Statement by

H.E. Ambassador Bui The Giang

Deputy Permanent Representative of Viet Nam

at the Security Council Open Debate on Children and Armed Conflict

(29 April 2009)

 

Mr. President,

I join other speakers in thanking you for convening this Open Debate on this very important topic. I thank France for the successful chairmanship of the Security Council Working Group on Children and Armed Conflict and congratulate Mexico for assumption of chairmanship of this key body since early this year. I thank Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon for his report and briefing. I grateful to Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict Radhika Coomaraswamy, Under Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Le Roy, and UNICEF Executive Director Ann Veneman for their briefings.

Mr. President,

My Delegation is pleased to learn from both U.N. agencies and NGOs on the ground that tangible progress has been recorded in certain places of the world in the protection of children in armed conflicts. Success in setting up monitoring and reporting mechanisms on grave violations of child rights, and in developing and implementing action plans as well as other kinds of concrete commitments in situations of armed conflict is equally heartening. In this connection, we commend the dedicated and effective efforts of all related institutional and individual actors without whom such progress and success are impossible. We especially appreciate the SRSG on Children and Armed Conflict and her team for their work in this challenging field, including their country visits which have helped considerably facilitate the collaboration between the United Nations and relevant partners in implementing Security Council Resolution 1612.

My Delegation is, however, extremely concerned about the fact that, with armed conflicts escalating in many parts of the world, children continue to fall victim to killing, maiming and to all other sorts of violence, including in particular sexual violence, recruitment, and attacks targeting schools and hospitals. We reiterate our consistent position that in situations of conflict, all parties concerned are obliged to comply with international human rights and humanitarian laws. We therefore condemn all these acts of violence and abuse against children and call on the United Nations system and the whole international community to make greater efforts for the sake of children caught in armed conflicts. We support the Secretary-General’s recommendation on further enhancing child protection mandate of all relevant U.N. peacekeeping and political missions, including through designing specific provisions for the protection of children and deploying child protection advisers. We endorse the idea of establishing appropriate strategies and coordination mechanisms between relevant Member States, U.N. peacekeeping and political missions and U.N. country teams for information exchange and cooperation on cross-border child protection concerns.

Given the  long-term adverse impact of armed conflicts and violations and abuses therein on children, it is our view that the Security Council should pay equal attention to all grave violations and address them accordingly. At the same time, in order for disarmament, demobilization and re-integration programs for children to be effective and sustainable, timely and adequate human, material and financial support is essential. Moreover, all necessary measures to be taken in this connection should be put within the framework of a broader strategy of conflict prevention and response which deals with inter alia the root causes of armed conflict being hunger and poverty, and covers socio, economic and development issues during and after conflicts. Such a strategy can and should involve and be assisted by the United Nations, particularly through close collaboration among the U.N. bodies, including peacekeeping and political missions, UNICEF, UNDP and other specialized agencies.

Finally, Mr. President, let me emphasize the importance of education as an important means to prevent armed conflicts as well as address violations against children in conflict areas. The public, children themselves in the first place, need to be equipped with knowledge of child rights and ways to ensure their implementation, thus willing to report cases of violations and participate in fighting them. With this in mind, we support activities to raise public awareness on children’s rights and disseminate those best practices in the protection of children in conflict areas. We strongly believe that U.N. agencies, particularly UNICEF, and other international organizations can be of great help and assistance in this regard. We also encourage civil society organizations to energetically engage in and constructively contribute to these endeavors.

I thank you, Mr. President.