SomaliaCompelled by Poverty: Child Soldiers in

Located in the Horn of Africa, Somalia is home to roughly fifteen million people, many of whom suffer from the clutches of poverty. Additionally, since the 1980s, the country has been rocked by civil violence and political fragmentation, making it one of the poorest countries in Sub-Saharan Africa. Ninety percent of Somalian households have limited or no access to essential resources such as a stable income, electricity, education, or clean water. As a result, many families are susceptible to the unstable social and economic changes which threaten their livelihoods. Moreover, without social safety nets, many Somalians borrow money, sell their property, and even their bodies to survive. One of the most horrific solutions to self-preservation occurs when children turn to soldiering to survive.

Somalian family living in the Gadid camp for internally displaced persons (IDPs). Sebastian Rich. Hunger still stalks Somali Children. 2015. UNICEF. Fair use.

Child soldiers are defined as combatants under the age of eighteen involved in either a country’s armed forces or in a non-governmental entity (NGE) regardless of whether enlistment was voluntary. Children who live long enough to escape or be liberated from their military duties are psychologically traumatized, physically injured, or seen as social outcasts. The rehabilitation process for child soldiers is challenging, lengthy, and expensive. Therefore, over the years, organizations such as the United Nations (UN), the World Health Organization (WHO), and UNICEF have fought hard to rescue children trapped as soldiers. Through proper medical care, access to education, and a gradual reintegration into society, former child soldiers are offered a chance at having a life not centred around armed violence. Is this enough? Would it not be more constructive for organizations and aid to be directed first at Somalia’s poverty crisis, which underlies the grim realities of child soldiering? In other words, for real change to occur, it is vital for organizations to partner alongside communities to resolve the country’s entrenched societal issues such as economic inequality, the lack of a social security system, and the spread of cultural beliefs which promote violence. Only by adopting a more “comprehensive and multidisciplinary approach” will the notorious practice of child soldiers be eliminated.

Who should be held responsible for creating Somalia’s child soldiers? The largest recruiter is the Al-Shabab militia whose name translates into “the youth.” insurgent group with openly declared links to Al-Qaeda. Committed to the harsh form of Sharia law, the Al-Shabab prohibits forms of pleasure such as movies and the smoking of Members enforce strict punishments, including stoning and amputations for individuals who break their laws. Funded by piracy, kidnapping, and an extensive racketeering operation, the Al-Shabab have established a strong network around Somalia and its neighbouring countries thus making it a powerful force. Boys in the militia typically serve as cooks, porters, messengers, and fighters. Girls in the militia serve as fighters, spies, and sex slaves.3 Each day children are subjected to violence and brutality. These behaviours become the norm in their lives as youth.

When it comes to recruiting children, the Al-Shabab do not shy away from using violent and threatening measures. The most common way for children to become soldiers is by abduction where the AlShabab enter homes and physically remove children. However, it is becoming increasingly common for the group to threaten children’s schools. A teacher in the Burhakaba district, recalled that “they wanted 25 children ages 8 to 15…After they hit me, some of the children started crying and tried to run out of the classroom. But the fighters were all around. They caned a 7-year-old boy who tried to escape.” After sending death threats to the community, altogether, the Al-Shabab took fifty boys and girls from the village. To increase recruitment numbers, since 2017, the militia has been targeting more primary schools where they indoctrinate younger children with their religious beliefs and enforce military training.

Located in the Horn of Africa, Somalia is home to roughly fifteen million people, many of whom suffer from the clutches of poverty. Additionally, since the 1980s, the country has been rocked by civil violence and political fragmentation, making it one of the poorest countries in Sub-Saharan Africa. Ninety percent of Somalian households have limited or no access to essential resources such as a stable income, electricity, education, or clean water. As a result, many families are susceptible to the unstable social and economic changes which threaten their livelihoods. Moreover, without social safety nets, many Somalians borrow money, sell their property, and even their bodies to survive. One of the most horrific solutions to self-preservation occurs when children turn to soldiering to survive.

Child soldiers practice military drill. The National Interest. Fair use. Al-Shabab, Somalia insurgent militant group. Number of Child Soldiers in Somalia May Top 5,000, UN Reports. 16 June 2016. VOA. Fair use.

Child soldiers are defined as combatants under the age of eighteen involved in either a country’s armed forces or in a non-governmental entity (NGE) regardless of whether enlistment was voluntary. Children who live long enough to escape or be liberated from their military duties are psychologically traumatized, physically injured, or seen as social outcasts. The rehabilitation process for child soldiers is challenging, lengthy, and expensive. Therefore, over the years, organizations such as the United Nations (UN), the World Health Organization (WHO), and UNICEF have fought hard to rescue children trapped as soldiers. Through proper medical care, access to education, and a gradual reintegration into society, former child soldiers are offered a chance at having a life not centred around armed violence. Is this enough? Would it not be more constructive for organizations and aid to be directed first at Somalia’s poverty crisis, which underlies the grim realities of child soldiering? In other words, for real change to occur, it is vital for organizations to partner alongside communities to resolve the country’s entrenched societal issues such as economic inequality, the lack of a social security system, and the spread of cultural beliefs which promote violence. Only by adopting a more “comprehensive and multidisciplinary approach” will the notorious practice of child soldiers be eliminated.1

Who should be held responsible for creating Somalia’s child soldiers? The largest recruiter is the Al-Shabab militia whose name translates into “the youth.”2 Established in the early 2000s, they are an Islamist insurgent group with openly declared links to Al-Qaeda. Committed to the harsh form of Sharia law, the Al-Shabab prohibits forms of pleasure such as movies and the smoking of khat, a narcotic plant. Members enforce strict punishments, including stoning and amputations for individuals who break their laws. Funded by piracy, kidnapping, and an extensive racketeering operation, the Al-Shabab have established a strong network around Somalia and its neighbouring countries thus making it a powerful force. Boys in the militia typically serve as cooks, porters, messengers, and fighters. Girls in the militia Each day children are subjected to violence and brutality. These behaviours become the norm in their lives as youth.

