voluntarily”
join terrorist and violent extremist groups. e Special Representative of the Secretary-General for
Children and Armed Conict has made it clear that recruitment processes are oen characterized by
elements of both compulsion and voluntariness,
23
rendering such distinctions extremely dicult.
Recruitment should never be regarded as truly voluntary but is dictated by a number of factors, such as
trying to survive, or escaping poverty, insecurity, marginalization or discrimination. e International
19
Machel Study 10-Year Strategic Review: Children and Conict in a Changing World (United Nations publication E.09.XX.2), p. 9.
hps://www.unicef.org/publications/index_49985.html
20
Singer, Children at War, p. 49.
21
e Children of the Islamic State, p. 27.
22
“Children and armed conict: report of the Secretary-General” (A/70/836-S/2016/360); United States Institute of Peace,
“Charting a new course, thought for action kit: women preventing violent extremism” (Washington, D. C., 2015); Naureen
Chowdury Fink, Sara Zeigerand and Raa Bhula, eds., A Man’s World? Exploring the Roles of Women in Countering Terrorism and
Violent Extremism (Abu Dhabi, 2016).
23
Submission of the Observations of the Special Representative of the Secretary General of the United Nations for Children and
Armed Conict pursuant to Rule 103 of the Rules of Procedure and Evidence, judicial document No. ICC-01/04-01/06-1229
(2008), annex A, para. 13.
CHILDREN RECRUITED AND EXPLOITED BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS: ROLE OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
Criminal Court has agreed that the line between voluntary and forced recruitment is not only legally
irrelevant but practically supercial in the context of children in armed conict.
24
Forcible recruitment
Terrorist and violent extremist groups primarily engage in forced and oen brutal recruitment of large
numbers of children. Children may be kidnapped, abducted, coerced through threats or purchased
from trackers. Children living in poverty, without parental care, and street children are particularly
vulnerable to forcible recruitment campaigns.
Recruitment through ties between the group and community leadership
Sometimes communities support an armed group listed as a terrorist group because the group is
perceived as defending the community against threats from other armed groups; in such a situation,
families and community leaders may encourage children to join the armed group.
Economic enticement
In some instances, the groups may oer payment, food, accommodation and protection, encouraging loyalty.
Transnational recruitment
e transnational nature of terrorism and violent extremism has favoured the emergence of transnational
recruitment and the involvement of children in the phenomenon of foreign terrorist ghters.
25
Some
children crossing borders to join a terrorist group do so on their own, some travel with their parents or
grown-up relatives, while others are forcefully abducted and subsequently cross borders as part of their
engagement in violent extremist groups.
Some groups have devised comprehensive recruitment strategies that include a variety of recruitment
methods that are applied in dierent situations.
Use of schools
Certain terrorist and violent extremist groups enjoy territorial control over specic areas. eir
authority may extend to schools, which then are used as a forum in which children are indoctri-
nated, encouraging “buy-in” and identication with the group.
Propaganda
Groups develop precise propaganda strategies aimed at highlighting the advantages of joining the
group or at triggering empathy. Joining a group may be portrayed as oering status and prestige, smart
uniforms and weapons. e experience is shown as an opportunity for power, especially to children
without educational opportunities or employment. ISIL also oen focuses on “victimhood”, using
images that show the “crimes of the enemy”, with a view to triggering anger and eliciting empathy with
those injured or killed and creating a desire to carry out revenge.
26
Groups also use communication
material to spread their message. Cartoons and computer games and other interactive media appearing
24
International Criminal Court case of e Prosecutor v. omas Lubanga Dyilo, judgment of 14 March 2012, para. 612.
25
e Security Council, in its resolution 2178 (2014), decided that all States should ensure that their domestic laws and regu-
lations establish serious criminal oences sucient to provide the ability to prosecute and penalize their nationals who travel or
aempt to travel to a State other than their States of residence or nationality, and other individuals who travel or aempt to travel
from their territories to a State other than their States of residence or nationality, for the purpose of the perpetration, planning or
preparation of, or participation in, terrorist acts, or the providing or receiving of terrorist training.
26
Charlie Winter, e Virtual “Caliphate”: Understanding Islamic State’s Propaganda Strategy, (London, Quilliam Foundation,
2015).
CHAPTER 1. STRATEGIES FOR PREVENTING RECRUITMENT OF CHILDREN BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS
on the Internet have been designed to appeal to children in par-
ticular.
27
Oen colourful content is integrated within material that
glories terrorist acts, including suicide aacks.
Online recruitment
e use of online communication is a relatively new means of dis-
seminating terrorist and violent extremist propaganda. It expands
the reach of the group’s message and gets through to potential
recruits throughout the world. As active Internet users, children are
at particular risk. Specic websites advertise the existence of the
groups and, in many instances, multiple sites in dierent languages
include dierent messages tailored to specic audiences.
28
Social
media platforms, including email, chat rooms, e-groups, message
boards, video recordings and applications are especially popular
recruitment tools
29
that can also facilitate tailored approaches. One
of the methods, which can be dened as “grooming”, is based on the
perpetrator learning about the individual’s interests in order to tailor
the approach and build up a relationship of trust. A second tech-
nique replicates “targeted advertising”: by tracking the online behav-
iour of Internet users, a group can identify those vulnerable to its
propaganda and tailor the narrative to suit its target audience.
30
. Roles assumed by children
When children are recruited by terrorist or violent extremist
groups, they carry out a variety of roles within or for the groups.
Crucially, the manner in which a child is recruited does not neces-
sarily determine the type of role he or she will play, which can vary
considerably depending on the situation and on the personal cir-
cumstances of the child. What remains persistent is the causal link
between the recruitment process and the subsequent exploitation
of the child, which can assume various forms.
Some children are used in hostilities such as front-line ghting,
carrying out executions of hostages or prisoners or carrying out terrorist aacks, including as suicide
bombers. Others have support roles as messengers, porters, smugglers or spies, or they are, in eect,
treated as slaves and systematically subjected to sexual abuse and exploitation.
Currently, the use of children to carry out terrorist aacks is garnering international aention, both
in situations of conict and in times of peace. In 2015, a 14-year-old British national and an 18-year-old
Australian national were arrested, tried and sentenced in their respective home countries for planning
a terrorist aack on Anzac Day (a public holiday in countries such as Australia and New Zealand).
27
Gabriel Weimann, “Online terrorists prey on the vulnerable: websites target marginalized women and youth, recruiting for
suicide missions”, 5 March 2008. Available at hp://yaleglobal.yale.edu/content/online-terrorists-prey-vulnerable.
28
omas Koruth Samuel, “e lure of youth into terrorism”, in SEARCCT Selection of Articles, vol. 2 (Kuala Lumpur, South-East Asia
Regional Centre for Counter-Terrorism, 2011).
29
Kate Ferguson, “Countering violent extremism through media and communication strategies: a review evidence” (2016), p. 15.
30
Gabriel Weimann, “e emerging role of social media in the recruitment of foreign ghters”, in Foreign Fighters under
International Law and Beyond, Andrea de Gury, Francesca Capone, Christophe Paulussen, eds. (e Hague, T.M.C. Asser
Press, 2016), p. 83.
Recruitment patterns
The following recruitment patterns are not
specic to online recruitment, but they can
be eectively replicated in that context (note
that considerable variance exists within the
proposed models):
a
(a) “The Net”: violent extremist and terrorist
groups disseminate undierentiated
propaganda, such as video clips or
messages, to a target population deemed
homogeneous and receptive to the
propaganda;
(b) “The funnel”: entails an incremental
approach, to target specic individuals
considered ready for recruitment, using
psychological techniques to increase
commitment and dedication. Even targeted
children who resist complete recruitment may
develop positive outlooks on the group’s
activities;
(c) “Infection”: when the target population
is dicult to reach, an “agent” can be
inserted to pursue recruitment from within,
employing direct and personal appeals. The
social bonds between the recruiter and the
targets may be strengthened by appealing to
grievances, such as marginalization or social
frustration.
a
Sco Gerwehr and Sara Daly, “Al-Qaida: terrorist selec-
tion and recruitment” (Santa Monica, California, ND
Corporation, 2006), pp. 76-80.
CHILDREN RECRUITED AND EXPLOITED BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS: ROLE OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
A signicant number of ISIL operations directly involve children. Children are recruited to carry out
suicide bombings. Boko Haram relies heavily on the use of children as suicide bombers—in a 2017
study conducted by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) study, it was called a dening
feature of that conict.
31
Boko Haram has recruited and used boys and girls for active hostilities, according to testimonies
received by the Oce of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).
Some boys were forced to aack their own families to demonstrate loyalty to Boko Haram, while
girls were forced to marry, clean, cook and carry equipment and weapons. OHCHR received con-
sistent reports that boys and girls were increasingly being used as human shields and to detonate
bombs. In May 2015, for example, a girl who was about 12 years old was used to detonate a bomb
at a bus station in Damaturu, Yobe State, killing seven people. Similar incidents were reported in
Cameroon and the Niger. During aacks by Boko Haram, abducted boys were used to identify
those who refused to join the group, as well as unmarried women and girls.
32
. Recruitment and exploitation of girls
While all children can become victims of recruitment and exploitation by terrorist or violent extremist
groups, the scale of recruitment of girls in the contemporary context of terrorism has become a maer
of particular concern. In addition, the paths leading girls to such groups oen remain invisible. It is
therefore of crucial importance to identify factors contributing to the recruitment of girls, dierent
recruitment paerns and preferred forms of exploitation.
ere are a number of reasons why girls are favoured targets of recruitment. One reason is visibility:
aacks by girls, especially young girls, have a greater propaganda value, as they tend to garner more
media aention than aacks by their male counterparts. As terrorist groups’ communication strategies
show, the recruitment of girls contributes to the “normalization” of the groups, increases the groups’
aractiveness for future recruits and demonstrates the groups’ State-building capacity. Another reason
is eectiveness, as girls do not conform to traditional security proles and they tend to raise less suspi-
cion and thus have an increased likelihood of successfully carrying out aacks or support roles.
33
Moreover, dierent “push factors” and “pull factors” may apply to girls. Girls may be induced to “fall in
love” with a member of a group through the social media; or they may seek an escape from structural
violence or family pressure at home by geing married to a terrorist ghter.
In addition to using the usual recruitment methods, organizations such as ISIL appear to be directing
propaganda messages at women and girls, whom they address as “sisters of the Islamic State”, writing
manifestos and publications for them and promoting women’s voices within recruitment strategies.
34
ere are also dedicated online chat boards and messages for and by women involved in recruitment
processes.
35
Girls who have been sexually abused by armed forces or members of a terrorist or violent
extremist group may feel that they have no other choice and that they have been dishonoured and their
reputation has been ruined and, for those reasons, they cannot go home.
31
UNICEF report entitled “Silent shame: bringing out the voices of children caught in the Lake Chad crisis”. Available at
www.unicef.org/.
32
Report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights on violations and abuses commied by Boko Haram
and the impact on human rights in the aected countries (A/HRC/30/67), para. 44.
33
Mia Bloom, “Bombshells: women and terror”, Gender Issues, vol. 28, Nos. 1 and 2 (2011), pp.1-21.
34
Erin Saltman and Melanie Smith, “Till martyrdom do us part: gender and the ISIS phenomenon” (London, Institute for
Strategic Dialogue, 2011).
35
Weimann, “Online terrorists prey on the vulnerable”.
CHAPTER 1. STRATEGIES FOR PREVENTING RECRUITMENT OF CHILDREN BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS
Contrary to general belief, girls are also increasingly being exploited to carry out active roles. One
notable example is the increased exploitation of girls in suicide aacks;
36
some reports indicate that
girls accounted for three quarters of suicide aacks carried out by children for Boko Haram between
January 2014 and February 2016.
37
In addition, terrorist and violent extremist groups continue to use
the traditional forms of violence perpetrated against girls in situations of conict. In some cases, the
majority of girls are subjected to sexual abuse or slavery or are sold as sexual slaves.
38
Sexual violence as
a terrorist tactic has been explicitly condemned in Security Council resolutions in which the Council
has expressed deep concerns about the fact that acts of sexual and gender-based violence are used as an
instrument to increase the terrorist groups’ power through supporting nancing, recruitment and the
destruction of communities.
36
“Charting a new course: thought for action kit”; Fink, Zeiger and Bhula, A Man’s World?
37
UNICEF, “Beyond Chibok” (2016).
38
Human Rights Watch, “Iraq: ISIS escapees describe systematic rape—Yezidis survivors in need of urgent care”,
14 April 2015 (available at www.hrw.org/); and United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq and OHCHR, “Report on the
protection of civilians in armed conict in Iraq: 6 July-10 September 2014” (Baghdad, 2014).
Good practices involving women and countering violent extremism
The Global Counterterrorism Forum issued a non-binding document on good practices that
focused on gender aspects in the context of countering violent extremism,
a
in an eort to
counter the fact that gender mainstreaming is oen overlooked despite its importance,
given the signicant roles of women and girls in this area.
One of the recommendations of the Forum was to ensure that eorts to counter violent
extremism contribute to reducing women’s and girls’ involvement in violent extremism,
including by identifying gender dynamics in radicalization leading to terrorism and
preventing such radicalization among women and girls.
a
“Good Practices on Women and Countering Violent Extremism”. Available at www.thegctf.org/.
Checklist for practitioners: keyelements
• Terrorist and violent extremist groups target children for recruitment because
children’s involvement brings a number of comparative advantages: for example,
children cost less, they can be strategically eective and they have a special
propaganda value.
• Children are recruited forcibly, through family members and community leaders,
through propaganda, transnationally, on the Internet, through schools or as a result of
pressure from their families and/or communities. Regardless of the method used,
however, no recruitment process can ever be regarded as truly voluntary.
• Children are exploited to perform support roles and active roles as ghters in armed
conflict or perpetrators of terrorist attacks. All these roles generally entail being
subjected to various forms of violence.
• Girls are increasingly being recruited, and their trajectories (i.e. the paths leading to their
recruitment) may be dierent from those of boys in terms of the recruitment processes,
the forms of exploitation and the advantages perceived by the recruiting groups.
CHILDREN RECRUITED AND EXPLOITED BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS: ROLE OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
B. Adopting a holistic approach: preventing violence
against children
e recruitment and use of children by terrorist and violent extremist groups constitute serious forms
of violence against children. Exposure to violence is, in general, a predictor of impaired personal, intel-
lectual and social development and even future involvement in criminal activity. erefore, the conse-
quences of violence include not only considerable harm to the individual child, but also high costs for
society as a whole.
Although violence can take on many dierent forms, those forms are oen interconnected. While
specic phenomena, such as recruitment and exploitation of children, require tailored approaches,
prevention measures can only be eective if they are rooted in a comprehensive strategy to prevent
violence in general and if they can mobilize dierent State and non-State actors, including various
types of professionals, civil society and community-based organizations.
e need for a comprehensive approach to preventing violence against children is also recognized
in Goals 5, 8, 11, 16 and 17 of the Sustainable Development Goals, which, as mentioned in the
Introduction, call for puing an end to, among other things, all forms of violence against children, in
order to promote global development. Despite the eorts undertaken by dierent countries to address
this phenomenon, violence still aects children everywhere in the world.
. Prohibition of violence against children in the international
legal framework
e international legal framework guarantees children broad protection from serious forms of vio-
lence, including recruitment and exploitation of children by terrorist and violent extremist groups. e
present section outlines relevant legal provisions that dene violence against children and the duty of
States to take all necessary measure to protect children from violence.
