Girl soldiers

Last updated

Girl soldiers, also referred to as female child soldiers, [1] girls in fighting forces [2] [3] or girls associated with an armed force or armed group (GAAFAG), [4] have been recruited by armed forces and groups in the majority of conflicts in which child soldiers are used. A wide range of rough estimates of their percentage among child soldiers is reported in literature, but scarcity of high-quality data poses problems for establishing their numbers.

Contents

Many girl soldiers are abduction victims or forcibly recruited by armed groups and forces, while others join armed groups and forces for a variety of reasons ranging from survival and escape from poverty or domestic violence to ideological. They face high rates of sexual violence, sexual slavery and forced marriage. Although commonly depicted as exclusively used in combat service support and sexual roles, many are trained for and take direct part in hostilities, including in some cases as suicide bombers. While more frequently found in non-governmental groups, they have also been recruited by governmental forces.

In comparison to male child soldiers, female child soldiers are less studied, receive less media attention, receive less support during reintegration, have low rates of participation in disarmament, demobilization and reintegration programs, and face a number of additional health, psychosocial and socio-economic effects.

Definition

Article 2.1 of the 2007 Paris Principles defines children associated with an armed force or armed group as: [5] : 7 

any person below 18 years of age who is or who has been recruited or used by an armed force or armed group in any capacity, including but not limited to children, boys and girls, used as fighters, cooks, porters, messengers, spies or for sexual purposes. It does not only refer to a child who is taking or has taken a direct part in hostilities.

Research

Female child soldiers are paid less attention in scholarship and policy than male child soldiers, [6] [7] [4] receive very limited media attention, [8] are at risk of invisibility, [5] : 14  and are marginalized both during conflict and in post-conflict rehabilitation and reintegration strategies. [9] They have low rates of participation in disarmament, demobilization and reintegration (DDR) programs, [10] [11] especially so in African conflicts, [6] and as a result data and statistics derived from these programs face a similar under-representation of girl soldiers. [6] In general, there is a scarcity of high-quality data, [7] [6] and most of the research that has been published on girl soldiers is qualitative rather than quantitative. [7]

History of research

Scholarship from the 1980s and 1990s on child soldiers focused primarily on the experiences and needs of boy soldiers, [7] [10] with minimal if any attention paid to girl soldiers. [2] Research from the era on women and girls associated with armed groups and forces focused primarily or exclusively on their role as victims in armed conflict, failed to recognize them as active participants and combatants in conflict, and accorded them little to no agency. [11]

In research since, there has been more attention towards the existence of girl soldiers [12] and the varied roles and experiences of girls and women, [11] including recognition of being both victims and actors in conflict. [11] There is a growing awareness that recognition of their agency, although often limited by circumstance, is important for reintegration. [4] However, the majority of attention on girls and women associated with armed forced and groups remains on their position as victims. [11]

Although scholarship on girl soldiers increased since the start of the century, [7] [11] it has remained limited. [7] [6] [8] In their 2002 article on girl soldiers, Dyan Mazurana et al stated that "for the most part, it is not possible to draw on academic sources to attain [information on the presence of girls in armed groups or forces around the world] because to date there has been little systematic documentation or analysis of the use of girls." [2] : 102  In 2008, Carolyn R. Spellings noted in a review of the research on girl soldier experiences that "it is apparent just how limited the study of female child soldier experience is [...] Indeed there has been no research on girl soldiers in most of the countries in which they are known to participate in political conflicts." [13] : 24  Roos Haer and Tobias Böhmelt stated in 2018 that "girl soldiers have largely been neglected so far." [7] : 395 

Data and statistics

Girl soldiers are present in most conflicts where child soldiers are used. [5] : 14  Between 1990 and 2003, girl soldiers are known to have been present in conflicts in 55 countries, and serving as active participants in 38. [12] In their 2018 Girl Child Soldier Dataset (G-CSDS), Haer and Böhmelt state that, of rebel organizations [lower-alpha 1] using child soldiers between 1989 and 2013, 63% used girl soldiers. [7] They also noted that as a result of several potentially-biasing factors, an absence of reports indicating the presence of girl soldiers "may not necessarily mean that an armed group did not use girls" [7] : 397  and that therefore, "[the dataset] may actually underestimate the presence of girl soldiers in rebel groups". [7] : 397 

