Universal Declaration of Human Rights?

Question

The Burmese military is recruiting children into its military forcibly. Can you please tell me what article of the Universal Declarartion of Human Rights this violates.

Thanks for the help.

Answer 1

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights is a general instrument, covering all human rights in a declaratory or non-binding manner.  It was adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1948.  There are no articles in it that directly cover the topic of child soldiers.

The Convention on the Rights of the Child is a treaty ratified by 192 countries in the world, including Burma (Myanmar). It came into force in 1991. Since countries have formally ratified it as a binding treaty, not just adopted it in a General Assembly vote, it has more binding force than the Universal Declaration. The first answer posted to this question above contains a comprehensive analysis of that treaty (Convention). This is probably your best authority for demonstrating that forced recruitment of child soldiers by Burma (Myanmar) is a violation.

The Convention on the Rights of the Child also has a specific supplement text, called the Optional Protocol on Children in Armed Conflict, that prohibits recruiting children under the age of 18 into the military.  Unfortunately Myanmar has not ratified this Optional Protocol yet, so it has no binding effect on them.

The Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court makes it a war crime to recruit children under the age of 15 into the military.

International Labour Organisation Convention No. 182 of 1999 on Child Labour prohibits forced recruitment of children into the military.

Unfortunately neither the Rome Statute on the International Criminal Court or the International Labour Organisation Convention have been ratified by Myanmar.

Answer 2

Definition of the child (Article 1): The Convention defines a 'child' as a person below the age of 18, unless the laws of a particular country set the legal age for adulthood younger. The Committee on the Rights of the Child, the monitoring body for the Convention, has encouraged States to review the age of majority if it is set below 18 and to increase the level of protection for all children under 18.

Right to life, survival and development (Article 6): Children have the right to live. Governments should ensure that children survive and develop healthily.

Article 9 (Separation from parents): Children have the right to live with their parent(s), unless it is bad for them. Children whose parents do not live together have the right to stay in contact with both parents, unless this might hurt the child.

Article 19 (Protection from all forms of violence): Children have the right to be protected from being hurt and mistreated, physically or mentally. Governments should ensure that children are properly cared for and protect them from violence, abuse and neglect by their parents, or anyone else who looks after them. In terms of discipline, the Convention does not specify what forms of punishment parents should use. However any form of discipline involving violence is unacceptable. There are ways to discipline children that are effective in helping children learn about family and social expectations for their behaviour – ones that are non-violent, are appropriate to the child's level of development and take the best interests of the child into consideration. In most countries, laws already define what sorts of punishments are considered excessive or abusive. It is up to each government to review these laws in light of the Convention.

Article 38 (War and armed conflicts): Governments must do everything they can to protect and care for children affected by war. Children under 15 should not be forced or recruited to take part in a war or join the armed forces. The Convention’s Optional Protocol on the involvement of children in armed conflict further develops this right, raising the age for direct participation in armed conflict to 18 and establishing a ban on compulsory recruitment for children under 18.

Article 32 (Child labour): The government should protect children from work that is dangerous or might harm their health or their education. While the Convention protects children from harmful and exploitative work, there is nothing in it that prohibits parents from expecting their children to help out at home in ways that are safe and appropriate to their age. If children help out in a family farm or business, the tasks they do be safe and suited to their level of development and comply with national labour laws. Children's work should not jeopardize any of their other rights, including the right to education, or the right to relaxation and play.