Feb 12, 2021
Supporting children in armed conflict beyond Red Hand Day on February 12
Strengthening protection and reintegration for children in the Central African Republic and Democratic Republic of the Congo
February 12th marks Red Hand Day, the global campaign to stop the use of child soldiers. The recruitment and use of children by armed forces and armed groups has detrimental consequences for children and their families. The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated ongoing crises across the world, deepening economic divides and sparking and further entrenching conflict and civil strife. At a time when much of the world is focused on the pandemic, we need to strengthen ways to better support families and protect children in conflict — the need is more urgent now than ever.
“We are really concerned about the future of our children. When your child is out in the armed group and you have nothing to give him, it hurts. Me and my husband have a lot of worries because if we cannot find something for these children, they will one day risk re-entering the armed group. When they ask us something, we are unable to give them, it hurts as parents.”
— Female parent of multiple children in Ouham-Pendé, Central African Republic
With the goal to address the gap in family-based approaches, the Child Protection and Research staff at the International Rescue Committee (IRC) with teams in the Central African Republic (CAR) and Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) are working to find community informed ways to support families and promote the reintegration of children following their recruitment by armed groups in order to stop the cycle of recruitment or prevent recruitment in the first place. To better understand why children and adolescents are joining armed groups intentionally, the IRC conducted formative qualitative research in Ouham-Pendé, CAR and North Kivu, DRC.
Using a visual narrative technique, researchers spoke with adolescent boys and girls in multiple communities to explore the drivers of child recruitment and the barriers and facilitators for reintegration. They also interviewed caregivers of children who had joined armed groups to better understand the specific needs and challenges that parents and caregivers are experiencing when their children make the decision to join an armed group, and even after they return home. While the research with caregivers and adolescents identified push and pull factors that are common across conflict settings, it also revealed the strong influence of family relationships on children’s decision-making.
Adolescents who felt their household situation was unsupportive, or who had been separated from family members, described more easily deciding to join armed groups. In contrast, none of the at-risk youth who had never joined an armed group reported having negative relationships with their caregivers before or after the conflict or reported having caregivers support the idea of them joining. Gender dynamics and harmful attitudes also influenced family dynamics and adolescent girls’ decisions to join the armed groups, as girls more often reported joining the armed group upon advice or permission of their family members, possibly reflecting gender norms within the community around permission to join.
The important role of both male and female caregivers was also highlighted by adolescent boys and girls who described staying in contact with their parents and valuing their opinions, and this contact eventually being one of the motivating factors that influenced them to leave the group.
However, boys and girls are not always safe upon returning home. Most adolescents in both DRC and CAR described returning home to face similar push and pull factors, as well as stigmatization, lack of peer support, and negative economic, education, and mental health outcomes that make reintegration into the family and community extremely difficult. Both caregivers and adolescents emphasized the importance of a supportive home environment, and adolescent girls and boys described the benefit of being able to talk with their families about their experiences and receiving advice and attention from their parents. These research findings from CAR and DRC (coming soon) have informed the framework through which a new parenting intervention will aim to support families in CAR, DRC, and beyond.
“When I learned that schools were closing due to COVID-19, I went straight into the forest. … I lived with my friends. We went [to where the armed groups live] together. … After whipping us, they gave us money to buy food for them. … [My parents] could accept because of the lack of money.”
— 15-year-old adolescent girl in North Kivu, Democratic Republic of the Congo
However, caregivers cannot protect their children on their own. Burdened by crippling economic stress and their own mental health challenges, parents and caregivers living in conflict settings struggle to foster a warm and supportive environment for their children to seek protection. In CAR, recent spikes in violent conflict, coupled with rising food insecurity and the economic and health consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, have left families and children even more exposed to recruitment by armed groups. Similarly, in the DRC, conflict-induced displacement, rising COVID-19 cases, and the pandemic’s severe economic consequences continue to threaten the economic and personal security of communities in North Kivu and throughout the country. In these settings and conflict settings across the world, economic crises and increasing violence leave children and adolescents with no choice but to join armed forces or armed groups to provide for their basic needs. The commitment to protect children and families in conflict is renewed on Red Hand Day, but it must be strengthened and sustained in order to meet the urgent needs of families living in conflict globally.
Read more about IRC’s research in CAR (research from DRC coming soon) and stay up to date on the development of a new parenting program, “Growing Stronger Together,” that supports families of children associated with armed forces and armed groups.
Thank you to the IRC CAR and DRC teams, and to the parents, boys, and girls who shared their experience with us.
Co-authored by Yvonne Agengo, Technical Advisor for Child Protection; and Alexandra Blackwell, Research Coordinator, Violence Protection and Response