Rough estimates of the number of girl soldiers as being between one-tenth and one-third, [6] 6–50%, [4] or up to 40% [14] of all child soldiers have been given. It is, however, often unclear how these estimates were arrived at, [6] and due to a lack of high-quality data, it is impossible to reliably calculate the number of girl soldiers worldwide. Numbers derived from participation lists of DDR programs were described by Leena Vastapuu as misleading as a result of known low participation rates of female soldiers. [6]

During conflict

Recruitment into armed forces and groups

Girl soldiers are more frequently associated with non-governmental groups such as paramilitaries and other armed opposition groups, but have also been recruited by governmental forces in several conflicts. [12] Women and girl soldiers generally make up a higher percentage of armed non-government groups than of government armed forces in the same conflict. [11]

The methods and context of recruitment vary. [15] [10] In many conflicts, girl soldiers have been abducted or forcibly recruited. [15] [9] Some are born to women within an armed group or force. [15] [16] Others choose or are pressured to join for a variety of reasons, including having family members in the armed force or group, [4] economical circumstances, [17] [4] escape from abusive homes [3] [15] or arranged marriages, [18] [15] looking for empowerment, [4] revenge, [4] and ideological agreement with the group or force. [18] [15]

There is significant inter-conflict variance: almost all girl soldiers were abducted or otherwise forcibly recruited in the Sierra Leone Civil War [19] and Angolan Civil War, [20] whereas girl soldiers in Eritrea report comparatively higher rates of having volunteered. [18] [15] 2008 research by Carolyn R. Spellings found that girl soldiers in African conflicts are most commonly recruited through abduction, whereas for those in conflicts in Indonesia, the South Pacific and the Americas, escape of problematic home situations is common. [13]

Roles in conflict

Although the perception of girl soldiers being exclusively or near-exclusively used in combat service support and sexual roles rather than combat roles is widespread, [9] [21] and has in some cases been furthered by the manner in which post-conflict war crime prosecution was conducted, [22] girl soldiers frequently serve multi-faceted, fluid roles involving aspects of multiple or all of these. [9] [15] [22] [23] In many cases, they are trained for and take direct part in hostilities, [9] [19] [3] and are both victims of and active agents in these conflicts. [19] In some conflicts, they have also been used as suicide bombers [15] [4] and human shields. [4]

The experiences of girl soldiers vary significantly depending on conflict and context. [12] Factors that play a role in the likelihood of a girl soldier being a direct rather than exclusively indirect participant in hostilities include age, physical strength and maturity, as well as the ideology of the armed group or force with which they are associated. [4]

Research has shown a connection between girl soldiers recruited through abduction and higher rates of sexual exploitation, [4] and between groups with Marxist ideology and lower rates of sexual exploitation. [4]

Post-conflict

Rehabilitation

Girl soldiers face significant barriers during the reintegration process, and have lower rates of participation in DDR programs than boy soldiers. [6] In several conflicts, girl soldiers have received very little support during reintegration. [20] [9] [11]

Disarmament, demobilization and reintegration

DDR programs are often planned without sufficiently taking the presence, numbers, circumstances and/or needs of girl soldiers into account. [9] [15] [11] Girl soldiers have in the aftermath of various conflicts—such as the Angolan Civil War, the Mozambican Civil War or the Sierra Leone Civil War —received very little support for reintegration. [9] In Angola and Mozambique, DDR programming was planned entirely around male combatants, [20] [9] and girl soldiers were largely or entirely excluded from demobilization benefits. [20] [9] [3] In Sierra Leone, the weapons-for-cash approach to DDR initially used also largely excluded girls, [9] and many girls had not yet been released from their captors at the time of official demobilisation. [24] Although many girl soldiers face pregnancy and childbirth during conflict, DDR programming often fails to take the needs of young mothers into account. [12]

Causes of low DDR participation rates

Girl soldiers have significantly lower rates of participation in DDR programs than boy soldiers. [25] [6] Causes found to play a role in the low participation rates of girl soldiers include:

  • Later release by armed forces and groups than their male counterparts; [15]
  • Being forced, pressured or expected to stay with their forced sexual partner/"war husband"; [4] [3] [10]
  • Shame and social stigmas faced by girl soldiers for loss of virginity, [3] [7] having given birth to children of their captors, [3] and for being ex-combatants; [23]
  • Lack of awareness by girl soldiers of the existence of DDR programs, or of their eligibility to participate; [15] [4]
  • Discriminatory and exclusionary approaches to DDR, [9] [15] [11] [21] including:
    • Active discrimination and exclusion from some DDR programs, such as in the aftermath of the Mozambique civil war; [15] [9]
    • DDR programs being predominantly aimed at boys and men, with insufficient planning for the existence, numbers or needs of girl soldiers; [9] [15] [11]
    • Failure to take into account the specific circumstances of release of girl soldiers, as with DDR programs requiring individual possession and surrender of a weapon for access to the program, [4] such as the initial weapons-for-cash approach used in the aftermath of the Sierra Leone Civil War. [9]

Impact

In comparison to male child soldiers, girl soldiers face a number of additional difficulties both during conflict and rehabilitation, including health, psychosocial, social and economic effects. [9] Among others, these include high rates of health complications from wartime sexual violence, [9] [3] sexually transmitted diseases, [15] [24] [26] and complications from pregnancies, abortions and/or childbirth. [9] [3] They also face additional social stigmas their male counterparts do not, [9] [24] may face higher rates of post-conflict rejection by their communities, [9] and experience significant socio-economic marginalization. [9]

Notes

  1. ↑ defined in the dataset as "non-governmental group of people having announced a name for their group and using armed force to influence the outcome of the stated incompatibility" [7] : 397 

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Children in the military</span> The conscription and use of children, often adolescents, in warfare

Children in the military, including state armed forces, non-state armed groups, and other military organizations, may be trained for combat, assigned to support roles, such as cooks, porters/couriers, or messengers, or used for tactical advantage such as for human shields, or for political advantage in propaganda. Children have been recruited for participation in military operations and campaigns throughout history and in many cultures.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone</span> United Nations peacekeeping operation in Sierra Leone from 1999 to 2006

The United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL) was a United Nations peacekeeping operation in Sierra Leone from 1999 to 2006. It was created by the United Nations Security Council in October 1999 to help with the implementation of the Lomé Peace Accord, an agreement intended to end the Sierra Leonean civil war. UNAMSIL expanded in size several times in 2000 and 2001. It concluded its mandate at the end of 2005, the Security Council having declared that its mission was complete.

The Sierra Leonean Civil War (1991–2002) was a civil war in Sierra Leone that began on 23 March 1991 when the Revolutionary United Front (RUF), with support from the special forces of Liberian dictator Charles Taylor's National Patriotic Front of Liberia (NPFL), intervened in Sierra Leone in an attempt to overthrow the Joseph Momoh government. The resulting civil war lasted almost 11 years, and had over 50,000, up to 70,000, casualties in total; an estimated 2.5 million people were displaced during the conflict.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325</span> 2000 resolution on the impact of armed conflict on women and girls

United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 (S/RES/1325), on women, peace, and security, was adopted unanimously by the UN Security Council on 31 October 2000, after recalling resolutions 1261 (1999), 1265 (1999), 1296 (2000), and 1314 (2000). The resolution acknowledged the disproportionate and unique impact of armed conflict on women and girls. It calls for the adoption of a gender perspective to consider the special needs of women and girls during conflict, repatriation and resettlement, rehabilitation, reintegration, and post-conflict reconstruction.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Red Hand Day</span> Day protesting the use of child soldiers

On Red Hand Day or the International Day against the Use of Child Soldiers in February 12th each year since 2002, pleas are made to political leaders and events are staged around the world to draw attention to child soldiers: children under the age of 18 who participate in military organizations of all kinds. Red Hand Day aims to call for action to stop this practice, and support children affected by it.

Disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration (DDR), or disarmament, demobilisation, repatriation, reintegration and resettlement (DDRRR) are strategies used as a component of peace processes, and is generally the strategy employed by all UN Peacekeeping Operations following civil wars.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Education in Sierra Leone</span>

Education in Sierra Leone is legally required for all children for six years at primary level and three years in junior secondary education, but a shortage of schools and teachers has made implementation impossible. The Sierra Leone Civil War resulted in the destruction of 1,270 primary schools and in 2001 67 percent of all school-age children were out of school. The situation has improved considerably since then with primary school enrollment doubling between 2001 and 2005 and the reconstruction of many schools since the end of the war. However, there is still a long ways to go. In 2004, Junior secondary school enrollment was only 17% of primary school enrollment, and senior secondary school enrollment was only 8% of primary school education.

Sudan ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol in December 2014.

The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol in October 2005.

During the Sierra Leone Civil War gender specific violence was widespread. Rape, sexual slavery and forced marriages were commonplace during the conflict. It has been estimated by Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) that up to 257,000 women were victims of gender related violence during the war. The majority of assaults were carried out by the Revolutionary United Front (RUF). The Armed Forces Revolutionary Council (AFRC), The Civil Defence Forces (CDF), and the Sierra Leone Army (SLA) have also been implicated in sexual violence.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Child soldiers in the Democratic Republic of the Congo</span>

During the first and second civil conflicts which took place in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), all sides involved in the war actively recruited or conscripted child soldiers, known locally as Kadogos which is a Swahili term meaning "little ones". In 2011 it was estimated that 30,000 children were still operating with armed groups. The United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO), released a report in 2013 which stated that between 1 January 2012 and August 2013 up to 1,000 children had been recruited by armed groups, and described the recruitment of child soldiers as "endemic".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Child soldiers in Africa</span> African children as combatants

Children under the age of 18 have been used by national armed forces and other armed groups in Africa. Typically, this classification includes children serving in non-combatant roles, as well as those serving in combatant roles. In 2008, it was estimated that 40 percent of child soldiers worldwide were in Africa, and the use of child soldiers in armed conflict was increasing faster than any other continent. Additionally, average age of children recruited as soldiers appears to be decreasing. As of 2017, the UN listed that seven out of fourteen countries recruiting and using child soldiers in state forces or armed groups were in Africa: Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Mali, Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan.

Roughly 100.000-140.000 child soldiers in Sierra Leone fought between 1991 and 2002 in the Sierra Leone Civil War. Children fought on both sides of the conflict. Nearly half of the Revolutionary United Front (RUF), and a quarter of the government armed forces consisted of children aged 8–14 years old.

As many as 10,000 children were used by armed groups in the armed conflict in the Central African Republic (CAR) between 2012 and 2015, and as of 2024 the problem persists nationwide with a most likely greater amount fighting now. The mainly Muslim "Séléka" coalition of armed groups and the predominantly Christian, "Anti-Balaka" militias have both used children in this way; some are as young as eight.

The number of children in armed conflict zones are around 250 million. They confront physical and mental harms from war experiences.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rehabilitation and reintegration of child soldiers</span>

The rehabilitation and reintegration of child soldiers is defined by Child Soldiers International as: "The process through which children formerly associated with armed forces/groups are supported to return to civilian life and play a valued role in their families and communities".

A child soldier is "...any person below 18 years of age who is or who has been recruited or used by an armed force or armed group in any capacity".
<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of children in the military</span>

Children in the military are children who are associated with military organizations, such as state armed forces and non-state armed groups. Throughout history and in many cultures, children have been involved in military campaigns. For example, thousands of children participated on all sides of the First World War and the Second World War. Children may be trained and used for combat, assigned to support roles such as porters or messengers, or used for tactical advantage as human shields or for political advantage in propaganda.

UNICEF's Early Marriage: A Harmful Traditional Practice report characterizes child marriage as a harmful institution that often exposes young women in developing nations to damaging domestic, health, and sexual conditions. The report also highlights the practice as a human rights violation. In World Vision's "Before She's Ready: 15 Places Girls Marry by 15", the organization highlights the socioeconomic consequences of child marriage on girls, noting that many girls are forced to stop their schooling as a result of their marriages. With the denial of education, girl brides are often not able to make income as adults or become politically active citizens.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Child soldiers in Liberia</span> 1989 civil war in Liberia