Convention on the Rights of the Child
Article 19 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child provides a broad denition of “violence against
children”, which, as underlined by the Commiee on the Rights of the Child (the body of independent
experts monitoring the implementation of the Convention by its States parties), includes both non-
physical and non-intentional forms of harm.
39
Accordingly, Governments are required to undertake all possible measures to prevent and prohibit
violence against children.
e exploitation of children is addressed in article 32 of the Convention, which calls on States parties
to recognize the right of the child to be protected from economic exploitation and from performing any
work that is likely to be hazardous or to be harmful to the child’s health or physical, mental, spiritual,
moral or social development. In article 34, States parties are called on to undertake to protect the child
from all forms of sexual exploitation and sexual abuse and States parties are required to take all appropri-
ate measures to prevent, among other things: (a) the inducement or coercion of a child to engage in any
unlawful sexual activity; (b) the exploitative use of children in unlawful sexual practices; and (c) the
exploitative use of children in pornographic materials. However, the term exploitation is considered to be
broader, as article 36 requires States parties to protect the child against all other forms of exploitation
prejudicial to any aspects of the child’s welfare.
39
General comment No. 13 (2011) on the right of the child to freedom from all forms of violence (Ocial Records of the
General Assembly, Sixty-seventh Session, Supplement No. 41 (A/67/41), annex V).
CHAPTER 1. STRATEGIES FOR PREVENTING RECRUITMENT OF CHILDREN BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS
Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Tracking in Persons, Especially Women
and Children, supplementing the United Nations Convention against Transnational
Organized Crime
e Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Tracking in Persons, Especially Women and Children,
supplementing the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime,
40
links exploi-
tation of children, which invariably constitutes a form of violence, directly to their recruitment and
other acts of tracking. In article 3 of the Tracking in Persons Protocol, it is stated that exploitation
includes, at a minimum, the exploitation of the prostitution of others or other forms of sexual exploita-
tion, forced labour or services, slavery or practices similar to slavery, servitude or the removal of organs
and that the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipt of a child for the purpose of
exploitation should be considered “tracking in persons”.
When commied against adults, tracking also requires the “means” element—the threat of use of
force or of other forms of coercion, of abduction, of fraud, of deception, of the abuse of power or of a
position of vulnerability or of the giving or receiving of payments or benets to achieve the consent of
a person having control over another person. e presence of this element is not required in the case of
tracking in children. However, more oen than not, armed and terrorist groups use such methods to
bring children under their control.
Since, according to the Tracking in Persons Protocol, there is no requirement to establish the
“means” element in the case of tracking in children, the consent of the child is always considered
irrelevant. Where there are indications of exploitation and tracking involving a child, it is understood
that the child victim was not free to make informed and clear choices regarding, for instance, any avail-
able opportunity to escape the tracker or nd other options. In article 9, States parties are required to
adopt or strengthen legislative or other measures to discourage the demand that fosters all forms of
exploitation of persons, especially women and children, which leads to tracking. And in article 6,
each State party is required to take into account the age, gender and special needs of victims of track-
ing in persons, in particular the special needs of children.
40
United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 2237, No. 39574.
Convention on the Rights of the Child:
a
article 19
1. States Parties shall take all appropriate legislative, administrative, social and
educational measures to protect the child from all forms of physical or mental violence,
injury or abuse, neglect or negligent treatment, maltreatment or exploitation, including
sexual abuse, while in the care of parent(s), legal guardian(s) or any other person who
has the care of the child.
2. Such protective measures should, as appropriate, include eective procedures for
the establishment of social programmes to provide necessary support for the child and
for those who have the care of the child, as well as for other forms of prevention and
for identication, reporting, referral, investigation, treatment and follow-up of instances
of child maltreatment described heretofore, and, as appropriate, for judicial
involvement.
a
United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 1577, No. 27531.
CHILDREN RECRUITED AND EXPLOITED BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS: ROLE OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
According to the Special Rapporteur on tracking in persons, especially women and children,
41
Tracking for any illicit purpose includes—but is not limited to—tracking in adults and chil-
dren for sexual purposes, for labour exploitation, for exploitative adoption and for participation in
armed conicts; tracking in women, men and children for forced labour and other forms of
exploitation, such as exploitation in criminal or illicit activities, or forced and organized begging;
tracking in women and girls for forced and servile marriages, sexual exploitation and forced
labour, including domestic servitude; and tracking in persons for the removal of organs. In cer-
tain regions, tracked children, like tracked adults, are oen obliged or induced by their
trackers and exploiters to commit crimes.
42
United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy
While violence against children is generally not the object of the international legal framework related
to countering terrorism, on the occasion of the h biennial review of the United Nations Global
Counter-Terrorism Strategy (resolution 60/288), the General Assembly addressed this phenomenon
in the framework of terrorism. In its resolution 70/291, the Assembly strongly condemned the system-
atic recruitment and use of children to perpetrate terrorist aacks, as well as the violations and abuses
commied by terrorist groups against children, and noted that such violations and abuses may amount
to war crimes.
United Nations Model Strategies and Practical Measures on the Elimination of
Violence against Children in the Field of Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice
e General Assembly, in its resolution 69/194, strongly condemned all acts of violence against chil-
dren, rearmed the duty of the State to protect children from all forms of violence in both public and
private seings and adopted the United Nations Model Strategies and Practical Measures on the
Elimination of Violence against Children in the Field of Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice. Part
one of the Model Strategies and Practical Measures, annexed to that resolution, contains sections on
ensuring the prohibition by law of all forms of violence against children and on implementing compre-
hensive prevention programmes. In the section on implementing comprehensive prevention pro-
grammes, it is stated that criminal justice agencies, working together with, as appropriate, child
protection, social welfare, health and education agencies and civil society organizations, should
develop eective violence prevention programmes as part of both broader crime prevention pro-
grammes and initiatives to build a protective environment for children.
. Measures to prevent violence against children
ere are a number of challenges associated with the development and implementation of policies to
protect children from violence. One of them is related to the fact that violence might be socially toler-
ated and, in some instances, it might be perceived as a private maer, which might lead to underreport-
ing. Reporting of cases of violence can also be undermined by lack of trust towards public institutions
and, in particular, rst responders.
From the point of view of policymaking, initiatives to prevent violence are dicult to measure in
terms of their impact, which may lead to less condence in their eectiveness and fewer resources
being allocated to them.
41
A/HRC/29/38, para. 52.
42
Ibid., para. 20.
CHAPTER 1. STRATEGIES FOR PREVENTING RECRUITMENT OF CHILDREN BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS
Prevention of violence against children largely rests on primary interventions of support to the
families and the communities, which favour positive parenting, social cohesion and healthy sociali-
zation processes, as well as appropriate education, welfare and
public health policies. While in-depth appreciation of all these
areas of intervention is beyond the scope of this Handbook, the
present section outlines some measures that could be taken by the
justice system to enhance its capacity to contribute to eectively
preventing and responding to violence against children. (For a
more detailed approach to strategies and practical measures to
prevent violence against children, see the UNODC booklet enti-
tled “Elimination of violence against children”).
Prohibition by law of all forms of violence against
children, with a view to countering cultural
acceptance and insucient reporting of such
violence
While not all forms of violence necessarily require criminalization,
clear prohibition of all forms of violence against children sets the
boundaries and empowers authorities to respond eectively to this
phenomenon. It also supports the mobilization of civil society, non-
governmental organizations and communities in rejecting practices
that entail violence. Recruitment and exploitation of children are
especially serious forms of violence that require criminalization (for
further analysis, see section C.2 of this chapter).
Awareness-raising campaigns and media involvement, with a view to
countering cultural acceptance of violence against children and punitive
approaches
Promotion of child rights begins at the grass-roots level. Awareness-raising campaigns can pursue the
twofold objective of educating the public on what constitutes violence against children and fostering a
beer understanding of child rights. ey can also encourage the empowerment of children as right
holders. In order to be eective, awareness-raising campaigns require the involvement of various
actors, including educational institutions, non-governmental organizations and the private sector.
Involvement of the media is also essential, not only in terms of reaching a broad target audience, but
also to ensure that children who are victims of violence are not exposed and stigmatized. e develop-
ment of ethical guidelines for media outlets to allow for child-friendly coverage and protection of chil-
dren’s privacy is an important component of prevention strategies.
Establishing detection and reporting mechanisms, with a view to countering
invisibility, punitive approaches and disconnected intervention
In order to improve detection and reporting of violence against children, child-friendly procedures
and complaint and counselling mechanisms should be established. ey should be easily accessible to
children, as well as to their families and other support persons, and should include measures to protect
against reprisal those who report such violence (especially children).
Reporting incidents of violence should be required for certain groups of professionals (in the
health, education and welfare sectors) who are regularly in contact with children, and those
Key challenges
• Cultural acceptance of violence leading
to underreporting
• Limited options available to children, or
distrust in public institutions,
contributing to making violence against
children an “invisible phenomenon”
• Punitive approaches to children in
vulnerable situations, such as
criminalization of status oences,
contributing to stigmatization rather
than support
• Disconnected interventions
• Lack of nancial and human resources
• Concerns over eectiveness and lack of
monitoring of programmes
CHILDREN RECRUITED AND EXPLOITED BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS: ROLE OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
professionals, as well as law enforcement ocers, should be trained to identify and recognize risk
factors and address them in a child-friendly manner.
Training of criminal justice professionals, with a view to countering punitive
approaches and invisibility
Criminal justice professionals require specialized knowledge on the rights of children, expertise on
violence against children and specic risks of secondary victimization within the justice system, risk
factors and vulnerabilities, child-friendly aitudes and communication skills.
e availability and eectiveness of capacity-building are based on the allocation of sucient resources.
e establishment of specialized units can improve expertise, clarify focal points, facilitate coordination with
other actors responsible for the protection and support of children and enhance cost-eectiveness.
Intersectoral cooperation, with a view to countering invisibility and
disconnected intervention
e responsibility to create a protective environment for children is distributed among various actors,
most notably the justice system and the child protection, health, education and social service sectors.
Whenever these services do not work together coherently, detection and intervention eorts to pre-
vent violence against children are undermined. Rapid and eective coordination mechanisms in the
dierent sectors are crucial when threats to the safety of the child are especially serious, as in the case
of recruitment and exploitation by terrorist and violent extremist groups, as they improve the identi-
cation of the threat and facilitate the provision of swi responses.
Crucial steps for the improvement of coordination mechanisms are shown in gure I.
Figure I. Crucial steps for the improvement of coordination mechanisms
Mapping
institutions and
agencies involved
in the treatment
of children
a
Information
management and
communication
systems (including
emergency
proceedings)
Inter-agency
protocols
Creation of
multidisciplinary
specialized units
Identication
of relevant
focal points
a
Including in the areas of criminal justice, child protection, social welfare, health and education.
Data collection and monitoring, with a view to countering invisibility,
ineectiveness and disconnected intervention
Precise information is crucial to the development of evidence-based policies and particularly relevant
in tackling submersed phenomena such as violence against children. In order to obtain precise infor-
mation, research and systematic data collection, analysis and dissemination should be promoted.
One of the main challenges in tackling recruitment and exploitation by terrorist and violent extrem-
ist groups is that the processes and methods used are especially dicult to trace. Practitioners have also
encountered multiple challenges in the determination of vulnerability factors. However, exposure to
other forms of violence, including abuse and neglect, could enhance vulnerability. Early detection and
CHAPTER 1. STRATEGIES FOR PREVENTING RECRUITMENT OF CHILDREN BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS
identication of cases of violence against children would provide opportunities for: (a) improving
evidence-based understanding of the phenomenon; and (b) strengthening early intervention and
supporting eective prevention.
C. Preventing recruitment of children by terrorist and
violent extremist groups
e international community has increasingly recognized the need to focus on prevention of terrorism
and violent extremism. Prevention of child recruitment by terrorist and violent extremist groups
requires a paradigm shi in policy design, focusing on early intervention rather than responses.
e Neuchâtel Memorandum on Good Practices for Juvenile Justice in a Counterterrorism
Context,
43
made available by the Global Counterterrorism Forum, testies to the relevance of this shi
in approach. Under good practice 3 of the Memorandum, it is stated that eorts and resources should
be invested in understanding the conditions conducive to and eectively addressing the recruitment of
children, and their potential “radicalization to violence”.
It is important to stress that the implementation of prevention measures should rest on a compre-
hensive legal and policy framework, compliant with the obligations stemming from international law.
In particular, specic measures aimed at preventing recruitment should not be adopted in isolation,
but rather in the broader framework of policies to prevent violence against children. Prevention of
recruitment of children by terrorist and violent extremist groups is a complex endeavour, especially
considering the innovative recruitment methods used by such groups. In order to maximize its eec-
tiveness, such prevention requires the integration of specialized approaches (including those grouped
under “prevention of violent extremism”), lessons learned from other areas of preventive work and a
comprehensive structure of intervention.
e following section presents an analysis of the key provisions related to child recruitment in the
international legal framework, in order to provide overall guidance on prevention strategies. In par-
ticular, the recommendations focus on two crucial responsibilities of Member States:
43
Available from hps://www.thegctf.org/Portals/1/Documents/Toolkit-documents/English-Neuch%C3%A2tel-
Memorandum-on-Juvenile-Justice.pdf.
Checklist for practitioners: keyelements
• The international legal framework guarantees broad protection of children against all
forms of violence.
• Recruitment and exploitation of children by terrorist and violent extremist groups are
particularly serious forms of violence and require tailored prevention measures.
• Prevention measures addressing violence against children need to focus on
improving detection and reporting, ensuring child-friendly approaches and
promoting intersectoral cooperation.
CHILDREN RECRUITED AND EXPLOITED BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS: ROLE OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
(a) Ensuring a wide-ranging prohibition of child recruitment;
(b) Designing and implementing comprehensive prevention strategies that are tailored to the
national context and do not contribute to further marginalization and discrimination of disenfran-
chised groups.
. Prohibition of child recruitment in the international legal
framework
Child recruitment is prohibited by international law. Such prohibition nds its roots in the codication
of international humanitarian law, which regulates the conduct of parties in armed conict. Relevant
international law has evolved over time, progressively ensuring a comprehensive prohibition of recruit-
ment of all children under the age of 18 by non-State actors. e international legal framework related
to terrorism requires States to prohibit all recruitment of persons for terrorist groups.
International provisions go beyond mere prohibition; they call for Governments to take an active
role in prevention of recruitment. Considering the extreme forms of violence and exploitation that can
result from such recruitment, engaging in prevention is part of each State’s duty to provide a protective
environment for children.
Prohibition of recruitment of children
Convention on the Rights of the Child and Optional Protocol to the Convention on the
Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict
e Convention on the Rights of the Child tackles only the recruitment of children by State armed
forces. While the Convention does not prohibit recruitment of children between 15 and 18 years of
age, it includes (in article 38) a specic obligation to give preference to older children in this age group.
Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the
involvement of children in armed conflict
a
Article 4
1. Armed groups that are distinct from the armed forces of a State should not, under
any circumstances, recruit or use in hostilities persons under the age of 18 years.
2. States Parties shall take all feasible measures to prevent such recruitment and use,
including the adoption of legal measures necessary to prohibit and criminalize such
practices.
3. The application of the present article shall not aect the legal status of any party to
an armed conflict.
a
United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 2173, No. 27531.
CHAPTER 1. STRATEGIES FOR PREVENTING RECRUITMENT OF CHILDREN BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS
is provision reects that of article 77, paragraph 2, of the Protocol Additional to the Geneva
Conventions of 12 August 1949, and relating to the Protection of Victims of International Armed
Conicts (Protocol I).
