UNICEF statement on Myanmar’s ratification of OPAC

YANGON, 30 September 2019 - UNICEF Myanmar commends the Government of Myanmar for ratifying the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict (OPAC). The ratification, which follows the enactment of the new Child Rights Law in July 2019, once again demonstrates Myanmar’s efforts to align national policies and regulatory frameworks with the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child that Myanmar ratified in 1991.

Children bear the brunt of armed conflict worldwide, including in Myanmar. The presence of a dedicated chapter in the new Child Rights Law on the protection of children affected by armed conflict, coupled with the ratification of the OPAC, now provide a legal basis for the protection these particularly vulnerable children need. 

The ratification of the OPAC also marks another important step by the Government towards ending and preventing the recruitment and use of children within the national armed forces, a commitment already under implementation through the Security Council-mandated Joint Action Plan signed with the United Nations in 2012, and which has led to major progress towards this end. 

Welcoming the Government of Myanmar’s confirmation of the minimum age of 18 years for voluntary recruitment into military service, UNICEF calls on the Government to ensure that children enrolled from the age of 16 in military academies and vocational training programmes do not take any direct part in hostilities and do not commit themselves to long-term compulsory bonds with the military before reaching the age of 18.

UNICEF stands ready to support the Government of Myanmar in translating the commitments into tangible measures for the protection of boys and girls, and remains committed to continue working together to end and prevent all six grave violations against children.

Note to editors:

Adopted by the General Assembly on 25 May 2000, the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict entered into force on February 12th, 2002 and is a commitment that States will not recruit or conscript children under 18 to take part in hostilities.
Read more about the Optional Protocol here:  https://childrenandarmedconflict.un.org/tools-for-action/opac/

Six grave violations 

In 1999, the first resolution on children and armed conflict adopted by the United Nations Security Council identified and condemned six grave violations affecting children the most in times of war and asked the Secretary-General to report on the issue. The six grave violations serve as the basis to gather information and report on violations affecting children, and are:

• killing or maiming of children
• recruitment and use of children in armed forces and armed groups
• attacks against schools or hospitals
• rape or other grave sexual violence
• abduction of children
• denial of humanitarian access for children