The First Liberian Civil War began in 1989, when Charles Taylor 's National Patriotic Front of Liberia (NPFL) forces invaded the country in rebellion against the regime of Samuel Doe, who came to power through the 1980 Liberian coup d'état. Liberians United for Reconciliation and Democracy (LURD), Movement for Democracy in Liberia (MODEL), the United Liberation Movement for Democracy (ULIMO), as well as the NPFL utilized children as an integral aspect of their forces over the course of both armed conflicts, organizing them into factions such as the Small Boys Unit. The First Liberian Civil War as well as the Second Liberian Civil War saw thousands of children were forced to participate in armed conflict, resulting in an estimated figure of 21,000 child soldiers in need of demobilization, rehabilitation, and reintegration following the end of the Second Liberian Civil War in 2003, which concluded with the signage of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement. In the years following the war, the Liberian government was implemented measures to promote their international and national commitment to reintegrating and supporting former Children in the military.

Myriam S. Denov is a Canadian scholar and child advocate. She is a Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Children, Families, and Armed Conflict at McGill University. Denov is a Trudeau Foundation Fellow and a Member of the Royal Society of Canada's College of New Scholars, Artists, and Scientists.

References

  1. ↑ Varma, Ambika (27 February 2018). "The Invisibles: Female Child Soldiers". NATO Association of Canada. Retrieved 26 June 2024.
  2. 1 2 3 Mazurana, Dyan E.; McKay, Susan A.; Carlson, Khristopher C.; Kasper, Janel C. (June 2002). "Girls in fighting forces and groups: Their recruitment, participation, demobilization, and reintegration" (PDF). Peace and Conflict: Journal of Peace Psychology. 8 (2): 97–123. doi:10.1207/S15327949PAC0802_01 . Retrieved 20 June 2024.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 McKay, Susan; Mazurana, Dyan (2004). Where are the girls? Girls in fighting forces in Northern Uganda, Sierra Leone and Mozambique ; their lives during and after war (PDF). Montréal, Québec: Rights & Democracy. ISBN   9782922084740 . Retrieved 29 January 2024.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 Girls Associated with Armed Forces and Armed Groups (PDF) (Technical report). The Alliance for Child Protection in Humanitarian Action. December 2020. Retrieved 29 January 2024.
  5. 1 2 3 "The Paris Principles: Principles and Guidelines on Children Associated With Armed Forces or Armed Groups" (PDF). Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict. United Nations. February 2007. Retrieved 28 January 2024.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Vastapuu, Leena (2019). "23. How to find the 'hidden' girl soldier? Two sets of suggestions arising from Liberia". In Drumbl, Mark A.; Barrett, Jastine C. (eds.). Research Handbook on Child Soldiers. Edward Elgar Publishing. ISBN   978-1-78811-448-6 . Retrieved 29 January 2024.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Haer, Roos; Böhmelt, Tobias (May 2018). "Girl soldiering in rebel groups, 1989–2013: Introducing a new dataset". Journal of Peace Research. 55 (3): 395–403. doi:10.1177/0022343317752540. hdl: 1887/74532 . JSTOR   48595891. S2CID   54624857 . Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  8. 1 2 Patiño-Gass, Laura-Yvonne; González-Aldea, Patricia (11 January 2021). "Armed conflicts and gender perspective: Media representation of girls' soldiers" (PDF). Revista Mediterránea de Comunicación. 12 (1): 235. doi:10.14198/MEDCOM000000 . Retrieved 25 June 2024.
  9. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 Denov, Myriam (December 2008). "Girl Soldiers and Human Rights: Lessons from Angola, Mozambique, Sierra Leone and Northern Uganda". The International Journal of Human Rights. 12 (5): 813–836. doi:10.1080/13642980802396903. S2CID   144184433 . Retrieved 28 January 2024.
