Dear To However It May Concern,
My name is Ali Eldakhakhny. I'm a language arts student at the school TAISM in Muscat, Oman. I'm learning about how child soldiers should be dealt with after a war has finished that they have been involved in. For years the use of children in both conflicts between states and civil wars has been evident. Children are forced by commanders through false promises, drugs and things which you can’t even imagine, to kill innocent civilians, other children and even their own families. Universally, the use of child soldiers has been frowned upon as both unacceptable and abhorrent. Despite this, in the last ten years over two million children have been killed, over one million orphaned, over six million have been left seriously injured or permanently disabled and over 10 million have been diagnosed with psychological trauma. However, the question still remains whether or not child soldiers should be held accountable for their crimes. In other words, should all child soldiers be given amnesty, no matter their war crimes? I think yes, and I know that you agree with me. But don't just give them amnesty. I think you should give them more. Just bringing them back to their village is not enough. Most times their villages are broken up, and most times their families are dead. So give more to them, by giving them a proper home to stay in, with clean water. Or even just a proper education. So I would strongly advise to you that you should do more than just give amnesty.
I understand that giving amnesty to every child soldier is hard. It is also a valid point that there are times where these child soldiers go out of there minds and do horrible things. For example a former child soldier Omar Khadr, was accused of many crimes as a child soldier. One of them being killing high military personnel. I will admit this man has done many horrible things. But he must be given amnesty. Ever since at the age of 15 when he was put behind bars in Canada(where he was born) he has been stuck there, and the Canadians don't want to let him out any time soon. But he should be let out, immediately. Child soldiers have to go through circumstances at a young age that not most children have to go through. They are raised only knowing about war and that's it. They watch it, they participate in it, they live with it. They don't know what a normal childhood is like. So somebody like Omar Khadr might have done some unacceptable things. But he doesn't understand what an ordinary childhood is like. No matter if you're a child soldier who has killed 0 people, or has killed 40, you deserve amnesty and more. All these child soldiers should be given second chances in life no matter what. Because everything they have done has been not their faults, but others.
These child soldiers are forced to do whatever they are told by their leaders in war. If they don't follow the leaders commands, they have a risk of even dieing. These kids live in horrible conditions, there get abused, and many other things. They don't have a chance at other ways at life, most likely their parents, siblings, or anybody else in their family is died. You can see these leaders as slave owners, why. Well just like slave owners they force their slaves to do whatever they tell him to do, and if they don't they get punished. And just like slaves they are born thinking what is happening to them is right. Which means child soldiers and slaves didn't understand that what was happening to them was horrible. So don't blame child soldiers, blame leaders of these army's who make them grow up to these kind of people who don't understand what a childhood actually is.
According to “UNICEF helps reintegrate former child soldiers into local communities” you are helping child soldiers. But only back to their local communities. For example kids in Congo DR got to go back to their local communities after the war they were in. But the problem with that is most child soldiers in countries like Uganda and Somalia don't have a chance at going back to their villages, as in there probably destroyed. So you are a big organization, which has done some big things. Giving these kids amnesty is great. But even better, providing them with shelter, clean food and water. Most important, an education. Most of these child soldiers probably grow up without having an education. An education is key to any success. If these kids get an education, you as an organization can show that no matter the things these kids have been through, they can still live a happy and peaceful life. But all of this starts with companies like you, without you things like these are not possible.
Thank You for taking the time to read my message to you to get more things applied to these child soldiers who have been given amnesty. I sincerely hope that you will keep these child soldiers as a top priority in your mind, so you can help to become what they should become.
Sincerely,
Ali Eldakhakhny
A Language Arts student, The American International School Of Muscat
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