44
e formulation of article 38 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, however, presents two
considerable limitations. First, it prohibits recruitment only by States parties and not by armed groups.
Second, the seing of the age limit at 15 is inconsistent with the other provisions in the Convention
(e.g. in article 1), which apply to every human being under 18 years of age. International pressure to
raise the minimum age of recruitment resulted in the subsequent adoption of the Optional Protocol to
the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conict.
45
e Optional Protocol, adopted in 2000, prohibits the compulsory recruitment of children under
the age of 18 into the armed forces of States parties (article 2), requires States parties to raise the mini-
mum age for voluntary recruitment from 15, and obliges States parties to take all feasible measures to
ensure that persons under the age of 18 do not take a direct part in hostilities (article 1).
e particular importance of the Optional Protocol is that it establishes stricter prohibitions with
regard to non-State armed groups. Article 4 provides a blanket prohibition of the recruitment and use
of children by non-State armed groups in hostilities, regardless of whether or not they are recruited
voluntarily or compulsorily, or take a direct part in hostilities. States parties are required to take all
feasible measures to prevent such recruitment and use, including the adoption of legal measures neces-
sary to prohibit and criminalize such practices.
Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 (No. 182), of the International Labour
Organization
According to the Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 (No. 182), of the International
Labour Organization,
46
forced or compulsory recruitment of children for use in armed conict is one
of the “worst forms of child labour” (article 3). States parties are required to take immediate steps to
secure the prohibition and elimination of those worst forms of child labour as a maer of urgency
(article 1). In Worst Forms of Child Labour Recommendation, 1999 (No. 190), of the International
Labour Organization, it is recommended that all forms of slavery or practices similar to slavery, includ-
ing forced or compulsory recruitment of children for use in armed conict, should be a criminal
oence.
Universal legal framework against terrorism
e universal conventions and protocols against terrorism do not specically address the question of
children recruited and used by terrorist groups. ey do, however, make clear that the obligation to
criminalize and prosecute acts of terrorism concerns not only the immediate perpetrators, but also
those who use others by organizing and directing the commission of terrorist acts.
47
e Security Council has dealt with the issue of recruitment in its resolutions. In its resolution 1373
(2001), the Council, acting under Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations (thus making the
resolution binding on all Member States), decided that all States should refrain from providing any
form of support to entities or persons involved in terrorist acts, including by suppressing the recruit-
ment of members of terrorist groups. In 2014, the Council acknowledged for the rst time the chal-
lenge posed by the recruitment of children by terrorist groups. In its resolution 2178 (2014), the
44
United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 1125, No. 17512.
45
Ibid., vol. 2173, No. 27531.
46
Ibid., vol. 2133, No. 37245.
47
See, for example, art. 2, para. 3 (b), of the International Convention for the Suppression of Terrorist Bombings
(United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 2149, No. 37517).
CHILDREN RECRUITED AND EXPLOITED BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS: ROLE OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
Council called upon all Member States to cooperate in eorts to address the threat posed by foreign
terrorist ghters, including by preventing the radicalization to terrorism and recruitment of foreign
terrorist ghters, including children.
In addition, Security Council resolutions have oen emphasized the need to tackle terrorism by focus-
ing on prevention measures. In its resolution 1624 (2005), the Council recognized the importance of
States acting in cooperation with one another to prevent terrorists from exploiting sophisticated techno-
logy, communications and resources to incite support for criminal acts. In its resolution 2178 (2014), the
Council underscored that countering violent extremism, which can be conducive to terrorism, including
preventing radicalization, recruitment and mobilization of individuals into terrorist groups and becoming
foreign terrorist ghters, is an essential element of addressing the threat to international peace and security
posed by foreign terrorist ghters. As mentioned in chapter I, section B.1, above, the General Assembly, in
its resolution 70/291, strongly condemned the systematic recruitment and use of children to perpetrate
terrorist aacks, as well as the violations and abuses commied by terrorist groups against children.
Security Council resolutions on children in conflict
Over the years, the Security Council has adopted a series of resolutions condemning the recruit-
ment and use of children in hostilities. In its resolution 1314 (2000), the Council rearmed its
strong condemnation of the deliberate targeting of children in situations of armed conict and the
harmful and widespread impact of armed conict on children, as well as the long-term consequences
that that had for durable peace, security and development. In addition, pursuant to Council resolu-
tion 1612 (2005), a Working Group on Children and Armed Conict and a monitoring and report-
ing mechanism on grave violations against children in situations of armed conict were established,
to monitor and report on violations of child rights, in particular on the six grave violations against
children during times of conict, which include killing and maiming, the recruitment and use of
children by parties to armed conict, rape and other forms of sexual violence, abduction, aacks
against schools or hospitals, and denial of humanitarian access by parties to armed conict (see
Council resolution 1882 (2009), para. 1).
Principles and Guidelines on Children Associated with Armed Forces or Armed Groups
e Principles and Guidelines on Children Associated with Armed Forces or Armed Groups were
adopted at the International Conference on Children involved in Armed Forces and Armed Groups:
Free Children from War, held in Paris in February 2007. e Paris Principles reect the strong com-
mitment of States to end recruitment of children and their use in hostilities by both armed forces and
armed groups. e Paris Principles repeatedly draw aention to the specic situation of girls, whose
experiences of recruitment may vary with respect to boys and whose circumstances are oen over-
looked (para. 4.0). Furthermore, they underline the particular danger of re-recruitment and include
guidance on its prevention (paras. 7.57 and 7.58). In addition, States are called upon to investigate and
prosecute those persons who have unlawfully recruited or used children in armed conict, to bring an
end to the culture of impunity against perpetrators (para. 8.1).
United Nations Model Strategies and Practical Measures on the Elimination of
Violence against Children in the Field of Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice
e United Nations Model Strategies and Practical Measures on the Elimination of Violence against
Children in the Field of Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice include a section on implementing
comprehensive prevention programmes to prevent violence against children. In that section it is stated
that the risk of violence associated with tracking in children and various forms of exploitation by
CHAPTER 1. STRATEGIES FOR PREVENTING RECRUITMENT OF CHILDREN BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS
criminal groups should be addressed by specic prevention measures, including measures to prevent
the recruitment, use and victimization of children by criminal groups, terrorist entities or violent
extremist groups (para. 15 (a)).
Prohibition of recruitment of children under 15 years of age
International humanitarian law
Specic provisions of international humanitarian law address the recruitment and use of children in
hostilities. Protocol I to the Geneva Conventions prohibits recruitment of children under 15 years of
age by State armed forces, as well as their participation in hostilities, in situations of international
armed conict (article 77, para. 2). e Protocol Additional to the Geneva Conventions of 12 August
1949, and relating to the Protection of Victims of Non-International Armed Conicts (Protocol II)
48
explicitly prohibits recruitment of children under the age of 15 by non-State armed groups, in situa-
tions of non-international armed conict (article 4, para. 3).
Protocol I and Protocol II to the Geneva Conventions both provide that if children under the age of 15
take a direct part in hostilities, the protective provisions relating to children under those protocols shall
continue to apply. e provisions in article 4 of Protocol II are regarded as customary international law.
49
Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court
According to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court,
50
conscripting or enlisting children
under the age of 15 into the armed forces or armed groups or using them to participate actively in hostili-
ties constitutes a war crime, regardless of whether the conict is of an international or non-international
nature (article 8, para. 2 (b) (xxvi) and (e) (vii)). With the entry into force of the Rome Statute and the
establishment of the International Criminal Court in 2002, the prohibition of recruitment of children
under 15 years of age has acquired an international criminal law enforcement mechanism.
. Recommendations for eective approaches to prevention
e implementation of comprehensive prevention measures is oen complex, demanding the coop-
eration of very dierent bodies and institutions. In the past few years, a number of countries have
developed new prevention strategies aimed at stemming the spread of terrorism and violent extrem-
ism. Special emphasis is generally placed on children and youth as a specic target group. Evidence of
the success and evaluations of such prevention strategies are still very limited, and the identication of
promising practices is further complicated by the dierent contexts.
Accordingly, the recommendations in the present section are not intended to be comprehensive,
and they will require considerable adaptation, taking into account priorities at the national level.
e recommendations include some key elements to ensure eective protection of children’s rights
and to promote innovative and comprehensive approaches to the specic methods of recruitment
employed by terrorist and violent extremist groups. Furthermore, selected case studies have been
included to show the dierent contexts of the general guidelines at the national and local levels. In
addition, a number of lessons learned have been included, as they could prove eective for practi-
tioners in similar situations.
is section also highlights how, in order to enhance eectiveness, strategies for the prevention of
violent extremism should integrate a wider range of measures to prevent crime in general and to
48
United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 1125, No. 17513.
49
Report of the Secretary-General on the establishment of a Special Court for Sierra Leone (S/2000/915).
50
United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 2187, No. 38544.
CHILDREN RECRUITED AND EXPLOITED BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS: ROLE OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
promote a protective environment for children. It is therefore strongly advised that the recommenda-
tions in the present section should be considered and implemented in conjunction with those pre-
sented in section B.2 of this chapter, which outlines key elements of eective prevention of violence
against children.
Full-fledged prohibition of child recruitment
States parties to the international instruments mentioned in the previous section are required to pro-
hibit recruitment of children. In particular, domestic legislation criminalizing child recruitment
provides the foundation for a comprehensive approach in terms of prevention, prosecution and
responses to recruitment.
One of the key challenges related to preventing child recruitment is that social and cultural norms
can contribute to considering and treating children as adults. While the international legal framework
denes all individuals under 18 years of age as children, children under 18 are oen allowed to vote, get
married and own property. is means that they can easily be treated as adults in their communities.
Furthermore, as noted in the previous section, the Rome Statute uses the age of 15 (as opposed to 18) as
the threshold for declaring the conscription or enlisting of children into armed forces or armed groups to
be a war crime. ese discrepancies can enhance the perceived legitimacy of recruitment of children.
Another problem is that joining such groups is oen perceived as a voluntary choice, and the blame is
placed primarily on the child. is leads to the focus of public intervention shiing to the child, rather
Key challenges
• Stigmatization: practices such as “selective engagement” are based on the
assumption that certain individuals or groups are especially at risk of recruitment.
These methods are particularly concerning from a human rights perspective,
as they
tend to enhance discrimination and stigmatization of minority, ethnic, religious and
indigenous groups.
a
• Community support for terrorist and violent extremist groups.
• Children’s propensity to risk: children, especially adolescents, appear to engage in
risky behaviours more easily.
b
Heavy involvement
c
of children in terrorist and violent
extremist groups in part reflects that tendency.
• Cross-border movement: measures to prevent transnational travel to join terrorist and
violent extremist groups may disproportionally aect freedom of movement of citizens.
• Regulation of online content: challenges are related to the identication of violent
extremist content, and to the dissemination of valid alternatives.
• Leaving girls behind: strategies and policies targeting terrorism and violent
extremism are oen a male-dominated enterprise, both led by and addressed to men
and boys, oen overlooking the growing role of girls.
• Limited resources.
a
Report of the Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms
while countering terrorism (A/HRC/31/65), para. 37.
b
Agnieszka Tymula and others, “Adolescents’ risk-taking behavior is driven by tolerance to ambiguity”, Proceedings of
the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, vol. 109, No. 2 (2012).
c
Kumar Ramakrishna, “Understanding youth radicalization in the age of ISIS: a psychosocial analysis” (2016).
CHAPTER 1. STRATEGIES FOR PREVENTING RECRUITMENT OF CHILDREN BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS
than being on the groups perpetrating the recruitment. In addition, it can also lead to further stigmatiza-
tion and, as a consequence, underreporting of recruitment cases (for fear of retaliation or punishment).
Clear prohibition of recruitment opposes social tolerance for such practices and creates the bound-
aries for stronger investment in prevention and protective measures for children. In addition, it fosters
the establishment of mechanisms for holding accountable those responsible for related violations. In
terms of operational guidance, the prohibition of child recruitment may be ensured by:
(a)
Eliminating limitations related to age. In accordance with the international legal framework,
prohibition of recruitment should be extended to all children under 18 years of age. is is in line with
the existing international consensus that childhood is entitled to special care and assistance (see article
25, paragraph 2, of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (General Assembly resolution 217 A
(III)) and the preamble to the Convention on the Rights of the Child);
(b) Eliminating distinction on the basis of consent. e dierent recruitment methods and varied
proles of the children involved demonstrate that, in practice, it is extremely dicult to identify fully
voluntary recruitment processes. Furthermore, it would be very complicated from a legal point of view to
assess whether the child had the capacity to provide informed consent. Indeed, considering the power
imbalance between children and terrorist and violent extremist groups, which enjoy an organized struc-
ture with shared criminal objectives, the capacity of the child to provide consent should always be
regarded as hindered. In addition, given the extent of the prohibition of child recruitment, the distinction
between voluntary and forced recruitment becomes legally irrelevant. Finally, the primary objective of
prohibiting child recruitment is to support accountability of the perpetrators, and not to establish the
degree of responsibility of children. In consideration of the serious forms of violence and exploitation of
Case study: How criminalization of recruitment as a war crime has
supported the international prosecution of perpetrators
In the rst indictment before the International Criminal Court in 2005, the case of The
Prosecutor v. Joseph Kony and Others, Joseph Kony, the leader of the Lord’s Resistance
Army, was charged with 21 counts of war crimes, including forced enlisting of children.
The African Union, as well as various Governments, has ocially designated the Lord’s
Resistance Army as a terrorist group. Mr. Kony has been designated by the United
States of America as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist.
In the rst International Criminal Court trial, The Prosecutor v. Thomas Lubanga Dyilo,
Mr. Lubanga was found guilty on charges of enlisting and conscripting children under
the age of 15 and sentenced to 14 years of imprisonment. Ongoing proceedings before
the International Criminal Court are to determine the most adequate reparations for the
children recruited by Mr. Lubanga’s armed group.
In 2015, the International Criminal Court Prosecutor was considering charging Boko
Haram leaders with counts of war crimes, including recruitment and use of children
under the age of 15 years to participate in hostilities.
a
The case is currently at the
preliminary examination stage.
a
International Criminal Court, Oce of the Prosecutor, Report on Preliminary Examination Activities 2015,
para. 203.
CHILDREN RECRUITED AND EXPLOITED BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS: ROLE OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
children that originate from such practice, targeting children for the purpose of recruitment should
always be prohibited, regardless of the aitudes of the child towards the group;
(c) Recognizing all roles played by children. Recruitment should not be considered as a violation
not only when it leads to the use of children in hostilities, but also when it leads to the exploitation of
children in support roles;
(d) Ensuring prohibition of recruitment by any group. Recruitment of children by any non-State
criminal or armed group should be clearly prohibited. Terrorist and violent extremist groups are merely
one type of entity that is recruiting and exploiting children, exposing children to the same forms of
exploitation and danger as other criminal groups and, in many instances, as armed groups. More speci-
cally, criminalization of child recruitment in national law
51
is instrumental to establishing accountability
of perpetrators. Prosecution and sanctions should reect the serious nature of recruitment of children,
taking into account both the potential consequences on the child’s life and the threats posed to the secu-
rity of the community. At the same time, appropriate criminalization facilitates access to justice for child
victims of recruitment (see chapter II below).
Finally, enlistment of children into States’ armed forces is also especially problematic, even when
voluntary. When children are exposed to risks by public institutions, the claim that they require special
protection and tailored measures is inevitably undermined, and recruitment by any other group
becomes legitimized.
