‘450 Darfuri child soldiers registered in 2013’: researcher

A peace study centre has revealed that 450 children who were recruited by armed movements in Darfur, were registered at the Sudan’s Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reintegration Commission in 2013. Dr Wafa Ali of the government-sponsored Leena Centre for Peace Studies said that 389 of these children were boys, and 61 of them were girls, during a workshop held this weekend. She revealed her findings in a paper she prepared on the protection of children from the effects of armed conflicts. “608 recruited children are now registered at the disarmament commission in South Darfur, 262 children in West Darfur, of whom 204 have been reintegrated [into the community, ed.]. Finally, 381 children are registered in North Darfur, of whom 350 have been reintegrated.” “Despite the signing of the Doha Document for Peace in Darfur, the information about children recruited by armed movements remains unavailable,” Ali said. Since 2009, six parties to the conflict in Darfur have established action plans to end recruitment and use of child soldiers. Meanwhile, more than 1,200 former child soldiers have been registered to benefit from reintegration programs with the support of the Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reintegration Commission, Unicef, and Unamid.File photo: Child soldiers (Gabriel Galwak / IRIN)Related: ‘North Darfur tribal leaders agree to end use of child soldiers’: Unamid (13 October 2014) Sudan’s militia recruits more than 3,000 minors in South Kordofan (27 August 2014) Darfur rebel movement bans use of child soldiers in its ranks (18 December 2014)