This is a descriptive study. A child soldier is a child under the age of 18 that is recruited into the armed forces and engages in political violence. Child Soldiers are recruited by a state or non-state armed group and used as fighters, cooks, suicide bombers, human shields, messengers, spies, or for sexual purposes. This work of research describes the plight of child soldiers taking in context the scenario of different nations. The International mechanisms to combat this problem have also been discussed in the research paper. THOMAS LUBANGAs trial has also been discussed.Further, the reasons behind the delivery of Child soldiers have also been highlighted. The research work also highlights the different challenges which are still to be contented.
A growing wave of scholarship suggests that ideology has demonstrable effects on various forms of armed conflict. But ideology remains a relative theoretical newcomer in conflict research, and scholars lack developed microfoundations for analyzing ideologies and their effects. Typically, existing research has primarily presented ideology as either an instrumental tool for conflict actors or a source of sincere political and normative commitments. But neither approach captures the diverse ways in which contemporary social science theorizes the causal connection between ideas and action, and both struggle to reconcile the apparently strong effects of ideology on conflict at the collective level with the relative rarity of 'true believers' at the individual level. This article addresses such problems by providing key microfoundations for conceptualizing ideologies, analyzing ideological change, and explaining ideologies' influence over conflict behavior. I emphasize that ideology overlaps with other drivers of conflict such as strategic interests and group identities, show how ideologies can affect conflict behavior through four distinct mechanisms – commitment, adoption, conformity, and instrumentalization – and clarify the role of both conflict pressures and pre-existing ideological conditions in ideological change. These microfoundational claims integrate existing empirical findings and offer a foundation for building deeper explanations and middle-range theories of ideology's role in armed conflict.
A growing wave of scholarship suggests that ideology has demonstrable effects on various forms of armed conflict. But ideology remains a relative theoretical newcomer in conflict research, and scholars lack developed microfoundations for analyzing ideologies and their effects. Typically, existing research has primarily presented ideology as either an instrumental tool for conflict actors or a source of sincere political and normative commitments. But neither approach captures the diverse ways in which contemporary social science theorizes the causal connection between ideas and action, and both struggle to reconcile the apparently strong effects of ideology on conflict at the collective level with the relative rarity of 'true believers' at the individual level. This article addresses such problems by providing key microfoundations for conceptualizing ideologies, analyzing ideological change, and explaining ideologies' influence over conflict behavior. I emphasize that ideology overlaps with other drivers of conflict such as strategic interests and group identities, show how ideologies can affect conflict behavior through four distinct mechanisms – commitment, adoption, conformity and instrumentalization – and clarify the role of both conflict pressures and preexisting ideological conditions in ideological change. These microfoundational claims integrate existing empirical findings and offer a foundation for building deeper explanations and middle-range theories of ideology's role in armed conflict.
During armed conflict, people with disabilities are victims of a vicious cycle of violence, social polarization, deteriorating services and deepening poverty. They are among the most marginalized and excluded part of the population affected by the armed conflict. They are at greater risk in situations of conflict, most likely to be left behind when populations flee and also at greater risk of violence and discrimination. The international normative framework related to people with disabilities in armed conflicts is mainly based on human rights law and international humanitarian law. The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities moves the meaning of disability from regarding persons with disabilities as objects of medical care and charity to recognizing them as subjects with rights. There is still a long way to go in effectively protecting disabled people during armed conflicts. It seems that legal norms in this respect are sufficiently precise. 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The impact of armed conflict on gender differentials in schooling appears to be highly context-specific, as the review of the literature and the findings from the three studies in this symposium reveal. In some settings boys' schooling is more negatively affected than that of girls. In others, the reverse is the case. Effects are largely shaped by events surrounding a conflict, pre-war gender differences in educational attainments, and education and labor market opportunities in the absence of war. Rigorous evaluations of post-conflict policies and aid projects can provide useful information to address educational needs and gender differentials in these environments.