An example of a denition of recruitment:
Elimination of distinction on the basis of age, consent, role and the type of group involved
can be achieved through an appropriate denition of recruitment.
e Principles and Guidelines on Children Associated with Armed Forces or Armed Groups
(also known as the Paris Principles) dene recruitment of child soldiers as compulsory, forced
and voluntary conscription or enlistment of children into any kind of armed force or armed group.
Child-sensitive approach
Prevention policies and programmes involving children should always adopt a child-sensitive
approach. is means that the specicities of this age group should be considered at the policy design
stage, as well as at the intervention stage.
First, policymakers and practitioners should ensure that children can participate in the development
of specic programmes and should ask for their opinions and involvement and make sure that their
voices are heard. In cases of intervention involving a child, however, the determination of the child’s best
interests will guide the selection of the most appropriate measures, as well as their implementation.
Psychological and behavioural characteristics also play a role. While contextual and individual
factors may help to provide an understanding of why children are aracted to terrorist and violent
extremist groups,
52
neuroscience, psychology and behavioural sciences may also provide relevant
insight. Decision-making processes, in fact, largely depend on a series of psychosocial capacities,
such as impulse control abilities, delay of gratication and resistance to peer pressure. Research
51
Specic forms of criminalization will depend on the domestic legal framework. In certain cases, recruitment of children
will constitute an oence per se; in other cases, it may be introduced as an aggravating circumstance to the existing oence of
recruitment. It is important that, when criminalizing recruitment, the guidance oered on how to dene the oence and comply
with the international legal framework is taken into account.
52
While children are internationally dened as individuals below 18 years of age, there is no internationally agreed upon de-
nition of youth. e United Nations, for statistical purposes, denes “youth”, as persons between the ages of 15 and 24 years,
without prejudice to other denitions by Member States. It is crucial to emphasize that the age groups dened as “children” and
“youth” oen overlap.
CHAPTER 1. STRATEGIES FOR PREVENTING RECRUITMENT OF CHILDREN BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS
shows that such capacities reside in areas of the brain whose development is not completed by ado-
lescence but continues through the third decade of life.
53
ese elements deeply inuence adoles-
cents’ behaviour and are especially relevant to the design of appropriate prevention policies.
53
Sara B. Johnson, Robert W. Blum and Jay N. Giedd, “Adolescent maturity and the brain: the promise and pitfalls of neuro-
science research in adolescent health policy”, Journal of Adolescent Health, vol. 45, No. 3 (2009).
Case study: Focus on child rights to prevent violent extremism—
the Viennese Network
The Viennese Network was founded in 2014 with the objective of protecting children and
youth from recruitment by terrorist and violent extremist groups and from generalized
marginalization. The Network is part of a comprehensive strategy put in place by the city
of Vienna to prevent the spread of violent extremism, addressed as a multifaceted
phenomenon that includes racism, anti-Semitism, sexism (and disregard for women’s
rights), homophobia and anti-democratic tendencies.
The existence of a broad strategy guarantees a cross-sectoral approach, as well as
substantial political and administrative support. At the same time, as the focus is on
children and youth, the Vienna Children’s and Youth Ombuds-Oce, a pre-existing
independent body charged with promoting the rights of children, serves as the
Network’s central coordination oce.
In the past few years, the Network has shared a number of “lessons learned” in the
area of prevention of violent extremism, including the following:
• The reasons why children and youth join terrorist and violent extremist groups are
individual and should be identied on a case-by-case basis. However, experience
has shown that neglect, abuse, violence, marginalization and discrimination play a
considerable role in many cases. The perception of injustice is especially strong for
children and can lead to a rejection of societal rules. Eective approaches entail
focusing on the prevention of child rights violations and violence.
• Strengthening options available to children, promoting critical thinking and tolerance
of diversity and resolving conflict have proved eective in building resilience.
• Specialization of human resources is crucial. It is widely recognized that a security
approach is not sucient to eectively counter terrorism, but preventive action also
requires appropriate resources to be eective. The Network focuses on providing
training to professionals (such as social workers, child protection ocers, police
ocers and teachers) not only on dierent forms of extremism, but also on
socialization and life opportunities for children.
• Prevention of violent extremism is a sensitive issue, attracting the work of multiple
stakeholders. Coordination is especially dicult because of data protection
limitations, as well as budget and time constraints. Stand-alone interventions may
prove to be ineective and in certain cases harmful. Investing in a system of
information exchange and collaboration is paramount.
• In order to prevent re-recruitment, it is especially crucial to focus on rehabilitating and
reintegrating individuals who have been in contact with the justice system, especially
as their number rises as a consequence of stricter counter-terrorism legislation.
CHILDREN RECRUITED AND EXPLOITED BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS: ROLE OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
Context matters: a brief analysis of “push factors” and “pull factors”
Understanding the motivations of the child in the recruitment process is especially important in
designing appropriate prevention measures.
54
In order to analyse the situation of child soldiers, condi-
tions under which children join such groups have been divided into two categories of drivers, “push
factors” and “pull factors”. at analysis remains equally relevant to the understanding of children
recruited by terrorist and violent extremist groups. In the Secretary-General’s Plan of Action to Prevent
Violent Extremism, emphasis is on the need to analyse these drivers to understand paerns and the
motivations of individuals joining groups.
55
“Push factors” can be dened as negative circumstances that the child tries to escape by joining the
group, while the “pull factors” represent the positive incentives, aracting the children to join the groups.
Examples of “push factors”
56
include the following:
• Poverty, marginalization, discrimination and a weakened social structure. ese are crucial factors
since
special risk groups, such as street children, the rural poor, refugee children and internally
displaced children may be particularly vulnerable to recruitment.
• Lack of protection, disruptive social contexts and experience of violence. Children who are le without
parents or families to look aer them are more vulnerable, especially in conict areas. At the same
time, parents are oen coerced into handing over their children; in other instances, parents may
“volunteer” their children for ideological reasons or material benets. Children who have experi-
enced violence, trauma and loss or who have been displaced from their communities also tend to
be more vulnerable to recruitment by violent extremist groups.
• Lack of a feeling of autonomy and identity. Children who feel disenfranchised and without any real
opportunities to achieve social success and those who may be searching for answers to the mean-
ing of life may in their personal search for identity be aracted by violent extremist groups.
• e notion of injustice (whether real or perceived), including because of disappointment with demo-
cratic processes, widespread corruption, police violence, and perceived or real discrimination.
• Lack of education and employment opportunities. ese represent crucial factors that may drive a
child to seek opportunities within the groups.
It is important to underline that “push factors” do not represent a direct causal link,
57
and careful
analysis should precede their identication with risk factors for recruitment. In order to strengthen
prevention measures tackling “push factors” directly, it is essential to invest in eective child protection
and welfare systems, education and measures to promote development and reduce social exclusion. In
that regard, policies and programmes designed to address child labour can be especially helpful.
58
While such measures are beyond the scope of the present Handbook, it is of crucial importance to
recall their signicance in reducing child recruitment rates by addressing the root causes. Examples of
“pull factors” include the following:
• Propaganda and indoctrination. ese have been extensively used to draw children into terrorist
and violent extremist groups, oen including messages that associate social status and prestige
with membership in the groups. Honour and prestige motives have also been particularly rele-
vant in the recruitment of suicide bombers.
54
Daya Somasundaram, “Child soldiers: understanding the context”, British Medical Journal, vol. 324, No. 7348 (2002), pp.
1268-1271.
55
While the Plan of Action does not address only children, it repeatedly highlights how children and youth are especially
vulnerable to recruitment by terrorist and violent extremist groups (Plan of Action to Prevent Violent Extremism: report of the
Secretary-General (A/70/674), para. 23).
56
See also “Plan of Action to Prevent Violent Extremism: report of the Secretary-General” (A/70/674), paras. 25-26.
57
Michael G. Wessells, Child Soldiers: From Violence to Protection (Cambridge, Massachuses, Harvard University Press,
2006), p. 46.
58
UNICEF, “Child labour and UNICEF in action: children at the centre” (2014).
CHAPTER 1. STRATEGIES FOR PREVENTING RECRUITMENT OF CHILDREN BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS
• Revenge and indirect identication with victims of violence. ese may trigger anger and desire to
avenge the “enemy”. e diusion of graphic images of armed conict spread awareness of the
suering of civilians and combatants and may aect the psychological well-being of individuals
outside conict zones.
59
• Previous involvement in the justice system. For children and young people, this has also proved to
have a correlation with recruitment into terrorist groups. Joining a terrorist or violent extremist
group may be viewed as being “redemptive” or legitimizing the commission of criminal oences.
In either case, it may contribute to a sense of meaning, while oering the same as gang member-
ship: power, violence, adventure and a strong identity.
60
• Material inducements. ese are also used as positive incentives to aract new recruits.
Prevention measures to address “pull factors” require multiple approaches. ey should focus on
promotion of alternative narratives, but should also include support to families and communities to
foster inclusion, as well investment in educational and employment opportunities.
Support to families and inclusive communities
Families are particularly important in the prevention of child recruitment. Families can be the rst to
detect risks, and they can provide the necessary support to children, strengthening resilience. Dierent
services may prove useful in supporting families. Family counselling, for instance, focuses on assisting
the parents, helping them to maintain contact with their children. Experience shows that counselling
should not “instruct” the parents to challenge the beliefs of the child, but rather help them to avoid
being judgmental in their aitudes and promote open and healthy communication.
61
Hotlines can
help respond to crises in a timely way and are an example of multi-agency engagement, as dierent
actors may be called upon to respond according to the level of risk. Transparency about the function-
ing of the hotlines, in particular the rules of condentiality and the possible intervention of law
enforcement, is especially important. All interventions involving the families will require a solid basis
of trust, which requires consistency, clarity and respect for privacy and family life.
Local approaches to prevention are also important when they involve communities (i.e. groups
larger than the family unit). Engagement of members of the community is becoming increasingly
relevant to eorts to counter violent extremist and terrorist narratives, which have tended to promote
polarization by using an “us versus them” discourse. Resilience and inclusiveness can be strengthened
through a variety of measures, such as: promoting dialogue, and appropriate representation of minori-
ties; supporting local actors (involvement of teachers may be especially signicant) in conducting
activities that strengthen the active participation of citizens; promoting education and employment
opportunities; and empowering women as agents of change within the communities.
59
Samuel, “e lure of youth into terrorism”, pp. 109-113.
60
Rajan Basra, Peter R. Neumann and Claudia Brunner, “Criminal pasts, terrorist futures: European jihadists and the new
crime-terror nexus” (London, ICSR, 2016).
61
European Commission, Radicalisation Awareness Network, “N Policy Paper: developing a local prevent framework and
guiding principles” (November 2016).
CHILDREN RECRUITED AND EXPLOITED BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS: ROLE OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
Tailored messaging
Prevention of child recruitment by terrorist and violent extremist groups has focused on disseminating
tailored messages directed at potential targets, oen dened as counter-narratives. Such messages can
be categorized as composing a spectrum, responding to broader or more specic objectives.
Evidence shows that dierent factors can improve the eectiveness of messaging. ose factors
include:
(a) Involving the target groups when tailoring the messages;
(b) Focusing on rapid responses;
(c) Investing in sustained rather than sporadic campaigns;
(d) Producing emotional content rather than focusing exclusively on evidence;
(e) Strengthening the link between online and oine initiatives.
62
It is also important to ensure that such prevention campaigns include a gender perspective.
62
European Commission, Radicalisation Awareness Network, “N Issue Paper: counter narratives and alternative narra-
tives” (October 2015).
Engaging the community to strengthen resilience—excerpts from the
study “We Hope and We Fight: Youth, Communities and Violence in Mali”
a
Key ndings:
• Community support for armed groups encourages youth to engage in violence out of a
sense of duty or quest for respect.
• Youth cite experience with injustice—including abuses and corruption—as motivators
for joining anti-government armed groups.
• Many youth in armed groups and non-violent youth have high, but fragile,
expectations for the peace process.
Recommendations:
• Focus on preventing violence and strengthening protective factors at the community
level, rather than seeking to identify and target at-risk youth. The study entitled “We
Hope and We Fight: Youth, Communities and Violence in Mali” did not identify specic
attributes that put some individual youth at higher risk of participating in violence.
In fact, many youth in armed groups described deep social ties to others in their
communities, which suggests that they are not particularly marginalized. Therefore,
government and civil society actors should ensure that an approach involving the
entire community guides their interventions to prevent further violence.
• Facilitate improved local governance through better service delivery and inclusive
community- government decision-making. Because perceptions of exclusion have
contributed to community support of armed groups, improving governance processes
and outcomes should be a key long-term priority for the government and local and
international civil society actors.
• Identify and facilitate opportunities for youth to achieve status without engaging in
armed groups. The ndings of the study indicate that youth need non-violent ways to
gain status and recognition in their communities.
a
e study, which was published in July 2017 (available at www.mercycorps.org/), is based on qualitative research and
direct interviews. While all respondents are over 18 years of age, they include previous members of groups that are listed
as terrorist organizations (such as the Movement for Unity and Jihad in West Africa or Al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb).
e recommendations are relevant to broader prevention strategies.
CHAPTER 1. STRATEGIES FOR PREVENTING RECRUITMENT OF CHILDREN BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS
Online intervention
Prevention measures that focus on online content usually have a twofold objective. One possible
approach focuses on the identication and removal of content that can be used for the purposes of
child recruitment. Such strategies require partnership with Internet providers and social media plat-
forms and have been employed for removal of child pornography and hate speech.
63
However, such
strategies must follow precise guidelines and be specically targeted, as the identied content is oen
not illegal. According to the Human Rights Commiee, any measure taken to prevent or remove mes-
sages communicated through the Internet or other forms of technology constitute an interference with
the right to freedom of expression and must be justied.
64
At the same time, online strategies have focused on the dissemination of alternative and counter-
narratives. anks to the cooperation of social media platforms and online service providers, mecha-
nisms can be put in place so that individuals who may be seeking terrorist and violent extremist content
are redirected towards media providing messages countering the propaganda of terrorist and violent
extremist groups.
63
Rachel Briggs and Tanya Silverman, “Western foreign ghters innovations in responding to the threat” (London, Institute
for Strategic Dialogue, 2014), p. 22.
64
Human Rights Commiee, general comment No. 34 (2011) on art. 19: freedoms of opinion and expression, para. 46, cited
in “Report of the Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while
countering terrorism” (A/HRC/31/65, para. 40).
Case study: The counter-messaging spectrum
a
• Strategic communications. These indirectly challenge te rrorist and violent extremist
narratives by setting out government policies and correcting misinformation;
• Alternative narratives. Such narratives provide testimonies or stories that emphasize
the importance of social values such as tolerance and democracy;
• Counter-narratives. Such narratives directly discredit, deconstruct or challenge
terrorist and violent extremist messages and content.
a
European Commission, Radicalisation Awareness Network, “N Issue Paper: counter narratives and alternative
narratives” (October 2015).
Case study: Cooperation with service providers for the diusion
of alternative narratives—Google’s Redirect Method
Google’s technology subsidiary Jigsaw has launched an innovative counter-narrative
blueprint known as the Redirect Method (www.redirectmethod.org), which operates by
displaying advertisements that link to YouTube playlists in Arabic or English that subtly
counter ISIL propaganda when certain pro-ISIL keywords are typed into Google search.
The 116 videos used include depictions of ISIL being defeated by other troops, what life is
like in ISIL territory (for example, seemingly endless queues to receive food) and how ISIL
ideology is in contradiction with Islam.
