UN envoy on children and armed conflict to visit S. Sudan

The United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) has announced its Special Representative of the Secretary-General (SRSG) for Children and Armed Conflict is due in South Sudan this week.

Radhika Coomaraswamy will, during the one-week tour, visit South Sudan’s Jonglei state to witness the signing of an action plan, which reportedly commits the government to ensure there are no children within the ranks of the Sudanese People’s Liberation Army (SPLA).

This action plan, according to a UNMISS statement; will further ensure orderly release of children still associated with SPLA, including all armed groups integrating into the army who have accepted amnesty.

Coomaraswamy, who is making her first visit to the country since it attained independence seven months ago, will reportedly take two or three field visits to conflict areas of Jonglei, where she is expected to speak to communities and apprise herself of the issue of child abduction.

The UN envoy will, in particular, visit the Lou Nuer and Murle communities and discuss with both groups the possibility of releasing all abducted children.

“The SRSG will also assess the impact of the cross-border conflicts between South Sudan and Sudan on children including child refugees/unaccompanied minors, and separated children,” the UNMISS statement partly reads.

She will also meet with experts to discuss the regional impact of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) on the region.

Appointed the SRSG on children and armed conflict in 2006, Coomaraswamy, a graduate of the United Nations International School in New York has to-date received several international accolades due to her outstanding work. These include the International Law Award of the American Bar association, the Human Rights Award of the International Human Rights Law Group and the Bruno Kreisky Award of 2000, among others.


(2012-03-09/sudantribune)