The UNESCO Chair in Human Rights of the University of Luxembourg co-hosted an international conference on November 21 and 22 in the presence of HRH the Grand Duchess Maria Teresa of Luxembourg, together with the Universities Network for Children in Armed Conflict, under the patronage of the Italian Embassy in Luxembourg. The two-day conference focused on how to protect children in armed conflicts in a multilevel, international framework, and included special panel on violations in Ukraine.
Prof. Stéphane Pallage, Rector of the University, highlighted how armed conflicts are a major source of danger for children, and often victims of belligerents in many ways: “they can lose their home, and experience the danger of displacement. They can become orphans and lose protection of their parents. They can be abducted and forced into slavery or child soldiering. The work of international researchers is of dire importance to raise our awareness, to suggest policies that will protect them better, to help them in their reintegration process, and to make sure that those children are never forgotten.”
HRH the Grand Duchess welcomed the efforts that have been made, but regretted that violations persist on a very wide scale all over the world. “The protection of education must be a priority of the international community. As UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador, as UNICEF Eminent Advocate for Children, and as UN Champion in the fight against conflict-related sexual violence, I am more committed than ever to defend and fight for education for all. And I continue to appeal to the international community to provide all children in conflict situations with to schools in safe conditions. We owe this to them, just as we are responsible for their future and the future of peace.”
Anne Goedert, Ambassador-at-large for Human Rights of Luxembourg, and Eamon Gilmore, EU Special Representative for Human Rights, insisted on a gender and age-based approach to prevent a long-term deprivation risk creating a sacrificed generation, and called for no impunity for those who commit the worst atrocities against children. Karim A. A. Khan KC, Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, was determined that children were not only seen, but also empowered to tell their story in a court of law and participate in the investigation and prosecuting of these crimes.
Virginia Gamba, Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflicts, insisted on the role of universities in making a difference, by providing scholarships and reintegration, and on the importance of the academic community in providing data and analysis to reduce and stop abuses.
Prof. Robert Harmsen, UNESCO Chair in Human Rights of the University of Luxembourg, surveyed the current state of the international legal and political regime concerned with children in armed conflict. He stressed the need for educational and psychosocial support so that children who are victims of conflict could regain agency and become actors capable of shaping their own destiny, concluding on a note which stressed both realism and hope.
Three panels were hosted on Day 2 of the conference on the Belval campus of the University of Luxembourg: ‘Children’s right to education and armed conflict: current international commitments and challenge’, ‘The protection of children in armed conflict: monitoring and reporting on grave violations and accountability framework’, and ‘Children affected by armed conflict, forced displacement and asylum: the new current challenge”.
An Award ceremony for the participants of the Advanced Training Course ‘International Criminal Jurisdiction and Children in Armed Conflict’, dedicated to the late Ambassador Francesca Tardioli, an Italian diplomat, was organised in the presence of Prof. Georg Mein, Dean of the Faculty of Humanity, Education and Social Sciences (FHSE) and Ms. Gamba.
A special round table was also convened on the ‘role of the Organisation for Security and Co-Operation in Europe (OSCE) in reporting on violations of international humanitarian and human rights law, war crimes and crimes against humanity in ongoing armed conflicts, with specific focus on Ukraine’. Following their fact-finding missions, Prof. Wolfgang Benedek of the University of Graz, Prof. Laura Guercio of the University of Perugia, and Prof. Vasilka Sancin of the University of Ljubljana presented the first and second reports of the OSCE Moscow Mechanism Mission on Ukraine, highlighting the usage of human shields, forced displacements, forced adoption and Russification, targeting of children, and other forms of torture and massive sexual violence.
Reflecting on the two days, Prof. Robert Harmsen concluded: “We were very pleased to be able to host the conference of the Universities Network for Children in Armed Conflict this year. The goals and structure of the network, addressing this crucial human rights issue through an integrated and interdisciplinary programme of teaching, research, and policy-related activities, fit perfectly with the mandate and approach of our UNESCO Chair. We are committed to building on this collaboration in the future both as a member of the network and in relation to the national policy community, where the issue has been identified as a priority area in the context of Luxembourg’s current membership of the UN Human Rights Council.”
H.E. Diego Brasioli, Prof. Dr Stéphane Pallage, HRH the Grand Duchess Maria Teresa of Luxembourg, Virginia Gamba