CHILDREN RECRUITED AND EXPLOITED BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS: ROLE OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
Although many countries have lower rates of Internet access and literacy, children in those coun-
tries may still be subject to terrorist and violent extremist propaganda through other means, such as
radios, newspapers and public rallies. Moreover, evidence of recruitment processes shows that, while
terrorist groups may be very active online, such contact does not completely replace recruitment
through human interaction. It is thus important that counter-narrative strategies are advanced not only
online but also oine.
Cross-border cooperation to prevent travel
Prevention measures include timely identication of individuals, including children, who are crossing
national borders to join terrorist and violent extremist groups. Eective cross-border cooperation
between law enforcement agencies entails: appropriate databases and tracing systems (such as data-
bases and systems for tracing lost or stolen documents, stolen motor vehicles, DNA and ngerprints;
and mechanisms for tracing weapons); focal points and communication mechanisms across borders;
and systems of notication to alert authorities worldwide to possible terrorist threats, such as the
colour-coded system operationalized by the International Criminal Police Organization.
65
Cooperation between law enforcement agencies and nancial institutions can be particularly help-
ful in identifying “red-ag” nancial activities.
66
ose forms of cooperation, however, should be based
on respect for personal liberties, privacy and data protection requirements.
Protective role of family law
When children are in immediate danger of becoming involved in terrorist and violent extremist groups,
family law can be used for the prevention of their recruitment. However, these measures oen entail
the removal of the child from his or her family and connections and, consequently, have considerable
potential for secondary victimization. ey should be adopted only in exceptional cases, with appro-
priate justication that takes into account the child’s best interests.
65
For further details, see INTERPOL, “Best practices in combating terrorism” (2016), pp. 7 and 8.
66
Tom Keatinge, “Identifying foreign terrorist ghters: the role of public-private partnership, information sharing and
nancial intelligence” international centre for counter-terrorism” (e Hague, International Centre for Counter-Terrorism,
2015), p. 37.
Case study: Family courts’ role in preventing recruitment and travel—a
study involving the High Court Family Division in the United Kingdom of
Great Britain and Northern Ireland
In the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, the Children Act of 1989, as
well as common law, enshrines the duty of the State to protect children. Section 1(3) of
the Children Act specically provides that in child protection cases, the best interests of
the child are to be treated as the paramount concern. The High Court Family Division is
the specialist division dealing with civil cases relating to children. Here judges are able to
exercise their inherent jurisdiction to make the child a ward of court, meaning that the
Court assumes parental responsibility. As it removes the rights of a parent to make
decisions about his or her child, such power is to be used only when strictly necessary
for the protection of the child.
The use made of the inherent jurisdiction to prevent recruitment is illustrated by the case
of Re M in 2015.
a
The parents of four children, all of whom were British citizens, aged
CHAPTER 1. STRATEGIES FOR PREVENTING RECRUITMENT OF CHILDREN BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS
Building a multi-agency approach
In view of the complexity of child recruitment by terrorist and violent extremist groups, a multi-agency
approach is especially relevant. e creation and management of coordination mechanisms will be
more eective if the following are taken into account:
67
(a) Priority should be given to building partnerships at the local level, as a thorough under-
standing of the local situation is instrumental to tailored intervention;
(b) Existing partnerships are particularly relevant, although additional guidelines and training
may be necessary;
(c) Involvement of civil society is conducive to stronger relationships of trust with the
communities;
(d) Clear guidelines on information-sharing, including with regard to consent, should be
developed, as they will improve reciprocity;
(e) e involvement of experts and the development of needs assessment tools are especially
important when dealing with children;
(f) A case manager should be appointed, using dierent criteria such as the level of risk of a
specic situation, but also taking into account the level of relationship developed with the beneciary.
Multi-agency interventions combine dierent types of relevant expertise, and at the same time rely
on dierent types of incentive for the target groups.
Monitoring, evaluation and follow-up
Monitoring and evaluation of prevention measures are especially important in the case of measures
dealing with recruitment by terrorist and violent extremist groups. Recent developments show that
comprehensive evaluations of the eectiveness of such measures are still insucient. Dierent inter-
ventions will require specic criteria for measuring eectiveness. Accurate monitoring and evaluation
are essential to ensure long-term support of promising programmes.
67
e positive elements were featured in European Commission, Radicalisation Awareness Network, “Ex post paper: handbook on
how to set up a multi-agency structure that includes the health and social care sectors?”(May 2016).
from 20 months to 7 years, le home abruptly. The police and the counter-terrorism unit
believed the parents intended to join ISIL. The High Court made the children wards of
court and ordered their return from Turkey because the use of jurisdiction in cases
where the risk of harm to the child was of the type that would engage article 2 or 3 of
the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental
Freedoms—the risk to life or risk of degrading or inhuman treatment—was clearly
unproblematic. In exercising its jurisdiction, the Court noted that it had always been the
principle of the Court not to risk the incurring of damage to children that it could not
repair, but rather to prevent the damage done.
b
In other cases, the Court has made the child a ward of court and issued a passport
seizure order, to prevent children from leaving the country.
c
a
Royal Courts of Justice, [2015] EWHC 1433 (Fam).
b
Wellesey v. Duke of Beaufort (1827) 2 Russ 1, at 18 per Eldon LC.
c
See London Borough of Tower Hamlets v. M [2015] EWHC 869 (Fam); and Re Z [2015] EWHC 2350 (Fam) and
Brighton and Hove City Council v. Y [2015] EWHC 2099.
CHILDREN RECRUITED AND EXPLOITED BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS: ROLE OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
Importance of respecting children’s rights, including in the context of
tertiary prevention
Tertiary prevention is the term used to describe approaches to the prevention of reoending by chil-
dren who have already been in contact with the justice system as alleged oenders. Whether children
have come in conict with the law as a result of their involvement with terrorist or violent extremist
groups or as a result of having commied ordinary oences, eectively supporting their rehabilitation
and social reintegration is essential to preventing their recruitment. (For further guidance on rehabili-
tation and reintegration of children in contact with the justice system, see chapter IV below.)
Checklist for practitioners: keyelements
• The international legal framework prohibits recruitment of children and calls on
States to do the same.
• For the prohibition of recruitment of children by terrorist and violent extremist
groups to be eective, “recruitment of children” should be dened in national law
as: concerning all children under the age of 18; including “compulsory” as well as
“voluntary” processes; including children recruited for active or support roles; and
including recruitment by armed forces or any non-State criminal or armed group.
• States bear the primary responsibility to protect children from recruitment by
terrorist and violent extremist groups.
• While prevention of child recruitment by terrorist and violent extremist groups
require specialized approaches (including strategies for the prevention of violent
extremism), these should be integrated into broader crime prevention policies and
programmes to protect children from violence and policies and programmes on the
prevention of violence against children. Inclusive initiatives are more likely to avoid
having discriminatory or stigmatizing eects on the children.
• Prevention policies and programmes should focus on dierent areas of intervention,
but they should all be based on a child-sensitive approach, which entails active
participation of children, and careful determination of their best interests.
Child victims of
recruitment and exploitation:
their treatment in
the justice system
Chapter 2
CHILDREN RECRUITED AND EXPLOITED BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS: ROLE OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
CHILDREN RECRUITED AND EXPLOITED BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS: ROLE OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
A. Recognizing as victims children recruited and
exploited by terrorist and violent extremist groups
Terrorist and violent extremist groups are responsible for major violations of children’s rights. While
the nature and extent of such violations vary considerably from one group to another, there is evidence
that groups such as Boko Haram, Al-Shabaab and ISIL have, in situations of armed conict, perpe-
trated the following grave violations that aect children: the recruitment and use of children, sexual
violence against children, the killing and maiming of children, denying access to humanitarian sup-
port, aacks on schools and/or hospitals and aacks or threats of aacks against protected personnel,
and the abduction of children.
68
In addition, in situations not involving armed conict, children recruited and exploited by terrorist
groups are victims of violence, which is prohibited by the Convention on the Rights of the Child, and
in many cases those children subsequently become victims of tracking in persons and forced labour,
as well as victims of oences under other criminal laws.
Children recruited and exploited by terrorist and violent extremist groups may also have been
involved in the commission of very serious oences. eir status as victims under international law has
to be taken into account in assessing whether they can and should be held accountable for the commis-
sion of oences. However, recognition of their victim status does not exclude criminal liability and
other forms of accountability of children alleged to have commied terrorist oences. e treatment
of children as alleged oenders, including the relationship between victim status and criminal liability,
is the subject of chapter III of this Handbook.
Children recruited and exploited by terrorist and violent extremist groups, who are victims of crime
or violence, will primarily require assistance, support and appropriate care to begin their journey
towards reintegration (see chapter IV below). ose children are mainly supported by providers of
humanitarian assistance, providers of child protection, health practitioners and professionals in the
education sector. Yet their initial contact may take place with law enforcement, security or military
personnel, who require specic skills to properly deal with those children.
When children are recognized as victims and witnesses to terrorism-related oences, they may
enter in contact with the justice system in order to take part in criminal proceedings against alleged
terrorists or to seek redress or reparation. In such situations, recognizing their specic rights and applying
tailored guidance for their treatment are crucial obligations of domestic justice systems (see sections B
and C of this chapter).
Recognizing the victim status of children associated with armed groups is also important because it
provides acknowledgement that they have suered a wrong and, as discussed in more detail below, it
may entitle them to reparation, compensation and/or victim support services.
. International legal framework
e present section provides a broad outline of the key violations of international law that children
recruited and exploited by terrorist and violent extremist groups are at risk of experiencing.
68
Children and armed conict: report of the Secretary-General (A/70/836-S/2016/360), paras. 1 and 119 and annex I.
CHAPTER 2. CHILD VICTIMS OF RECRUITMENT AND EXPLOITATION: THEIR TREATMENT IN THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
Convention on the Rights of the Child
International law, in particular article 19 of the Convention on
the Rights of the Child, prohibits all forms of violence against
children, including: physical or mental violence; intentional
and non-intentional harm; and neglect (see chapter I, section
B, above).
States parties to the Convention have agreed to take steps to
promote the physical and psychological recovery and social reinte-
gration of child victims and witnesses. is obligation stems from
article 39 of the Convention and applies to assistance and support
measures in general and to the conduct of criminal proceedings in
particular. Child witnesses are considered, in a general sense, to be
victims of the crime they have witnessed, even though they may
not have this technical legal status in legal proceedings. erefore,
both child victims and child witnesses in contact with the justice
system benet from the protection provided in article 39 of the
Convention. In addition, article 38 requires States parties to take
all feasible measures to ensure protection of children who are
aected by armed conict.
Children recruited and exploited by terrorist and violent extremist groups may also be victims of
violations of two optional protocols to the Convention on the Rights of the Child:
(a) e Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of
children in armed conict, article 4 of which provides a blanket prohibition of the recruitment and use of
children by non-State armed groups in hostilities (see chapter I, section B.1, above);
(b) e Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the sale of children,
child prostitution and child pornography;
69
this Optional Protocol criminalizes actions relating to the
sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography. While these actions amount primarily to vari-
ous forms of sexual exploitation of children, this Optional Protocol also addresses the sale of children for
other purposes, including forced labour.
United Nations Global Counter Terrorism Strategy
e General Assembly, in its resolution 70/291, on the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism
Strategy Review, strongly condemned the systematic recruitment and use of children to perpetrate
terrorist aacks. e Assembly reiterated that, given their potential status as victims of terrorism as
well as of other violations of international law, every child alleged as, accused of or recognized as having
infringed the law, particularly those who are deprived of their liberty, as well as child victims and wit-
nesses of crimes, should be treated in a manner consistent with his or her rights, dignity and needs, in
accordance with applicable international law, in particular obligations under the Convention on the
Rights of the Child.
International law regarding tracking in persons and child labour
In article 5, the Tracking in Persons Protocol obliges each State party to adopt measures to criminal-
ize “tracking in persons”, which is dened in subparagraph (a) of article 3 as the recruitment, trans-
portation, transfer, harbouring or receipt of persons, by means of the threat or use of force or other
69
United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 2171, No. 27531.
Convention on the Rights of the
Child:
article 39
States Parties shall take all appropriate
measures to promote physical and
psychological recovery and social
reintegration of a child victim of: any form
of neglect, exploitation, or abuse; torture or
any other form of cruel, inhuman or
degrading treatment or punishment; or
armed conflicts. Such recovery and
reintegration shall take place in an
environment which fosters the health,
self-respect and dignity of the child.
CHILDREN RECRUITED AND EXPLOITED BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS: ROLE OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
CHILDREN RECRUITED AND EXPLOITED BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS: ROLE OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
forms of coercion, of abduction, of fraud, of deception, of the abuse of power or of a position of vulner-
ability or of the giving or receiving of payments or benets to achieve the consent of a person having
control over another person, for the purpose of exploitation. In subparagraph (c) of article 3, it is stated
that the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipt of a child for the purpose of exploi-
tation shall be considered “tracking in persons” even if this does not involve any of the means set
forth in subparagraph (a) of that article. In subparagraph (d) of article 3 of the Protocol (as in the
Convention on the Rights of the Child), a child is dened as any person under 18 years of age. us,
whether a child who has been involved with a violent extremist group is to be considered a victim of
tracking in persons, with the special safeguards and rights that this may provide to the child, depends
on whether the extremist group has commied an act (in the form of recruitment, transportation,
transfer, harbouring or receipt of a child) for the purpose of exploitation. In the denition of “track-
ing in persons” provided in article 3, subparagraph (a), of the Tracking in Persons Protocol, it is
stated that exploitation shall include, at a minimum, the exploitation of the prostitution of others or
other forms of sexual exploitation, forced labour or services, slavery or practices similar to slavery,
servitude or the removal of organs. Many States have recognized emerging forms of tracking-related
exploitation that go beyond those listed in the Protocol, including for instance, the use of children in
armed conict or exploitation in form of criminal activities.
70
Children recruited and exploited by terrorist groups will in most cases also be victims of a violation of
the Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 (No. 182), of the International Labour Organization.
In article 3 of the Convention, it is stated that, for the purposes of the Convention, the term “the worst
forms of child labour” comprises: (a) all forms of slavery or practices similar to slavery, such as the sale
and tracking of children, debt bondage and serfdom and forced or compulsory labour, including forced
or compulsory recruitment of children for use in armed conict; (b) the use, procuring or oering of a
child for prostitution, for the production of pornography or for pornographic performances; (c) the use,
procuring or oering of a child for illicit activities, in particular for the production and tracking of drugs
as dened in the relevant international treaties; and (d) work which, by its nature or the circumstances in
which it is carried out, is likely to harm the health, safety or morals of children. e work referred to in
subparagraph (d) certainly includes work furthering the activities of a terrorist group.
e Security Council, in its resolution 2331 (2016), highlighted the very close relationship between
tracking in persons, child recruitment by armed groups and child exploitation by terrorist groups. In
that resolution, the Council condemnedall violations and abuses against children in armed conict
and notedin particularthat the recruitment and use of children in violation of applicable international
law by parties to armed conict could be associated with tracking in persons. e Council armed
that victims of tracking in persons in all its forms, and of sexual violence, commied by terrorist
groups should be classied as victims of terrorism, with the purpose of rendering them eligible for
ocial support, recognition and redress available to victims of terrorism, so that they can have access
to national relief and reparation programmes, which should contribute to liing the sociocultural
stigma aached to this category of crime and facilitate rehabilitation and reintegration eorts; thus, the
Council extended the benets provided to victims of terrorism to victims of tracking and sexual
violence commied by terrorist groups.
