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[February 18, 2004] - UNICEF, along with the Burundi Ministry of Defense and
the national Demobilisation, Reintegration and Prevention Project, witnessed
Saturday the demobilisation of 29 child soldiers, aged 13 to 18 years, who
had served as porters in Burundi's regular army.
.. Each child received a demobilisation aid package with 20 kilograms of
beans, 11 kilograms of rice, soap, clothes and oil. According to Desiree
Gatoto, head of the army's demobilisation program, the children will now
either resume school or be trained in different crafts.
Demobilisation efforts have become a focal point across Burundi's 17
provinces, where the government has partnered with local NGOs to provide
support for programs dedicated to rehabilitating child soldiers.
A similar demobilisation operation took place in the Burundian city of
Karuzi, where 22 children between the ages of 11 and 18 were released,
according to a Radio Burundi report on Friday...
Burundi's population has suffered a long-standing tribal rivalry between the
Tutsis, who dominate the army and the economy, and the pastoral Hutus.
Meanwhile, Sri Lankan rebels from the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam said
Friday they had handed over 15 more child soldiers in the rebel-controlled
northern town of Kilinochchi the day before, after succumbing to continued
pressure from UNICEF, Agence France-Presse reported.
The release brought the number of freed "baby brigade" members to 25. UNICEF
said it has documented cases of 1,301 youths in the rebels' ranks, some as
young as 10 years old. The agency's 2003 report found that rebels recruited
709 underage fighters last year.
These figures could be lower than actual numbers, according to UNICEF, since
parents do not report cases, fearing rebel reprisals.
The recent releases came after UNICEF wholly rejected the rebel group's
denials of recruiting child soldiers. Last month, the agency asked the group
to stop recruiting children and to free all underage combatants immediately
in war-affected areas of Sri Lanka's northeast. While the LTTE has not
admitted recruiting children, it has said that the rebel group took in
youths who otherwise could not find employment, to carry out their political
and administrative tasks.
The LTTE is fighting the Sri Lankan government for the establishment of an
independent Tamil state.
[source: UNWire. For the full story, go to:
http://www.unwire.org/UNWire/20040218/449_13200.asp]
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