This article presents a novel way to conceptualize the protection of data in situations of armed conflict. Although the question of the targeting of data through adversarial military cyber operations and its implications for the qualification of such conduct under International Humanitarian Law has been on scholars' and states' radar for the last few years, there remain a number of misunderstandings as to how to think about the notion of "data." Based on a number of fictional scenarios, the article clarifies the pertinent terminology and makes some expedient distinctions between various types of data. It then analyzes how existing international humanitarian and international human rights law applies to cyber operations whose effects have an impact on data. The authors argue that given the persisting ambiguities of traditional concepts such as "object" and "attack" under international humanitarian law, the targeting of content data continues to fall into a legal grey zone, which potentially has wide-ranging ramifications both for the rights of individual civilians and the functioning of civilian societies during situations of conflict. At the same time, much legal uncertainty surrounds the application of human rights law to these contexts, and existing data protection frameworks explicitly exclude taking effect in relation to issues of security. Acknowledging these gaps, the article attempts to advance the debate by proposing a paradigm shift: Instead of taking existing rules on armed conflict and applying them to "data," we should contemplate applying the principles of data protection, data security, and privacy frameworks to military cyber operations in armed conflict.
Women increasingly bear the major burden of armed conflict. In recent years particular attention has been given to the question of violence against women in armed conflict. The significance of these developments is considerable. However, the focus on violence-in particular on sexual violence-tends to obscure other important aspects of women's experience of armed conflict that to date have been largely ignored. The purpose of this comment is to consider a range of ways in which women are affected by armed conflict and to assess the adequacy of international law in protecting them. International Humanitarian Law (IHL) is an ancient, conservative, and relatively inflexible area of international law. The number of challenges posed to its relevance and effectiveness in the last half century has been bewildering. It now must meet the demands of women to truly reflect their life experiences. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) a deeply conservative organization, has special responsibility for the development of IHL and is in danger of losing the initiative in many areas where it should be at the forefront of developments. The ICRC is finally recognizing the need to address the specific needs of women in armed conflict. However, a serious commitment to real change is needed. As the traditional guardian of IHL, the ICRC must take concrete steps to make the law relevant to the lives of the majority of the world's population.
Women increasingly bear the major burden of armed conflict. In recent years particular attention has been given to the question of violence against women in armed conflict. The significance of these developments is considerable. However, the focus on violence-in particular on sexual violence-tends to obscure other important aspects of women's experience of armed conflict that to date have been largely ignored. The purpose of this comment is to consider a range of ways in which women are affected by armed conflict and to assess the adequacy of international law in protecting them. International Humanitarian Law (IHL) is an ancient, conservative, and relatively inflexible area of international law. The number of challenges posed to its relevance and effectiveness in the last half century has been bewildering. It now must meet the demands of women to truly reflect their life experiences. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) a deeply conservative organization, has special responsibility for the development of IHL and is in danger of losing the initiative in many areas where it should be at the forefront of developments. The ICRC is finally recognizing the need to address the specific needs of women in armed conflict. However, a serious commitment to real change is needed. As the traditional guardian of IHL, the ICRC must take concrete steps to make the law relevant to the lives of the majority of the world's population.
This article presents a novel way to conceptualize the protection of data in situations of armed conflict. Although the question of the targeting of data through adversarial military cyber operations and its implications for the qualification of such conduct under International Humanitarian Law has been on scholars' and states' radar for the last few years, there remain a number of misunderstandings as to how to think about the notion of "data." Based on a number of fictional scenarios, the article clarifies the pertinent terminology and makes some expedient distinctions between various types of data. It then analyzes how existing international humanitarian and international human rights law applies to cyber operations whose effects have an impact on data. The authors argue that given the persisting ambiguities of traditional concepts such as "object" and "attack" under international humanitarian law, the targeting of content data continues to fall into a legal grey zone, which potentially has wide-ranging ramifications both for the rights of individual civilians and the functioning of civilian societies during situations of conflict. At the same time, much legal uncertainty surrounds the application of human rights law to these contexts, and existing data protection frameworks explicitly exclude taking effect in relation to issues of security. Acknowledging these gaps, the article attempts to advance the debate by proposing a paradigm shift: Instead of taking existing rules on armed conflict and applying them to "data," we should contemplate applying the principles of data protection, data security, and privacy frameworks to military cyber operations in armed conflict.