International humanitarian law
As mentioned in chapter I, section C, above, article 4, paragraph 3, of Protocol II to the Geneva
Conventions prohibits recruitment of children under the age of 15 by non-State armed groups.
Article 4 of the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of
70
See UNODC, e Concept of “Exploitation” in the Tracking in Persons Protocol (Vienna, 2015).
CHAPTER 2. CHILD VICTIMS OF RECRUITMENT AND EXPLOITATION: THEIR TREATMENT IN THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
children in armed conict expands this prohibition to include the recruitment and use of children
under the age of 18 by non-State armed groups in hostilities.
e monitoring and reporting mechanism on grave violations against children in situations of
armed conict, which was established pursuant to Security Council resolution 1612 (2005), addresses
six grave violations against children in armed conict. In its resolution 1379 (2001), the Council called
upon the Secretary-General to aach to his annual report on children and armed conict a list of par-
ties to armed conict that recruited or used children in violation of the international obligations appli-
cable to them or in situations on the Council’s agenda. In its resolution 1882 (2009), the Council
added to the list those parties to armed conict that engaged in the killing and maiming of children
and/or rape and other forms of sexual violence against children in situations of armed conict; and
pursuant to Council resolution 1998 (2011), parties engaging in aacks on schools and/or hospitals
were added to the list. In addition, pursuant to article 35 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child,
the abduction of children was included as a criterion for listing; and pursuant to article 23 of the
Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War, of 12 August
1949,
71
the denial of humanitarian access to children was also included as a criterion.
International criminal law
In the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, the denition of “war crimes” includes con-
scripting or enlisting (i.e. recruiting) children under the age of 15 into an armed group or their use in
hostilities (article 8, para. 2, subparas. (b) (xxvi)and (e) (vii)).e denition of “war crimes” also
includes commiing rape, sexual slavery, enforced prostitution and forced pregnancy (article 8, para. 2,
sub paras. (b) (xxii)) and (e) (vi)).
In addition, in the Rome Statute, the denition of “crimes against humanity” includes rape, sexual
slavery, enforced prostitution and forced pregnancy when commied as part of a widespread or system-
atic aack directed against any civilian population, with knowledge of the aack (article 7, para. 1 (g)).
. Ensuring respect of the rights of children as victims
According to the provisions of the international legal framework, children recruited and exploited by
terrorist and violent extremist groups are victims of multiple violations of their rights. Yet the full
application of their rights as victims is oen curtailed in practice. Accordingly, the present section pro-
vides guidance related to two key aspects. e rst one is related to child-sensitive age assessment
72
and the second one is related to the recognition of the legal status (as victims) of children recruited and
exploited by terrorist and violent extremist groups. ese two elements constitute the fundamental
preconditions for the enjoyment of all the rights of child victims, which are analysed further in the
remaining sections of the present chapter.
Child-sensitive age assessment
Particularly in States with low birth registration, the determination of the correct age of a child may
pose a challenge to authorities. When children are not recognized as such because of diculties related
to age assessment, they may face very serious consequences. Children without documents to prove
their age, for instance, are more vulnerable to being treated as adults rather than children in criminal
proceedings and when seeking international protection as asylum seekers.
71
United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 75, No. 973.
72
e need for child-sensitive age assessment procedures in the context of terrorism is recognized in the UNODC Counter-Terrorism
Legal Training Curriculum (see Module 4: Human Rights and Criminal Justice Responses to Terrorism, p. 60).
CHILDREN RECRUITED AND EXPLOITED BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS: ROLE OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
CHILDREN RECRUITED AND EXPLOITED BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS: ROLE OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
When assessing the age of a child, authorities must take into consideration all the information
available. Alternative approaches, such as interviews and aempts to gather documentary evidence,
may be the preferred option. Medical and physical age assessment methods, such as examining bone
X-rays, measuring height or checking for signs of the onset of puberty, should be used only as a last
resort in cases where there is reason to doubt the age of the child and where every other approach
has failed. Whenever such methods are employed, they should be carried out only by medical
practitioners, and a wrien record of the age assessment procedure must be kept, a copy of which
must be made available to the child.
e dignity of the child must be respected at all times. erefore, the least invasive method of age
assessment must be used in order to comply with international human rights standards. An age assess-
ment procedure should be gender-appropriate and multidisciplinary and should be carried out by
independent professionals with appropriate expertise in and familiarity with the child’s ethnic and cul-
tural background. Physical, developmental, psychological, environmental and cultural factors must be
considered. It is important to recognize that the assessment of a child’s age is not an exact science. It is
a process within which there will always be an inherent margin of error, and a child’s exact age cannot
be established through medical or other physical examinations.
73
In case of doubt, pending a conclusive determination of age by a judge or competent authority,
public ocials must treat the young person as a child if he or she claims to or appears to be younger
than 18. Where an age assessment fails to determine the age of a person beyond reasonable doubt, the
person must be regarded as a child. In cases where there is doubt about whether an alleged oender is
a child or an adult (i.e. under or over the age of 18), the alleged oender must be considered a child
and his or her case must fall within the scope of juvenile justice law.
74
Recognizing as victims children recruited and exploited by terrorist and
violent extremist groups
Children recruited and exploited by terrorist and violent extremist groups will oen face increased chal-
lenges upon returning home because their communities are likely to view them as suspicious or even dan-
gerous. In view of their association with terrorist and violent extremist groups, such children are primarily
suspected of being perpetrators (or potential perpetrators) of terrorist oences rather than victims.
Acknowledgment of the victim status of such children is a precondition for them having access to
their rights as victims of crime, including the right to reparations and rehabilitation measures, and may
assist them in their eorts to achieve reconciliation with their communities. Dierent situations might
lead to the recognition of the child as being a victim of dierent types of crime. For example, in certain
contexts, acts commied against children by terrorist and violent extremist groups may qualify as the
crime of tracking in persons.
73
Terry Smith and Laura Brownlees, “Age assessment: a literature review and annotated bibliography” (New York, UNICEF,
2011). Available at www.unicef.org/protection/Age_Assessment_Practices_2010.pdf.
74
See UNODC, Justice in Maers Involving Children in Conict with the Law: Model Law on Juvenile Justice and Related
Commentary (Vienna, 2013). Available at www.unodc.org/.
CHAPTER 2. CHILD VICTIMS OF RECRUITMENT AND EXPLOITATION: THEIR TREATMENT IN THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
Concerning the intended exploitation of children, this can take several forms. In addition to more
classic forms of exploitation such as sexual exploitation and forced labour, terrorist groups can force
children to be involved in criminal activities as perpetrators or accomplices or in support roles (such as
cooks, messengers and lookouts). For example, the recently reported use of children in suicide bomb
aacks in Nigeria could be considered a form of exploitation of children and thus tracking in per-
sons.
75
ese forms of exploitation could be treated as a manifestation of forced labour or services or
even be covered by specic criminal provisions in countries that have enacted legislation criminalizing
tracking for the purpose of exploitation in criminal activities.
76
In cases of tracking in children by terrorist and violent extremist groups, the tracked children
should be treated and aorded protection as victims of tracking in persons. An important element of
the victim protection framework is non-punishment of victims of tracking for oences they have
commied as a result of their tracking experience (see chapter III below).
e Security Council, in its resolution 2331 (2016), called upon Member States to ensure that vic-
tims are treated as victims of crime and in line with domestic legislation not penalized or stigmatized
75
Report of the Secretary-General on children and armed conict in Nigeria (S/2017/304); and UNICEF, “Use of children
as ‘human bombs’ rising in north east Nigeria”, press release, updated 22 August 2017. Available at www.unicef.org/media/
media_100686.html.
76
See, for example, Morocco, art. 448.1, para. 3, of the Penal Code, as amended by Law No. 27-14 relating to tracking in
persons.
Denition of “tracking in persons” according to the Protocol to
Prevent, Suppress and Punish Tracking in Persons, Especially Women
and Children, supplementing the United Nations Convention against
Transnational Organized Crime
In article 3 of the Tracking in Persons Protocol, it is stated that:
(a) “Tracking in persons” shall mean the recruitment, transportation, transfer,
harbouring or receipt of persons, by means of the threat or use of force or other forms
of coercion, of abduction, of fraud, of deception, of the abuse of power or of a position
of vulnerability or of the giving or receiving of payments or benets to achieve the
consent of a person having control over another person, for the purpose of exploitation.
Exploitation shall include, at a minimum, the exploitation of the prostitution of others
or other forms of sexual exploitation, forced labour or services, slavery or practices
similar to slavery, servitude or the removal of organs;
(b) The consent of a victim of tracking in persons to the intended exploitation set
forth in subparagraph (a) of this article shall be irrelevant where any of the means set
forth in subparagraph (a) have been used;
(c) The recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipt of a child for the
purpose of exploitation shall be considered “tracking in persons” even if this does
not involve any of the means set forth in subparagraph (a) of this article;
(d) “Child” shall mean any person under 18 years of age.
Thus, according to the Protocol, the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or
receipt of a child (i.e. a person under 18 years of age) for the purpose of exploitation is
considered “tracking in persons”.
CHILDREN RECRUITED AND EXPLOITED BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS: ROLE OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
CHILDREN RECRUITED AND EXPLOITED BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS: ROLE OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
for their involvement in any unlawful activities in which they have been compelled to engage. In the
same resolution, the Council armed that victims of tracking in persons in all its forms, as well as
victims of sexual violence, commied by terrorist groups should be classied as victims of terrorism in
order to render them eligible for ocial support, recognition and redress available to victims of terror-
ism, in the form of access to national relief and reparations programmes, thereby contributing to eorts
aimed at liing the sociocultural stigma aached to that category of crime and facilitating rehabilita-
tion and reintegration eorts.
In the same resolution, the Security Council emphasized that survivors of tracking in persons
should benet from relief and recovery programmes, including health care, psychosocial care, safe
shelter livelihood support and legal aid and that services should include provision for women with
children born as a result of wartime rape, as well as men and boys who may have been victims of sexual
violence in conict, including when it is associated with tracking in persons in armed conict.
Regardless of the crime commied against a child by a terrorist or violent extremist group, it is
important for all involved, not only government authorities but also communities and families, to be
mindful of the need for, and proactively foster, recognizing as victims, in particular as victims of terror-
ism, all children recruited and exploited by terrorist groups. Every reparation programme for victims of
terrorism should consider this dimension and provide adequate redress for the aected children (see
section C.2 of the present chapter).
Checklist for practitioners: keyelements
• Under international law, the recruitment and exploitation of children by terrorist and
violent extremist groups constitute multiple violations of their rights.
• The international legal framework strongly prohibits violence against children, as
well as their exploitation for illicit activities and armed conflict, enslavement and
sexual abuse.
• When dealing with child victims of violence and crime, professionals should be
mindful of those children’s specic rights and trained to provide appropriate
assistance.
• Medical age assessment should be used as a measure of last resort, where there is
reasonable doubt about a person’s age and where other approaches have failed to
establish the person’s age. It should be conducted without any delay, using the least
invasive method, by independent professionals with appropriate expertise. Where
uncertainty persists regarding whether a person is under the age of 18, the person
should be treated as a child. The same applies to cases where there is doubt about
a child being under the minimum age of criminal responsibility.
CHAPTER 2. CHILD VICTIMS OF RECRUITMENT AND EXPLOITATION: THEIR TREATMENT IN THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
B. Protecting child victims and witnesses during
investigations and trials
Traditionally, the criminal justice system is more focused on the relation between the State and the
accused than on the role of victims. e issue of the role and rights of victims and their participation in
the proceedings is especially delicate when the victims are children. Child victims and witnesses oen
take part in criminal proceedings in which the defendants are adults, a situation that can lead to the
children being subjected to lengthy and sometimes hostile questioning or direct confrontation with
the alleged perpetrators. Such practices contribute to secondary victimization as a result of the chil-
dren coming in contact with the justice system. Secondary victimization is victimization that occurs
not as a direct result of the criminal act causing harm to the victim but through the response of institu-
tions and individuals to the victim.
77
As mentioned earlier, children recruited and exploited by terrorist and violent extremist groups are
especially likely to experience the health and psychosocial consequences of extreme violence. ey
also have a particularly high risk of experiencing retaliation. erefore, while their right to participate
in criminal proceedings should be protected, practitioners need to take measures to prevent their
exposure to further violence in the course of the criminal proceedings.
Justice professionals face numerous challenges during direct interaction with children. Establishing
open channels of communication with children and gaining their trust requires the use of an approach
that is dierent from the one used in dealing with adults. Inappropriate aitudes can easily lead to
blockages. Children who have suered violence, for example, may be prone to having feelings of
mistrust, isolation, or lack of condence towards authorities.
is heightened vulnerability of child victims of violence may be exacerbated by a number of
factors that oen aect victims of terrorist crimes:
(a) Acts of terrorism may be oences that occur on a large scale, may involve multiple perpe-
trators and victims and may result in mass physical and psychological injury. Authorities may therefore
have diculties in giving aention to individual victims;
(b) ere is a risk that authorities may perceive primarily the political dimension of acts of
terrorism and neglect the impact on and needs of the individual victims;
(c) Finally, victims and survivors of terrorist acts may be particularly exposed to intimidation and
retaliation. As noted in the Madrid Memorandum on Good Practices for Assistance to Victims of
Terrorism Immediately aer the Aack and in Criminal Proceedings, this risk requires specic legal and
policy protections for victims participating in the criminal justice process, including as witnesses.
78
e section below provides guidance on how to ensure that the participation in criminal proceed-
ings of children who have been recruited by terrorist and violent extremist groups takes into account
their needs, in particular their safety, and at the same time minimizes any further hardship. It includes
a discussion of the rights of child victims and witnesses in the international legal framework and
suggests a number of strategies to promote their appropriate treatment.
77
Recommendation Rec (2006) 8 of the Commiee of Ministers to member States on assistance to crime victims, adopted
by the Commiee of Ministers of the Council of Europe on 14 June 2006.
78
Global Counterterrorism Forum, “Madrid Memorandum on Good Practices for Assistance to Victims of Terrorism
Immediately aer the Aack and in Criminal Proceedings”, Good Practice 6. Available at hps://toolkit.thegctf.org/document-
sets/madrid-memorandum.
CHILDREN RECRUITED AND EXPLOITED BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS: ROLE OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
CHILDREN RECRUITED AND EXPLOITED BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS: ROLE OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
Child victims and witnesses may also take part in, or seek redress through, non-judicial processes.
While such processes may be more accessible to children in certain contexts or constitute a more
appropriate forum for children’s participation, specic measures to ensure their adaptation to the
rights and needs of the child should be in place (see chapter IV, section B, below).
. Standards and norms related to the rights of child victims
and witnesses
Providing assistance to child victims and witnesses throughout justice proceedings means respecting
and puing into practice their specic safeguards. ese have mostly been developed within inter-
national normative instruments that are not legally binding. In particular, it is important to take into
account provisions contained in the following legal instruments: the Guidelines on Justice in Maers
involving Child Victims and Witnesses of Crime (Economic and Social Council resolution 2005/20,
annex); the Guidelines for Action on Children in the Criminal Justice System (Council resolution
1997/30, annex); the Declaration of Basic Principles of Justice for Victims of Crime and Abuse of
Power (General Assembly resolution 40/34, annex);
79
and the United Nations Model Strategies and
Practical Measures on the Elimination of Violence against Children in the Field of Crime Prevention
and Criminal Justice (Assembly resolution 69/194, annex).
