War. Sometimes considered a necessary evil but should it really cost the lives of thousand of innocent children? Currently there is estimated to be 300,000 children fighting in wars in Africa, Sudan, Afghanistan, and in countless other countries. Usually ranging from 14 to 18 children get recruited or kidnapped but some are pulled in as young as 11. A child soldier is defined as “any child—boy or girl—under eighteen years of age, who is part of any kind of regular or irregular armed force or armed group in any capacity”(Kaplan). Although child soldiers have been used to aid in combat, in cases such as Hitler’s youth group or squires training to be knights in the 15th century, there is a greater concern for them being used now, considering that they are thrown to front lines instead of being prepared at a young ages to fight when they are more mature. War in the modern day is far more advanced and the military leaders are giving children deadlier weapons and subjecting them to gruesome violence all to save money and have more men fighting under them . Child soldiers are used in war for many jobs and because their naive tendencies, easy manipulation, and that they are cheap and plentiful.
Child soldiers can be used for many jobs. They aren’t given much training but their main focus is being sent to the front lines. “They may fight on the front lines, participate in suicide missions, and act as spies, messengers, or lookouts”(child soldiers). Children also get to carry heavy loads of ammunition and injured soldiers or be cooks and guards in a time of peace. They are useful since they “can fight in the army for over 20 years before they are released”(11 reasons children become soldiers) and they create a lot of chaos...
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...and 69% males said yes. Finally when asked if they would kill someone to protect their family, 85% females said they would and 100% males said they would.
Works Cited
http://www.rferl.org/content/Child_Warriors_Around_The_World__Manipulation_Without_End/1349622.html http://www.hrw.org/topic/childrens-rights/child-soldiers http://childrenandarmedconflict.un.org/effects-of-conflict/root-causes-of-child-soldiering/ http://www.warchild.org.uk/about https://www.dosomething.org/tipsandtools/why-countries-have-child-soldiers http://www.child-soldiers.org/faq.php http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/people/features/childrensrights/childrenofconflict/soldier.shtml http://www.cfr.org/human-rights/child-soldiers-around-world/p9331#p2 http://www.unicef.org/sowc96/2csoldrs.htm
http://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/C157333FCA91F573C1256C130033E448-chilsold.htm
A prominent theme in A Long Way Gone is about the loss of innocence from the involvement in the war. A Long Way Gone is the memoir of a young boy, Ishmael Beah, wanders in Sierra Leone who struggles for survival. Hoping to survive, he ended up raiding villages from the rebels and killing everyone. One theme in A long Way Gone is that war give innocent people the lust for revenge, destroys childhood and war became part of their daily life.
In the novel All quiet on the western front by Erich Maria Remarque one of the major themes he illustrates is the effects of war on a soldier 's humanity. Paul the protagonist is a German soldier who is forced into war with his comrades that go through dehumanizing violence. War is a very horrid situation that causes soldiers like Paul to lose their innocence by stripping them from happiness and joy in life. The symbols Remarque uses to enhance this theme is Paul 's books and the potato pancakes to depict the great scar war has seared on him taking all his connections to life. Through these symbols they deepen the theme by visually depicting war’s impact on Paul. Paul’s books represent the shadow war that is casted upon Paul and his loss of innocence. This symbol helps the theme by depicting how the war locked his heart to old values by taking his innocence. The last symbol that helps the theme are the potato pancakes. The potato pancakes symbolize love and sacrifice by Paul’s mother that reveal Paul emotional state damaged by the war with his lack of happiness and gratitude.
To say adults are less than children is an understatement. To say children are more than adults is an overstatement. Children may be more apt at activities that require more risk-taking and being able to overcome ones ego, however children are also easy to manipulate. The exploitation of the children in warfare is not necessarily a moral decision, but in time of necessity, a morality evolution may take place. You have to decide if the end justifies the means.
As defined by Timothy Webster, author of Babes with Arms: International Law and Child Soldiers, a child soldier is “any person under the age of eighteen who is or has been associated with any kind of regular or irregular armed group, including those who serve as porters, spies, cooks, messengers and including girls recruited for sexual purposes (Webster, 2007, pp.230). As this definition reveals, a child soldier is more than simply a child with a gun. It is estimated that there are approximately 300,000 children under the age of 18, being used as soldiers in 33 conflicts currently, and this figure continues to rise (Webster, 2007, pp.227). Similarly, in 1999 it was estimated that more than 120,000 children, under the age of 18, were used as soldiers to fight ...
There is no exact known number of children currently being utilised in warfare worldwide. The issue of the military use of children is so widespread that no figure can be calculated, although it is estimated that there are currently over 250,000 child soldiers across the world. Many are drugged and brainwashed into murder, many are forced to sever all ties with their family or watch them die. Most are faced with a simple choice: kill or be killed. Although the notion of child soldiers is vastly alien to contemporary Australian society, it is a reality in many parts of the world.