  10. 1 2 3 4 Mazurana, Dyan; McKay, Susan (1 September 2001). "Child soldiers; What about the girls?". Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists. 57 (5): 30–35. doi:10.2968/057005010. ISSN   0096-3402 . Retrieved 31 January 2024.
  11. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Hauge, Wenche Iren (14 March 2020). "Gender dimensions of DDR – beyond victimization and dehumanization: tracking the thematic". International Feminist Journal of Politics. 22 (2): 206–226. doi: 10.1080/14616742.2019.1673669 .
  12. 1 2 3 4 5 Denov, Myriam; Ricard-Guay, Alexandra (November 2013). "Girl soldiers: towards a gendered understanding of wartime recruitment, participation, and demobilisation". Gender & Development. 21 (3): 473–488. doi:10.1080/13552074.2013.846605. ISSN   1355-2074. JSTOR   24697271 . Retrieved 20 June 2024.
  13. 1 2 Spellings, Carolyn R. (2008). "Scratching the Surface: A Comparison of Girl Soldiers from Three Geographic Regions of the World". International Education. 38 (1). Retrieved 25 June 2024.
  14. ↑ "4 out of 10 child soldiers are girls". Office of the Secretary-General’s Envoy on Youth. United Nations. 18 February 2015. Retrieved 28 January 2024.
  15. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 McKay, Susan (November 2004). "Reconstructing fragile lives: Girls' social reintegration in northern Uganda and Sierra Leone". Gender & Development. 12 (3): 19–30. doi:10.1080/13552070412331332280. S2CID   143842273 . Retrieved 29 January 2024.
  16. ↑ Denov, Myriam (2019). "11. Children born of conflict-related sexual violence within armed groups - a case study of Northern Uganda". In Drumbl, Mark A.; Barrett, Jastine C. (eds.). Research Handbook on Child Soldiers. Edward Elgar Publishing. ISBN   978-1-78811-448-6 . Retrieved 29 January 2024.
  17. ↑ Coomaraswamy, Radhika (8 March 2011). "Reflections on Women, Girls and Armed Conflict". HuffPost. Retrieved 29 January 2024.
  18. 1 2 3 Barth, Elise (2002), Peace as Disappointment: The Reintegration of Female Soldiers in Post-Conflict Societies – A Comparative Study from Africa (PDF), Oslo: International Peace Research Institute, retrieved 29 January 2024
  19. 1 2 3 Denov, Myriam; Maclure, Richard (2006). "Engaging the Voices of Girls in the Aftermath of Sierra Leone's Conflict: Experiences and Perspectives in a Culture of Violence". Anthropologica. 48 (1): 73–85. doi:10.2307/25605298. JSTOR   25605298 . Retrieved 28 January 2024.
  20. 1 2 3 4 Stavrou, Vivi (2011). "Breaking the Silence: The Voices of Girls Forcibly Involved in Armed Conflict in Angola". In Denov, Myriam; Maclure, Richard; Campbell, Kathryn (eds.). Children's rights and international development: lessons and challenges from the field. New York: Palgrave Macmillan. pp. 109–128. ISBN   978-0-230-11925-3 . Retrieved 29 January 2024.
  21. 1 2 Brett, R. (1 July 2004). "Girl Soldiers: Denial of Rights and Responsibilities". Refugee Survey Quarterly. 23 (2): 30–37. doi:10.1093/rsq/23.2.30 . Retrieved 31 January 2024.
  22. 1 2 Oosterveld, Valerie (2019). "3. The construction of gender in child soldiering in the Special Court for Sierra Leone". In Drumbl, Mark A.; Barrett, Jastine C. (eds.). Research Handbook on Child Soldiers. Edward Elgar Publishing. ISBN   978-1-78811-448-6.
  23. 1 2 Bouta, Tsjeard (2005). Gender and Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration: Building Blocs for Dutch Policy (PDF). The Hague: Netherlands Institute of International Relations "Clingendael". Retrieved 29 January 2024.
  24. 1 2 3 Ager, Alastair; Stark, Lindsay; Olsen, Joanna; Wessells, Mike; Boothby, Neil (2010). "Sealing the Past, Facing the Future: An Evaluation of a Program to Support the Reintegration of Girls and Young Women Formerly Associated with Armed Groups and Forces in Sierra Leone". Girlhood Studies. 3 (1). doi:10.3167/ghs.2010.030106 . Retrieved 29 January 2024.
  25. ↑ "Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reintegration is Not Enough". ACCORD. 31 May 2018. Retrieved 23 June 2024.
  26. ↑ Farah, Douglas (11 April 2000). "A War Against Women". Washington Post. Retrieved 29 January 2024.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.