79
Other guidance, including, for example, the International Association of Prosecutors Model Guidelines for the Eective
Prosecution of Crimes against Children, also instructs those within the justice system on how to work in a child-friendly manner
with children who are in contact with the criminal law system as victims and/or witnesses.
Key challenges
• Enhanced risks of victimization and retaliation by terrorist and violent extremist groups
• Resistance of the child and mistrust of public authorities
• Inability of the child to recall events in detail and chronological order
• Intimidating attitudes of practitioners and disregard of child-appropriate language
• Biological, personal or loyalty relationship between the child and the accused
• Insucient coordination leading to repeated interviewing of children
• Lack of mechanisms to ensure that information is provided to the child concerning
his or her rights procedures and requirements
• Delays in the proceedings
• Lack of an environment such as an interview room or court setting adapted to the
needs of the child
• Lack of coordination with child protection and welfare actors to ensure appropriate
supervision and assistance when dealing with child victims
CHAPTER 2. CHILD VICTIMS OF RECRUITMENT AND EXPLOITATION: THEIR TREATMENT IN THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
International standards and norms related to the rights
of victims
e Guidelines on Justice in Maers involving Child Victims and
Witnesses of Crime clarify the key principles for the treatment of
child victims in the framework of justice processes. In particular,
they reiterate the universal validity of the right to non-discrimination
and the right to be treated with dignity and compassion.
80
e laer
entails adapting procedures to a child individual needs.
e Guidelines on Justice in Maers involving Child Victims and
Witnesses of Crime also highlight two key components of the prin-
ciple concerning the best interests of the child:
(a) e decisions taken should ensure protection of the child;
(b) Public actors are responsible for taking actions that favour
the healthy development and rehabilitation of children.
e connection between the right to participation and the right
to be informed is also stressed in the Guidelines (paras. 19 and 20).
In order to take an active part in the justice proceedings, child vic-
tims and witnesses should, from the beginning, be promptly and
adequately informed of the rules of the justice process, the support
services available and the progress of the case.
Furthermore, dierent rights of child victims and witnesses are
especially important in terms of the protection and security they
oer. ese include:
(a) e right to privacy (the Guidelines, paras. 26-28). is establishes the need to protect rele-
vant information relating to a child’s involvement in the justice process, including from the press;
(b) e right to safety (paras. 32-34). is provides for a variety of measures to ensure protec-
tion of the child, including obligations to report risks or instances of harm, prior, during, and aer the
justice process;
(c) e right to special preventive measures (paras. 38-39). is recognizes the need for special strat-
egies for child victims and witnesses who are particularly vulnerable to recurring victimization or
oending.
In addition, the Guidelines highlight the right of children to access eective assistance (paras. 22-25) at
all stages, as well as the right of child victims to receive reparation (paras. 35-37) (see also section C below).
e United Nations Model Strategies on Violence against Children stress the need to take appropri-
ate measures against the alleged perpetrators; this is part of the justice system’s responsibility to protect
the child victim, and it includes empowering authorities:
(a) To initiate investigations in cases of violence against children, regardless of whether an
ocial complaint has been led (para. 22 (a));
(b) To issue relevant protection measures to ensure the safety of the child (para. 20);
(c) To duly inform the child and his or her family whenever a decision is taken related to the
alleged perpetrator or perpetrators (para. 22 (h));
(d) To ensure that the sentencing of perpetrators reects the serious nature of violence against
children (para. 27).
80
Convention on the Rights of the Child, art. 39; Guidelines on Justice in Maers involving Child Victims and Witnesses of
Crime, paras. 8 (a) and 10-14; and Declaration of Basic Principles of Justice for Victims of Crime and Abuse of Power, para. 4.
Excerpts from the Guidelines on
Justice in Matters involving Child
Victims and Witnesses of Crime
V. The right to be treated with dignity
and compassion
…
11.
Every child should be treated as
an individual with his or her individual
needs, wishes and feelings.
…
14.
All interactions described in
these Guidelines should be conducted
in a child-sensitive manner in a
suitable environment that accommo-
dates the special needs of the child,
according to his or her abilities, age,
intellectual maturity and evolving
capacity. They should also take place
in a language that the child uses and
understands.
CHILDREN RECRUITED AND EXPLOITED BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS: ROLE OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
CHILDREN RECRUITED AND EXPLOITED BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS: ROLE OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
International criminal law
e Rome Statute includes provisions for the participation of victims and witnesses in international
criminal proceedings. In article 68, on protection of the victims and witnesses and their participation
in the proceedings, it is stated that appropriate measures must be taken to protect the safety, physical
and psychological well-being, dignity and privacy of victims and witnesses, having due regard to all
relevant factors, including the nature of the crime, in particular where the crime involves sexual or
gender violence or violence against children. e article establishes the possibility of holding closed
proceedings, allowing the presentation of evidence by electronic means or withholding evidence that
may expose witnesses to grave endangerment (submiing a summary of the evidence instead).
. Promoting safe participation of child victims and witnesses
in criminal proceedings
For children to take part and benet from justice proceedings, a delicate balance between their right to
be protected and the right to participation must be achieved. e recommendations presented below
contain practical measures for the eective implementation of the international legal framework out-
lined above, taking into account the specic situation and risks faced by children who have been
recruited and exploited by terrorist and violent extremist groups.
Participation of children
According to international law, limiting the chances of a child to participate in the justice process solely
on the basis of age is a form of discrimination. Accordingly, domestic legislations should refrain from
precluding testimony by children under a determined age threshold, and justice professionals should
treat children as capable and reliable witnesses. According to UNODC, good practice in this respect
includes presuming the child’s competency to testify, irrespective of his or her age, and keeping his or
her age and maturity as factors to be taken into account in the assessment of his or her testimony.
81
81
UNODC, Handbook for Professionals and Policymakers on Justice in maers involving child victims and witnesses of crime
(2009), page 25.
Case study: AM (Afghanistan) vs. Secretary of State for the Home
Department—adapting judicial proceedings to the needs of a child
formerly associated with the Taliban
In 2012, AM, an Afghan boy born in 1998, travelled from Afghanistan to Europe and
claimed asylum in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland on the
grounds that, if he returned, he would be persecuted by both the Afghan police and the
Taliban. His asylum application stated that his father was a member of the Taliban and
that AM had grown up in a Taliban camp until his father was killed and AM was captured
by the Afghan security services and hospitalized. Taliban members then forcibly removed
him to a training camp, from which he escaped and made his way to Europe. His initial
application for asylum was denied for various reasons, one of them being that the rst
instance judge had found that AM’s statements were not credible, due to vagueness and
inconsistencies.
CHAPTER 2. CHILD VICTIMS OF RECRUITMENT AND EXPLOITATION: THEIR TREATMENT IN THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
At the same time, this should not justify treating children like adults. On the contrary, comprehen-
sive action can be taken to ensure that all stages of the proceedings are adapted to children’s needs,
starting with coordination mechanisms to appropriately convey information. A support person (usu-
ally a professional) chosen at the beginning of the process can help the child by being a source of infor-
mation and avoiding situations where the child may receive overlapping or confusing messages.
Furthermore, practical solutions, such as testimonial aids, or modications to the court environment,
can be especially helpful in improving the child’s experience and reducing the potential for secondary
victimization (see the box below on adapting investigations and court proceedings to child victims and
witnesses in Canada).
However, the Court of Appeal ruled that the rst instance court proceedings were neither
fair nor just, as AM was a vulnerable party with needs that had not been addressed. The
Court of Appeal found that, in assessing AM’s testimony, the rst instance judge did not
properly consider the impact of AM’s age, vulnerability and the evidence of a signicant
learning disability contained in a report on the appellant’s ability to participate eectively
and fairly in the asylum process and the appeal.
a
The Court of Appeal pointed out that the
proceedings in AM’s case should have been carried out in accordance with the Practice
Direction for Child, Vulnerable Adult and Sensitive Witnesses.
b
The Court of Appeal made the following recommendations for the questioning of AM:
• Informal court dress for advocates and judge
• Informal venue for the hearing
• Informal seating arrangements (i.e. round tables or other seating that appears less
confrontational and less adversarial)
• Exclusion of members of the public when AM gives evidence
• Restriction of people present in the courtroom when AM gives evidence, to legal
representatives, the judge, the court clerk and, where he requests one, a person
nominated to personally support him
• Questions asked by both parties to be open-ended where possible and broken down
so that each question is simple and self-contained
• Points to be raised during cross-examination to be identied by the judge
a
AM (Afghanistan) vs. Secretary of State for the Home Department, Court of Appeal (27/09/2017).
b
Practice Direction First Tier and Upper Tribunal Child, Vulnerable Adult and Sensitive Witnesses, Tribunals Judiciary
(30/10/2008).
CHILDREN RECRUITED AND EXPLOITED BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS: ROLE OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
CHILDREN RECRUITED AND EXPLOITED BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS: ROLE OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
Figure II. Provision of information by professionals:
coordinated support model
Police
ocer
Child's
lawyer
Judge
Psychologist
Prosecutor
Support
person
ParentsChild
Source: European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, Child-friendly Justice: Perspectives and Experiences of
Professionals on Children’s Participation in Civil and Criminal Judicial Proceedings in 10 EU Member States (Vienna, 2015),
p. 44.
Finally, appropriate consideration should be given to the hardship and risks faced by children who
have been associated with a terrorist group. In certain cases, exemptions can be granted to children
when their testimony could have an impact on their safety or development. ese exceptions have
already been included in the national legislation of various countries.
82
82
Handbook for Professionals and Policymakers, p. 10.
Case study: Adapting investigations and court proceedings to child
victims and witnesses in Canada
a
In Canada, the Criminal Code recognizes the possibility to use testimonial aids to
facilitate the experience for child victims and witnesses. These include:
• Support person
• Witness screen
• Close-circuit television
• Publication ban
• Exclusion of the public from the courtroom
• Video-recorded evidence
Since 2006, amendments introduced by “Bill C-2, An Act to amend the Criminal Code
(protection of children and other vulnerable persons) and the Canada Evidence Act”,
testimonial aids have made mandatory rather than discretionary. In addition, the Canada
Evidence Act now presumes children under 14 years of age to be capable of testifying,
although they are not heard under oath, but rather following a promise to tell the truth.
Finally, it is possible to hold hearings involving children in child-friendly courts (such and
youth and family courts) rather than in adult courts.
a
Melissa Northco, “Facilitating testimony for child victims and witnesses”, Victims of Crime Research Digest, No. 2 (2009).
CHAPTER 2. CHILD VICTIMS OF RECRUITMENT AND EXPLOITATION: THEIR TREATMENT IN THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
Safety measures
When the child takes an active part in the investigation and judicial proceedings, ensuring his or her
safety is a primary responsibility of the entire justice system. Measures adopted should guarantee that
the proceedings themselves do not create the conditions to endanger the child. Children should always
be provided the chance to express their fears and concerns related to safety.
In this context, the rules concerning the privacy of children should be especially strict. Rules of
condentiality should be applied to any information that could lead to the identication of the child,
and disclosure of information should be restricted.
e public and media should also be excluded from the courtroom whenever the child’s testimony
is presented. Avoiding direct confrontation between the child and the alleged perpetrator is also crucial
at every stage of the proceedings, including during investigation.
Professionals should be particularly vigilant for risks of harm and retaliation, and mandatory report-
ing of instances or likelihood of harm should be extended to include all professionals in contact with
the child (see also chapter I above). A high degree of cooperation between dierent actors is especially
desirable to ensure that reports of such risks are dealt with in an eective and swi manner, especially
when the danger comes from someone with easy access to the child (such as a family member). Such
rules remain signicant also in the context of child returnees. Children who are returnees are vulnera-
ble to stigma. Moreover, professionals have highlighted the capacity of groups with which children
were associated to continue threatening the children or their families, even from a distance, following
the children’s return.
Case study: Protecting the privacy of victims of terrorism in Spain
a
The obligation to protect the right to personal privacy and protect victims against
intrusive media coverage, which can lead to secondary victimization, is equally
important in the context of victims of terrorism.
Spain has implemented a comprehensive package of legal measures to ensure a
victim-sensitive approach to rights concerning victim’s data. They include:
• Media coverage that uses images of victims of terrorism for derogatory, degrading
or sensationalist purposes is illicit.
• Institutions responsible for ensuring that audiovisual media comply with legal
requirements have a duty to adopt appropriate measures to guarantee that victims
of terrorism are treated according to constitutional principles and values.
• Cessation and rectication actions are available and supported by sanctions.
• Principles on the protection of data, including images, of victims of terrorism must
be safeguarded.
a
For further discussion of the practice with regard to this maer in Spain and several other countries, see UNODC,
Good Practices in Supporting Victims of Terrorism within the Criminal Justice Framework (Vienna, 2015), available at www.
unodc.org/
CHILDREN RECRUITED AND EXPLOITED BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS: ROLE OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
CHILDREN RECRUITED AND EXPLOITED BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS: ROLE OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
Finally, when the safety of children is threatened, justice practitioners have the opportunity to take
dierent actions. In these instances, measures that target the alleged perpetrator, such as restraining
orders, pretrial detention and house arrest, should in principle be preferred to measures targeting the
child, such as temporary removal of the child from his or her home. In particular, child victims and
witnesses should not be treated as guilty parties, and any disruption to their lives should be reduced
to a minimum.
Communication and interviews with child victims and witnesses
While interviews with child victims and witnesses are a crucial component of their right to be heard,
they can be especially stressful, in particular for children who have witnessed or suered extreme
violence. In such cases, inappropriate interview methods are particularly likely to lead to secondary
victimization and to yield inaccurate, vague or otherwise useless statements.
In addition, children who have been associated with terrorist and violent extremist groups may
face considerable fear of retaliation. Practitioners report cases of children who have been
instructed to avoid cooperation with the authorities. A number of measures can contribute to
adapting communication to the child’s needs and, at the same time, obtaining more truthful
information. In the case of children, the relevant actors should carefully coordinate their efforts
in order to limit the number of interviews. During a criminal investigation, potential witnesses to
a terrorism-related offence are subjected to repeated interviews by a number of different bodies
and agencies. Multiple interviews not only cause harm to children, but may also cause them to
change or retract evidence because they feel intimidated or are unable to face going through
another interview. This can easily lead to allegations by the prosecution that a child’s evidence is
tainted and unreliable. In addition, repeated interviewing can cause psychological harm to chil-
dren, as they are asked to repeat their traumatic experiences to different individuals whom they
may be meeting for the very first time.
Regardless of the urgency of the investigation or the seriousness of the oence, it is crucial to
ensure that children are not subjected to any form of intimidation, coercion or pressure. Specialized
guidance on the conduct of interviews with children should be adopted, and practitioners should be
trained accordingly. Some of the key elements of guidelines for interviewing and questions children
are shown in table 1.
e need to prevent the possibility of any form of intimidation being exercised directly by the
alleged perpetrators is especially important for children who have been associated with terrorist or
other armed groups. It should be kept in mind that, when children were under the control of the group,
they were integrated into its hierarchical structure, and they may still feel strong fear of, as well as
loyalty towards, authority gures within the group.
Delays
Delayed proceedings are especially problematic for children. ey entail longer periods of anxiety in
connection with testifying, appearing in court, and lasting uncertainties regarding the destiny of the
perpetrators. Just as taking part in the justice process can be a validating experience for the child and
can support his or her sense of justice, delays can cause further disruption in the child’s life.