There are several aspects of military life that are unique, and often misunderstood by educators. There are five main demands the military makes of the families of servicemembers, such as frequently moving, being separated from loved ones, deployment, risks such as injury or death, and behavioral norms (Segal, 1986). Permanent changes of station (PCS) make it difficult for families to build community ties, build strong relationships with school personnel, and receive continuous services, especially if children have special needs. Deployment is merely one aspect of military life that is strenuous for the families of active service members. Another hardship that many face is psychological issues. Some
The men who send young boys to die have not fought in a war themselves and do not know the horrors of war. With the involvement of the majority of men and women participating in the military, the call of war will be more thought out and certain.
The New York Times Bestseller We Were Soldiers Once... And Young was authored by Lt. General Harold G. Moore and Joseph L. Galloway. In November 1965, Lt. Colonel Harold Moore commanded the 1st Battalion, 7th cavalry at the Ia Drang Valley-one of the bloodiest battles of Vietnam. He eventually retired from the Army in 1977 after thirty-two years of service. After his military career, Lieutenant General Moore resided as executive vice president for four years at a Colorado ski resort before founding a computer software company. Harold Moore currently lives in Auburn, Alabama and Crested Butte, Colorado.
Child soldier is a worldwide issue, but it became most critical in the Africa. Child soldiers are any children under the age of 18 who are recruited by some rebel groups and used as fighters, cooks, messengers, human shields and suicide bombers, some of them even under the aged 10 when they are forced to serve. Physically vulnerable and easily intimidated, children typically make obedient soldiers. Most of them are abducted or recruited by force, and often compelled to follow orders under threat of death. As society breaks down during conflict, leaving children no access to school, driving them from their homes, or separating them from family members, many children feel that rebel groups become their best chance for survival. Others seek escape from poverty or join military forces to avenge family members who have been killed by the war. Sometimes they even forced to commit atrocities against their own family (britjob p 4 ). The horrible and tragic fate of many unfortunate children is set on path of war murders and suffering, more nations should help to prevent these tragedies and to help stop the suffering of these poor, unfortunate an innocent children.
War affects every aspect of a child 's development. Children affected by armed conflict can be injured or killed, uprooted from their homes and communities, internally displaced or refugees, orphaned or separated from their parents and families, subjected to sexual abuse and exploitation, victims of trauma as a result of being exposed to violence, deprived of education and recreation, at risk of becoming child soldiers (unknown
Throughout the world children younger than 18 are being enlisted into the armed forces to fight while suffering through multiple abuses from their commanders. Children living in areas and countries that are at war are seemingly always the ones being recruited into the armed forces. These children are said to be fighting in about 75 percent of the world’s conflicts with most being 14 years or younger (Singer 2). In 30 countries around the world, the number of boys and girls under the age of 18 fighting as soldiers in government and opposition armed forces is said to be around 300,000 (“Child Soldiers: An Overview” 1). These statistics are clearly devastating and can be difficult to comprehend, since the number of child soldiers around the world should be zero. Furthermore, hundreds of thousands adolescent children are being or have been recruited into paramilitaries, militias and non-state groups in more than 85 countries (“Child Soldiers: An Overview” 1). This information is also quite overwhelming. Child soldiers are used around the world, but in some areas, the numbers are more concentrated.
Many children are born into families that are a part of a branch of the military. Parents may wonder if the constant moving and deployment will bring negative effects on a child’s development. The rigorous lifestyle of the military can have negative effects on the children’s development growing up, but the opportunity of living as a military child is a culturally diverse, socially strong, and mature development of characteristics. The military life offers many benefits for raising a child. Have a family in the military lifestyle can greatly help the children’s development of positives characteristics.
A child soldier is defined as someone who is under eighteen years of age and is actively fighting in war. It is estimated by UNICEF that some 300,000 child soldiers, both boys and girls, are currently fighting in wars. A majority of children are turned into child soldiers through recruitment or force while others join because they live in a poverty stricken area or a war zone. (UNICEF) Most child soldiers range ...
Does a soldier have wounds that a doctor cannot see? Sometimes the most harmful effects of war are emotional wounds. Hemingway displays the theme that war causes emotional damage in his novel The Sun Also Rises. Some veterans suffer from emotional pain as a result of war, whereas others are able to grow from the experience.
War has always been something to be dreaded by people since nothing good comes from it. War affects people of all ages, cultures, races and religion. It brings change, destruction and death and these affect people to great extents. “Every day as a result of war and conflict thousands of civilians are killed, and more than half of these victims are children” (Graca & Salgado, 81). War is hard on each and every affected person, but the most affected are the children.