Radhika Coomaraswamy, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for
children and armed conflict, said in a report to the 47-member Council that this
had been a terrible year for children affected by war.
In the past, all combatants would create the humanitarian space for the
protection of children but today there was an uphill battle to ensure that these
principles remained entrenched, she said.
Next month Ms. Coomaraswamy said that her office, working alongside various
partners including the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF), will launch a two-year
strategy aimed at ending grave violations against children in armed conflict by
promoting protection, raising awareness and making the issue central to
peacekeeping and peacebuilding.
Representatives from almost 20 countries and non-governmental organizations
(NGOs) spoke during the debate before the Council moved on to discuss a report
on Liberia.
Charlotte Abaka, Independent Expert on technical cooperation and advisory
services, said the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in Liberia, which was
inaugurated on 20 February 2006, had made slow initial progress, particularly
over the issue of hiring suitable staff, while authorities should also do more
to tackle corruption.
She commended Liberia’s people for last year’s elections and also pointed out
that the new Government had acceded to over 100 international agreements,
including a range of human rights treaties.
In response, McKinley Thomas said Liberia acknowledged there was a lot that
needed to be done in specific areas but the Government had made progress despite
the devastation caused by years of war.
He also stressed there was an immediate need for technical assistance
relating to reporting on human rights treaties and follow-up and called for the
Council to help with this request. Six countries spoke in the interactive debate
after the report was presented.
Later on Friday, the Council discussed a follow-up report to that given
earlier in the week by John Dugard, Special Rapporteur on the situation of human
rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967. It also debated
various decisions and resolutions made during its first session in June. This
second session of the Council, set up to replace the much-criticized Commission
on Human Rights, opened on 18 September and will run until 6 October. __________________________________________________________________________
29 September 2006
– The new United Nations Human Rights Council should make it a
primary duty to protect civilians during armed conflict, an independent UN
rights expert urged
today, highlighting in particular the suffering of children caught up in warfare
across the globe.
Radhika
Coomaraswamy