ASIA/MYANMAR - The difficult recovery of child soldiers

Monday, 21 November 2016 child soldier  

Internet

Rangoon (Agenzia Fides) - The United Nations Organization for Children continues its recovery program of child soldiers recruited by the Burmese army. No one knows exactly how many are enrolled. According to the United Nations, besides the Armed Forces, seven armed ethnic groups recruit child soldiers in the Country where, for decades, there have been many internal conflicts. Thanks to the recovery program, since 2012, 800 Burmese soldiers have returned to civilian life. Reintegration is very difficult for these young people. Most of them are natives from poor rural families who flee from poverty to live in Rangoon and Mandalay, the two major cities of the Country, where recruiters look for them in public places. The methods used range from threats, the use of drugs or promises of well-paid jobs. According to experts, the phenomenon does not diminish, and children continue to be victims of these practices. The Tatmadaw, the name of the Burmese army, has difficulty in recruiting victims and takes advantage of vulnerable people, according to reports by the International Labour Organization (ILO) in Rangoon. (AP) (Agenzia Fides 21/11/2016)


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