Moreover, children generally nd it dicult to remember a chronological event in sucient detail
(such as the date and the time of an incident or who was present at dierent moments during the inci-
dent) to satisfy the evidential burden in a criminal trial. is diculty is easily aggravated during the
period between the incident they have witnessed and the trial. In cases involving war crimes, the child
may have been a victim to, or witnessed, an event many years before the trial.
CHAPTER 2. CHILD VICTIMS OF RECRUITMENT AND EXPLOITATION: THEIR TREATMENT IN THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
General
rules
Children should be provided relevant information on their rights, the conduct of criminal
proceedings and their role, as well as the developments of and outcomes of the proceedings.
Interviews with children should always be conducted by skilled, trained professionals, in a
thorough and sensitive manner. Professionals interviewing children who have been associated
with terrorist and violent extremist groups should have specic knowledge of the impact of
extreme violence and trauma on children’s behaviour and development.
Interviewers should avoid a generalized approach to children and adapt each interview to the
level of development, needs and situation of the individual child.
Children should always be interviewed in the presence of a support person. This person should
be selected in the initial stages of the proceedings and accompany the child throughout the
justice process.
Specialized counter-terrorism investigations oen require cooperation among dierent sectors.
However, limiting the number of persons in the room is conducive to a more child-sensitive
environment and contributes to preventing intimidation.
Video recording can be especially helpful to minimize the number of interviews and, at the same
time, to ensure that the conduct of the interview respects the right of children to be treated with
dignity and compassion.
Prior to
the interview
The environment of the interview should be adapted to the child. Interviews with children can
take place in special rooms, even during court proceedings, and be transmitted via video link in
the courtroom.
Any contact between the child and the alleged perpetrators should be carefully avoided, including
while waiting for the interviews and during court proceedings.
Questions should be carefully prepared, and interviewers may want to coordinate with the support
person on the appropriate way to address the child.
Children and their parents should be provided with the appropriate information and give their
informed consent to the conduct of the interview.
During
the interview
Interviews should be carefully structured. In this context, the key phases usually include:
rapport-building; asking questions; and closing the interview.
The ground rules of the interview process should be explained. Children should understand that
there is no “right” or “wrong” answer and should be encouraged to ask for clarications when
necessary. The safety concerns of the child should be addressed.
Leading questions should be avoided, and free narrative accounts should be encouraged, prior to
asking for clarication when necessary.
Questioning should not go on for too long, and appropriate breaks should be ensured.
Before closing the interview, the child should be read a summary of his or her statement and
provided with an opportunity to add further elements.
Following
the interview
Possible follow-up should be discussed, and relevant information should be provided on services
available to the child and to the parents or legal guardians.
The measures that will be adopted to ensure the safety of the child should be explained.
The rules of condentiality should be repeated.
The child should be thanked for his or her cooperation.
Table 1. Guidelines for interviewing and questioning children
Note: For further explanation of the key elements outlined in the table, see UNODC, Handbook for Professionals and Policymakers on Justice Maers
Involving Child Victims and Witnesses of Crime (2009); and “United Nations Guidelines on Justice in Maers involving child victims and witnesses
of crime: online training”. Available at www.unodc.org/justice-child-victims/login/welcome.jsp.
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CHILDREN RECRUITED AND EXPLOITED BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS: ROLE OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
erefore, mechanisms should be put in place to ensure that the testimony of the child is collected as
soon as possible. ese can include: video recording of police interviews; laws and regulations requiring
the avoidance of undue delays in criminal cases involving children, including through the adoption of a
specic timeline; and the requirement that hearings involving children are scheduled as a priority.
Balancing the rights of the child victim and the rights of the accused
In adopting measures to protect child witnesses, criminal justice authorities have to be mindful of the
safeguards protecting the accused person’s right to a fair trial.
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In this regard, it is very important to
clearly distinguish between those measures that limit only the public nature of the proceedings (e.g.
closed hearings and the use of pseudonyms in public versions of documents relating to the trial) and
those that limit the accused person’s ability to challenge the evidence provided by the child witness
(e.g. non-disclosure of the witness’s identity to the accused and limits on cross-examination).
With respect to the right to a public hearing, in article 14, paragraph 1, of the International Covenant
on Civil and Political Rights (General Assembly resolution 2200 A (XXI), annex), it is stated that the
press and the public may be excluded from all or part of a trial when the interest of the private lives of
the parties so requires, or to the extent strictly necessary in the opinion of the court in special circum-
stances where publicity would prejudice the interests of justice. ese grounds apply to the protection
of child witnesses. Article 14, paragraph 1, also allows any judgment rendered in a criminal case or in a
suit at law to be made public except where it is in the interest of juvenile persons to do otherwise.
e accused person’s right to a fair trial will be more gravely aected where witness protection
measures limit his ability to challenge the evidence against him. In article 14, paragraph 3 (b) and (e),
of the International Covenant, it is stated that everyone charged with a criminal oence should have
certain minimum guarantees, including: to have adequate time and facilities for the preparation of his
defence and to examine, or have examined, the witnesses against him. It is not enough for an accused
83
More analysis and further references on fair trial issues in relation to witness protection measures can be found in Module
4 of the UNODC Counter-Terrorism Legal Training Curriculum, Human Rights and Criminal Justice Responses to Terrorism.
Available at www.unodc.org/.
Case study: Preventing the intimidation of children—a study involving
the International Criminal Court case of The Prosecutor v. Thomas
Lubanga Dyilo
In January 2009, the rst witness in the case of The Prosecutor v. Thomas Lubanga Dyilo—a
former child soldier given the pseudonym Dieumerci—was called to the stand. Dieumerci
testied that when he was in the h grade, he, along with other schoolchildren, were
kidnapped by soldiers and taken to a military camp. As the hearing progressed, Dieumerci
became frightened and eventually recanted his testimony entirely. Two weeks later, Dieumerci
took the stand again and repeated his initial testimony, explaining that, the rst time he gave
evidence before the court, a lot of things went through his mind; in particular, he felt
threatened and scared by the presence of the defendant, his former recruiter and commander,
in the courtroom. When called a second time, Dieumerci gave evidence from behind a screen.
The defendant was no longer able to make eye contact or to intimidate the witness.
a
a
C. Hamilton and L. Dutordoir, “Children and justice during and inthe aermath of armed conict”, Working Paper
No. 3 (September 2011), p. 16.
CHAPTER 2. CHILD VICTIMS OF RECRUITMENT AND EXPLOITATION: THEIR TREATMENT IN THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
person to learn on the day of the trial hearing the identity of the witnesses against him. Eective prepa-
ration for cross-examination of the prosecution witnesses takes time: the sooner an accused knows the
identity of the witnesses against him, the beer his chances of identifying information that under-
mines their credibility.
A range of dierent measures can be adopted to protect the child witness against the impact of
direct confrontation with his former exploiter. ose measures include the use of screens in the court-
room to shield the witness, the use of video link or asking questions through the judge. Prosecutors
and judges must be very careful in assessing and balancing the need to protect child witnesses and the
rights of defendants accused of terrorism-related oences, which can carry severe sentences. Where a
child witness cannot be adequately protected without gross unfairness to the accused person, the only
solution may be not to use the child’s testimony.
Witness protection experts have an important role to play in advising law enforcement ocers,
prosecutors and judges on these measures.
International cooperation regarding child victims and witnesses
84
In view of the transnational nature of the activities of most contemporary terrorist groups, the need for
international cooperation in criminal maers is likely to arise when justice authorities deal with a case
involving a child recruited by a terrorist group, whether as victim, witness or alleged oender. e
United Nations counter-terrorism conventions and protocols, as well as binding Security Council
resolutions, require States to cooperate in bringing to justice those responsible for acts of terrorism.
85
In seeking and providing police cooperation or mutual legal assistance in maers relating to chil-
dren, authorities in both requesting and requested States need to take into account the procedural
safeguards and good practices identied above. For instance:
(a) Requesting and providing information, or copies of ocial records, regarding a child. Authorities
of both the requesting State and the requested State need to take into account heightened privacy
requirements in dealing with information about children. Clear communication of legal standards and
expectations between the requesting and requested authorities are key to successful cooperation and
protection of the child’s rights;
(b) Requesting mutual legal assistance to interview a child witness. e requesting State should
ensure that any interview by the authorities of the requested State is carried out in accordance with the
essential requirements of proceedings in maers aecting children in contact with the law (see table 1).
is is necessary both in the interests of the child and to ensure that any statement obtained can subse-
quently be used in any proceedings. e requested State has the responsibility to ensure that the essential
elements of its law regarding proceedings in maers aecting children in contact with the law are
respected. e authorities of the requesting State and the requested State should give a full and transpar-
ent clarication of their respective requirements well in advance of the interview, also in the interest of
limiting the number of interviews. Perhaps most importantly, the competent authorities should be par-
ticularly scrupulous in assessing whether obtaining the child’s statement is actually necessary for the
investigation or the court case.
84
e present section applies general legal standards and good practice principles regarding mutual legal assistance as set
forth in, for example, the UNODC Manual on Mutual Legal Assistance and Extradition (www.unodc.org/) to the specic require-
ments of justice proceedings involving children.
85
For example, art. 10, para. 1, of the International Convention for the Suppression of Terrorist Bombings(United Nations,
Treaty Series, vol. 2149, No. 37517) requires States parties to aord one another the greatest measure of assistance in connection
with investigations or criminal or extradition proceedings brought in respect of terrorist bombing aacks. e same obligation,
to aord one another the greatest measure of assistance in connection with criminal investigations or criminal proceedings relat-
ing to the nancing or support of terrorist acts, is also required of all States by the Security Council in its resolution 1373 (2001).
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CHILDREN RECRUITED AND EXPLOITED BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS: ROLE OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
For further guidance on the treatment of child victims and witnesses during the justice process
• Handbook for Professionals and Policymakers on Justice Matters Involving Child Victims and
Witnesses of Crime (2009)
• UNODC and UNICEF, “Online training on the United Nations Guidelines on Justice in Matters
involving child victims and witnesses of crime” (available at www.unodc.org/justice-child-
victims/login/welcome.jsp)
C. The right of child victims to reparation
Regardless whether reparations are awarded at the individual or collective level, they should seek to
contribute towards restoring social peace for the community. Providing comprehensive redress to vic-
tims requires time, resources, coordination, expertise and political will.
86
Reparation programmes are
therefore oen faced with a wide range of challenges.
Experience shows that timeliness of reparations cannot be taken for granted, regardless of what
approach is taken. It is not atypical for countries facing a history of massive human rights violations to
take some time to implement administrative reparations because they are oen a complex policy
maer that is usually politically and economically charged.
While court-ordered reparations may be subject to less political pressure, they are not necessarily
able to provide more timely redress, given how long complex legal proceedings to adjudicate mass
atrocities may take. In the case of e Prosecutor v. omas Lubanga Dyilo, the International Criminal
Court intends to provide reparations to former child soldiers from a conict that took place during the
period 2002-2003. However, the implementation of symbolic reparations was authorized only in
October 2016, followed by an authorization of collective service-based reparation awards in April 2017,
86
For a comprehensive overview of the opportunities and challenges of reparations, see the report of the Special Rapporteur
on the promotion of truth, justice, reparation and guarantees of non-recurrence (A/69/518).
Checklist for practitioners: keyelements
• Child victims and witnesses enjoy the same procedural safeguards throughout
justice proceedings.
• A careful assessment of the individual circumstances of the case and of the child should
be undertaken to decide on the appropriate degree and form of the child’s participation.
• A variety of mechanisms can be put in place to adapt the investigation and court
proceedings to the needs of the child and improve his or her experience of justice.
• Professionals dealing with children should strive to coordinate to limit the number of
interviews and should receive specic training on child-sensitive communication.
• When adopting measures to guarantee the safety of the child, preference should be
given to measures addressing the alleged perpetrator’s ability to harm or threaten the
child, rather than removing the child from his or her environment, whenever possible.
• When adopting witness protection measures aecting an accused person’s right to a
fair trial, careful consideration must be given to balancing child protection needs
and defence procedural safeguards.
• Safeguards should be equally applied when requesting or providing police-to-police
cooperation and mutual legal assistance in matters aecting child victims and witnesses.
CHAPTER 2. CHILD VICTIMS OF RECRUITMENT AND EXPLOITATION: THEIR TREATMENT IN THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
and the Court’s nal decision on reparations is still outstanding. In the meantime, almost 15 years later,
the former child soldiers have grown into (young) adults without having received the much needed
support to redress the harm they have suered, in addition to support for their rehabilitation.
Despite all the complexities, it is therefore of great importance to ensure that reparations are timely.
e longer the delay between the violation that gave rise to the harm that the reparations scheme seeks
to redress, the more dicult it will become to achieve eective redress, in particular if the victims are
children. If necessary, urgent interim measures will need to be taken.
In addition, particular aention should be paid to specic forms of violence and their consequences.
Sexual violence and gender-based violence, in particular, not only aect the victims in numerous ways,
but also have a considerable impact on their willingness to come forward.
While reparation can take the form of monetary compensation, the concept of reparation is in no
way limited to this form of redress. In the Basic Principles and Guidelines on the Right to a Remedy
and Reparation for Victims of Gross Violations of International Human Rights Law and Serious
Violations of International Humanitarian Law (General Assembly resolution 60/147, annex), it is
stated that reparation includes the following forms:
(a) Restitution (e.g. release from detention or custody, return home and restoration of property
and enjoyment of human rights);
(b) Compensation (e.g. economic compensation for physical harm or material or moral
damages);
(c) Rehabilitation (e.g. medical and psychological care and legal and social services);
(d) Satisfaction (e.g. measures to end violations, public acknowledgement of the truth, identi-
cation and recovery of the disappeared, apology by the perpetrator and judicial sanctions against the
perpetrator);
(e) Guarantees of non-repetition (e.g. strengthening of the rule of law, mechanisms for preventing
and monitoring conict, and law reform).
In the case of children harmed as a result of recruitment and exploitation by terrorist and violent
extremist groups, some of these forms of reparation are especially relevant: reparation for the purposes
of physical and psychological rehabilitation; satisfaction, for instance, in the form of eorts to bring to
justice those who recruited and exploited the children; and measures aimed at non-repetition (i.e. safe-
guarding the children from re-recruitment and new exploitation).
e following section focuses on analysing the key elements that can make the implementation of
reparations more tailored to the needs of victims, in particular the needs of children recruited and
exploited by terrorist and violent extremist groups.
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CHILDREN RECRUITED AND EXPLOITED BY TERRORIST AND VIOLENT EXTREMIST GROUPS: ROLE OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM
. Sources of the right of child victims to reparation
e international legal framework provides guidance on the rights of victims, including child victims,
to reparations. e present section outlines the crucial elements to determine what constitutes repara-
tions, and who is entitled to them, according to international law.
Basic Principles and Guidelines on the Right to a Remedy and Reparation for
Victims of Gross Violations of International Human Rights Law and Serious
Violations of International Humanitarian Law
One key source for the principles underlying reparations are the Basic Principles and Guidelines on
the Right to a Remedy and Reparation for Victims of Gross Violations of International Human Rights
Law and Serious Violations of International Humanitarian Law, which requires States that have not
already done so to ensure that their domestic law is consistent with their international legal obligations
by making available adequate, eective, prompt and appropriate remedies to victims, including reparation,
and to ensure that their domestic law provides at least the same level of protection for victims as that required
by their international obligations (General Assembly resolution 60/147, annex, para. 2 (c) and (d)).
Guidelines on Justice in Matters involving Child Victims and Witnesses of Crime
e Guidelines on J</