In recent years, cities in countries such as Syria, Ukraine, and Somalia have been sites of major incidents of armed conflict. Such violence has led observers to note that armed conflict is becoming more urbanized in nature and increasingly affecting cities. However, existing research has not been able to ascertain whether armed conflict is gradually more concentrated in cities, for two reasons. First, most studies employ a grid-based design which does not theoretically or operationally correspond to cities. Second, some studies take the city as the unit of analysis, but look only at a few major cities in certain regions of the world, or include a broader range of political violence. To assess whether armed conflict is indeed becoming more urban in character, we analyze global patterns of armed conflict 1989–2017. We match the UCDP Georeferenced Events Dataset to cities with at least 100,000 inhabitants, and analyze over time the share of fatalities incurred by armed conflict. We include violence be-tween organized armed actors (inter- and intrastate), but also conflict-related violence against civilians which captures acts of terrorism. With this novel approach, we identify an overall reduction over time in the share of armed conflict violence taking place in cities.
Controversy and confusion pervade the law of armed conflict. Its most basic rules may seem ambiguous, vague, incomplete, or inconsistent. The prevailing view of customary international law confronts serious problems, in principle and in practice, when applied to the customary law of armed conflict. Legal indeterminacy, in its different forms, might be reduced or resolved in light of the object and purpose of the law of armed conflict, or by taking into account other relevant rules of international law. Unfortunately, the purpose of the law of armed conflict is itself the subject of deep disagreement. So is the relationship between the law of armed conflict and other branches of international law, most notably the law of inter-State force and human rights law. This article examines different forms of legal indeterminacy and different legal techniques available to address them, using concrete controversies to illustrate abstract ideas. It defends one view of the purpose of the law of armed conflict and its relationship with other rules of international law. The purpose of the law is not to balance a constraining principle of humanity against an authorizing principle of military necessity. Instead, the purpose of the law is simply to protect persons and objects to the greatest extent practically possible, that is, without depriving other rules of international law, which authorize certain uses of armed force, of practical effect. Finally, it shows that the law of armed conflict contains a number of clues for its own interpretation, some of them hidden in plain sight, including a recurring pattern of general protections with limited exceptions.
The problem of the definition of terrorism is controversial and relevant to international law. The universal definition is not yet reached in international treaties; thus the discussion of the question is important in distinguishing this phenomenon from other so called "regular" crimes. The aim of the article is to reveal the elements of the definition of terrorism, paying particular attention to the situations of armed conflict. The object of the research - norms of international law defining terrorism, enshrined in the provisions of international agreements concluded within the framework of various regional international organizations and the United Nations.
Soziale, politische und geografische Prozesse der Stadtentwicklung in Konflikt- und Grenzregionen werden in dieser Dissertation durch eine Kombination von Satellitenbildern und Feldforschung analysiert. Das Untersuchungsgebiet ist die Grenzregion zwischen der Demokratischen Republik Kongo (DRK) und Ruanda, die seit Anfang der 1990er Jahre von zwischen- und innerstaatlichen bewaffneten Konflikten betroffen ist. Im Fokus der Analyse liegt Goma, die Provinzhauptstadt von Nord-Kivu im Osten der DRK. Zusätzlich wird ein Vergleich mit Gomas Zwillingsstadt Gisenyi in Ruandas Westprovinz gezogen. Die Literatur zu urbanen Räumen im Kongo und in gesamt Subsahara-Afrika bezieht sich häufig auf Primärstädte. Über die Entwicklung von Sekundärstädten in Konfliktzonen, für die es kaum räumlich explizite Studien gibt, ist wenig bekannt. Diese Arbeit bietet zwei sich ergänzende Perspektiven durch die Kombination von Satellitenbildanalyse mit semi-strukturierten Interviews und Beobachtungen aus mehreren Forschungsaufenthalten. Das zweite Kapitel verwendet eine Zeitreihe hochaufgelöster Landsat-Szenen, um die