Rôle du Conseil de sécurité | Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict

In 1999, the Security Council recognized that serious violations committed against children during conflicts were matters of international peace and security. He therefore requested the Secretary-General to submit to him each year a report on children and armed conflict.

Security Council public debates on children and armed conflict

The Security Council holds each year a public debate on children and armed conflict during which the Special Representative, on behalf of the Secretary-General, presents his annual report on children and armed conflict and which allows Member States comment on the latest developments in this area. This debate traditionally ends with a Security Council resolution or a statement by its President, and the Council decides on the most urgent measures that need to be taken to protect children.

Instruments aimed at strengthening the protection of children

By adopting eight resolutions and several presidential statements, the Security Council has developed important instruments to strengthen the protection of children and uphold international standards in this area. These instruments include the following:

1. The Shame List

In 2001, the Council adopted resolution 1379 in which it prayed the Secretary-General to annex to his annual report the list of parties that recruit or use children. The killing, mutilation or sexual violence of children in conflict (resolution 1882 (2009)) and attacks on schools and hospitals (resolution 1998 (2011)) were added to the criteria for inclusion on the list.

2. Plans d’action

To encourage perpetrators of these violations to end them in order to be delisted, the Security Council developed the concept of action plans in its resolution 1460 (2003). As part of these plans, listed parties must enter into talks with the United Nations to reach an agreement to end these violations. Once the United Nations has verified that the action plan is fully implemented and the violations have ended, the names of the parties concerned can be removed from the “list of shame”.

3. Creation of the Mechanism for Monitoring and Communicating Information on Serious Violations of Children’s Rights

The Monitoring and Reporting Mechanism was established by Security Council resolution 1612 (2005) to address six grave violations committed against children during armed conflict:

4. Establishment of the Security Council Working Group on Children and Armed Conflict

By its resolution 1612 (2005), the Security Council established the Security Council Working Group on Children and Armed Conflict. This body – currently chaired by Germany – examines reports on the situation of children in various countries, makes recommendations to parties to conflicts and the United Nations on how to better protect children.

5. The adoption of sanctions

Since resolution 1539 (2004), individuals violating children’s rights can be subject to sanctions by the international community such as arms embargoes, asset freezes and travel bans. The Council’s resolution to consider sanctions was reaffirmed in subsequent resolutions and resulted in targeted measures against certain individuals in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Cote d’Ivoire.;