United Nations Security Council Resolution 1261 – Children and armed conflict
Resolution 1261 (1999)
The Security Council,
Recalling the statements of its President of 29 June 1998 (S/PRST/1998/18),12 February 1999 (S/PRST/1999/6) and 8 July 1999 (S/PRST/1999/21),
Noting recent efforts to bring to an end the use of children as soldiers inviolation of international law, in International Labour Organization Convention No. 182 on the Prohibition and Immediate Action for the Elimination of the Worst forms of Child Labour which prohibits forced or compulsory labour, including the forced or compulsory recruitment of children for use in armed conflict, and inthe Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court in which conscripting or enlisting children under the age of fifteen into national armed forces or using them to participate actively in hostilities is characterized as a war crime,
- Expresses its grave concern at the harmful and widespread impact ofarmed conflict on children and the long-term consequences this has for durablepeace, security and development;
2. Strongly condemns the targeting of children in situations of armedconflict, including killing and maiming, sexual violence, abduction and forceddisplacement, recruitment and use of children in armed conflict in violation ofinternational law, and attacks on objects protected under international law,including places that usually have a significant presence of children such asschools and hospitals, and calls on all parties concerned to put an end to suchpractices;
3. Calls upon all parties concerned to comply strictly with theirobligations under international law, in particular the Geneva Conventions of12 August 1949 and the obligations applicable to them under the AdditionalProtocols thereto of 1977 and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child of 1989, and stresses the responsibility of all States to bring an end toimpunity and their obligation to prosecute those responsible for grave breachesof the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949;
4. Expresses its support for the ongoing work of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), other parts of the United Nations system and other relevant international organizations dealing with children affected by armedconflict, and requests the Secretary-General to continue to develop coordinationand coherence among them;
5. Welcomes and encourages efforts by all relevant actors at the nationaland international level to develop more coherent and effective approaches to theissue of children and armed conflict;
6. Supports the work of the open-ended inter-sessional working group ofthe Commission on Human Rights on a draft optional protocol to the Convention onthe Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict, andexpresses the hope that it will make further progress with a view to finalizingits work;
7. Urges all parties to armed conflicts to ensure that the protection,welfare and rights of children are taken into account during peace negotiationsand throughout the process of consolidating peace in the aftermath of conflict;
8. Calls upon parties to armed conflicts to undertake feasible measuresduring armed conflicts to minimize the harm suffered by children, such as “daysof tranquillity” to allow the delivery of basic necessary services, and furthercalls upon all parties to armed conflicts to promote, implement and respect suchmeasures;
9. Urges all parties to armed conflicts to abide by concrete commitments made to ensure the protection of children in situations of armed conflict;
10. Urges all parties to armed conflicts to take special measures toprotect children, in particular girls, from rape and other forms of sexual abuseand gender-based violence in situations of armed conflict and to take intoaccount the special needs of the girl child throughout armed conflicts and theiraftermath, including in the delivery of humanitarian assistance;
11. Calls upon all parties to armed conflicts to ensure the full, safe andunhindered access of humanitarian personnel and the delivery of humanitarianassistance to all children affected by armed conflict;
12. Underscores the importance of the safety, security and freedom ofmovement of United Nations and associated personnel to the alleviation of theimpact of armed conflict on children, and urges all parties to armed conflictsto respect fully the status of United Nations and associated personnel;
13. Urges States and all relevant parts of the United Nations system tointensify their efforts to ensure an end to the recruitment and use of children in armed conflict in violation of international law through political and otherefforts, including promotion of the availability of alternatives for children totheir participation in armed conflict;
14. Recognizes the deleterious impact of the proliferation of arms, inparticular small arms, on the security of civilians, including refugees andother vulnerable populations, particularly children, and, in this regard,recalls resolution 1209 (1998) of 19 November 1998 which, inter alia, stressesthe importance of all Member States, and in particular States involved inmanufacturing and marketing of weapons, restricting arms transfers which couldprovoke or prolong armed conflicts or aggravate existing tensions or armedconflicts, and which urges international collaboration in combating illegal armsflows;
15. Urges States and the United Nations system to facilitate thedisarmament, demobilization, rehabilitation and reintegration of children used as soldiers in violation of international law, and calls upon, in particular,the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and ArmedConflict, UNICEF, the UNHCR and other relevant agencies of the United Nationssystem to intensify their efforts in this regard;
16. Undertakes, when taking action aimed at promoting peace and security,to give special attention to the protection, welfare and rights of children, andrequests the Secretary-General to include in his reports recommendations in thisregard;
17. Reaffirms its readiness when dealing with situations of armed conflict:
(a) to continue to support the provision of humanitarian assistance tocivilian populations in distress, taking into account the particular needs ofchildren including, inter alia, the provision and rehabilitation of medical andeducational services to respond to the needs of children, the rehabilitation ofchildren who have been maimed or psychologically traumatized, and child-focusedmine clearance and mine-awareness programmes;
(b) to continue to support the protection of displaced children including their resettlement by UNHCR and others as appropriate; and
18. Reaffirms also its readiness to consider appropriate responseswhenever buildings or sites which usually have a significant presence ofchildren are specifically targeted in situations of armed conflict, in violationof international law;
19. Requests the Secretary-General to ensure that personnel involved inUnited Nations peacemaking, peacekeeping and peace-building activities haveappropriate training on the protection, rights and welfare of children, andurges States and relevant international and regional organizations to ensure that appropriate training is included in their programmes for personnel involved in similar activities;
20. Requests the Secretary-General to submit to the Council by 31 July 2000 a report on the implementation of this resolution, consulting all relevant parts of the United Nations system and taking into account other relevant work;
21. Decides to remain actively seized of the matter.
Adopted by the Security Council at its 4037th meeting,on 25 August 1999.
