ReliefWeb

Executive summary and recommendations

Colombia’s civilians have been pulled into a decades-long civil war among the government’s forces, paramilitary groups and their successors, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), and the People’s Liberation Army (ELN). During the conflict, girls and boys have been subjected to forced recruitment, rape and sexual violence, killing and maiming, and have been seriously affected by attacks against schools and the denial of humanitarian assistance, according to the 2011 UN Secretary-General’s report on children and armed conflict in Colombia. More than half of an estimated 3.9 – 5.3 million internally displaced people in Colombia are under 18, rendering them even more vulnerable to the threats that caused them to flee their homes in the first place.

In an important policy shift, President Juan Manuel Santos’ administration, in power since August 2010, has formally recognized the existence of an armed conflict in Colombia. Policies to prevent child recruitment by armed groups have been put in place since 2010, and a recently enacted Victims Law offers reparations for victims of violations committed by all parties to the conflict. 2011 also saw the first conviction of former paramilitaries for sexual violence against minors and child recruitment under the Justice and Peace Law of 2005. Despite this progress, government initiatives remain insufficient and inadequately address the reality of the conflict. Some parts of the country remain out of the government’s reach, as armed groups have de facto authority over such areas and continue to commit horrific abuses against the local population. In turn, the government views its armed forces as a “protection force,” rather than a party to the conflict, which leads to situations of impunity and creates distrust in communities. Children, particularly those in remote areas, are not adequately protected and continue to face threats and violence from all sides – they have no one to trust.