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Pictures of Child Soldiers
These two pictures are of child soldiers participating in the Sri Lankan conflict. Child soldiers are major war crimes. Though one is quick to say that the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam are those that continue to transgress this international law, Sri Lanka’s government is also to blame. The Sri Lankan government dominated by the Sinhalese people enjoys seeing their adversaries falling under accusations of child soldiers. Often the government soldiers are recruiting these children for the Tamil guerilla groups specifically the Karuna. These young rebels are for the most part forcibly being recruited, but the LTTE defend this act by saying these child additions are voluntary. And yes, some of these children are voluntarily fighting under awful circumstances like no family/home. However, the use of child combatants, voluntary or not, is still an international humanitarian violation. Children are abducted as young as nine years old. In this particular picture (directly above), I estimate that the boys are no older than 16 years old. It is obvious that the children in these pictures have fallen to the threatening hands of rebels and even the government. What I personally take away from the picture directly above are three boys who have no choice but to kill or be killed.
It's really sad when children have no choice but to join the army because they have no family or home to go to. Thanks for sharing this, Juli. I feel that the issue of child soldiers is often overlooked.