Expansion von Goma zwischen 1986 und 2015 zu analysieren. Dieser Zeitrahmen umfasst internen Konflikt in Ruanda (1990-1994), die Kongo-Kriege (1996-2003) und deren von Gewalt geprägte Folgezeit. Das dritte Kapitel basiert auf der Analyse sehr hochauflösender Satellitenbilder. Eine feinskalige Kartierung von Urbanisierungsmustern zwischen 2005 und 2014 wird mit verantwortlichen Akteursgruppen verbunden. Das vierte Kapitel erweitert die Analyse auf Gomas ruandische Nachbarstadt Gisenyi. Es untersucht und vergleicht, wie sich zwischen- und innerstaatliche Konflikte und die jüngste Phase von Stabilität in Ruanda auf die räumliche Stadtentwicklung über die nationale Grenze hinweg auswirken. Die Arbeit schließt mit einer kritischen Reflexion über Nutzen und Grenzen des angewendeten Methodenmix und zeigt mögliche Bereiche für weitere Forschung auf. ; This dissertation combines satellite imagery analysis and field research to investigate the influence of armed conflict on urban spatial development in the eastern periphery of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and western Rwanda. This border region continues to be affected by inter- and intra-state conflict since the early 1990s. The primary study area is the city of Goma in Congo's North Kivu province. Additionally, a comparison is drawn to the adjacent city of Gisenyi in Rwanda's Western Province. The literature on urban areas in Congo and throughout Sub-Saharan Africa often refers to large primary cities. Little is known about urban development of secondary cities in conflict zones, and spatially explicit studies are rare. By combining satellite imagery analysis with semi-structured interviews and observations from field visits, this dissertation provides two complementary perspectives. The second chapter uses a time series of high-resolution Landsat images to analyze Goma's expansion between 1986 and 2015, a timeframe that includes conflict in Rwanda (1990-1994), the Congo Wars (1996-2003), and their violent aftermath. It shows how stages of urban growth relate to waves of forced displacement. The third chapter relies on very high-resolution (VHR) images for a fine-scale mapping of urbanization patterns between 2005 and 2014, and attributes them to groups of key actors. The fourth chapter extends the analysis to Goma's Rwandan twin-city Gisenyi. It compares how inter- and intra-state conflict, and recent stability in Rwanda affect urban development across a national border. The dissertation concludes by reflecting on the utility and limitations of this methodological combination for conflict regions, highlighting areas for further research.
The rule against perfidy in armed conflict—one of the last echoes of honor and social order of war—is threatened by emerging technologies. Specifically, the employment of emerging technologies has muddied the already thin and grey line between acts which contravene the honor of warfare and legitimate ruses of war. In this article, the authors analyze perfidy, treachery and ruses of war as key concepts of international humanitarian law and consider their application to emerging technologies.
Throughout history, women have suffered most from armed conflicts in different forms. Thus, humanitarian law observes protective mechanisms for civilians specially women during armed conflicts. Despite protections and actions of international and non-international organizations, there are not enough guarantees to enforce protection of women in armed conflicts. In this regard, this study, entitled Humanitarian protection of women in armed conflicts, made an attempt to explore the related international documents. To do so, the conceptual framework of the study was first set up, defining concepts of war, the law of war, humanitarian law, civilian and protection of civilians. Then, kinds of protections, especially protection against sexual acts of violence, were explored under the title of women in armed conflicts. Finally, the question of whether the current support mechanisms are capable enough to protect women at the time of armed conflicts was discussed. As a conclusion, it can be said that the quality of providing or not providing humanitarian protection of women depends on controlling abundant variables including cultural factors (beliefs, principles, and national norms), psychological factors (policy-makers' tendencies and spirits), international factors (location and regional and international ties), social factors (national manner, ethnic structure, social history, minorities' situation, gender relations), political factors (government's structure and history, state/nation relations) and the relation between these factors as well. DOI:10.5901/mjss.2015.v6n3s2p40