When it comes to recruiting children, the Al-Shabab do not shy away from using violent and threatening measures. The most common way for children to become soldiers is by abduction where the AlShabab enter homes and physically remove children. However, it is becoming increasingly common for the group to threaten children’s schools. A teacher in the Burhakaba district, recalled that “they wanted 25 children ages 8 to 15…After they hit me, some of the children started crying and tried to run out of the classroom. But the fighters were all around. They caned a 7-year-old boy who tried to escape.”4 After sending death threats to the community, altogether, the Al-Shabab took fifty boys and girls from the village. To increase recruitment numbers, since 2017, the militia has been targeting more primary schools where they indoctrinate younger children with their religious beliefs and enforce military training.5 This is just one example of how authoritative these rebel groups can be.

Children and youth are significantly impacted by their experiences as child soldiers with most suffering the consequences for the rest of their lives. Physical injuries include stabbings, gunshots, and physical maiming. Girls who are raped often contract sexual diseases such as HIV/AIDS and obstetric fistulas. Furthermore, as medical care is scarce and practically non-existent in warzones, children who have weaker immune systems are much more vulnerable to illnesses such as yellow fever and malaria which are deadly when left untreated.6 Psychologically, after witnessing severed heads and mangled limbs, children suffer from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and are mentally scarred.7 In an interview, Abdi a former child solider said that “Even now after all these years, I have nightmares. Sometimes I wake up screaming in the middle of the night.”8 He recalled that at nine years old, he participated in a village raid where homes were burned to the ground and innocent civilians were gunned down. Beyond their mental and physical suffering, children are shunned and ostracized within their own communities. People see them only as violent members of society who are dangerous and should not be associated with. Girls who have been raped are regarded as damaged goods and are no longer considered fit for marriage or respected within the family.9 As deputy director of the United Nations Children’s Fund Yoka Brandt stated, the children “need immediate support. We cannot give up on them…As we heal these [them], we also heal divided societies by erasing the stigma that released children face [by] building peace and most importantly hope.”10

Statistically, Somalia has the largest number of child soldiers in the world, and this figure continues to climb. In 2018 alone, over 2,300 Somalian children were documented as soldiers; however, the number is likely much higher as many children are left unaccounted for.11 Thus, the question remains, why do militias continue to choose children as soldiers rather than adults? What is so appealing about using children who are society’s most vulnerable and delicate members? First, children are an inexpensive and endless resource in Somalia. They are an expendable resource. As well, by taking advantage of their immaturity during the early stages of mental development, children can be easily manipulated and forced into submission to take on more dangerous tasks.12 For example, one of the most shocking and recent uses of children by the Al-Shabab is as suicide bombers, otherwise known as victim bombers.13 These children are forced into buildings or crowded areas and told to detonate bombs strapped to their bodies, this, effectively killing those in the area of the bombing along with themselves. As a Canadian General Romeo Dallaire put it, “Man has created the ultimate cheap, expendable, yet sophisticated weapon…Desperate children, boys and girls, are cheap to sustain, have no real sense of fear, and are limitless in the perverse directions they can be manipulated through drugs and indoctrination since they have not yet developed a concept of justice and have been ripped away from their families to fend in the new perverted family of armed force.”14 Obviously, these extremist groups have no regard for the children themselves or their physical and mental well-being. The only thing the Al-Shabab is concerned about is the obedience of the military force willing to follow its commands.

A boy in Mogadishu, Somalia armed with an ammunition belt and a rocket propelled grenade. Mohamed Sheikh Nor, Child Solider in Mogadishu, Somalia, 2014. Britannica.com. Fair use.

Somalian community. “Revealed - The ugly face of poverty in Somalia,” 20 May 2020. The Somalia Investigator. Fair use.

There is a glimmer of hope for this horrible situation. For the past twenty years, UNICEF has been active in rehabilitating children affected by such traumatic experiences. Focusing on aspects such as healthcare, education, and the reintegration into society, UNICEF has rescued thousands of children from danger and placed them in safe environments where they can experience their youth. In a meeting of the United Nations, the comment was made that “The children of the world should be students, not soldiers, they [deserve] to grow up in safe communities where they [can] reach their full potential. These are fundamental rights of all children — not aspirations.”15 The goal of the healing process, is to enable children to become fully functioning members of society who can enjoy their early years and engage in activities suitable to their age. For adolescents, one important aspect of rehabilitation is vocational training in trades such as carpentry, hairdressing, dressmaking. Equipped with professional knowledge, these young people are better prepared to participate in society and support themselves financially. Politically, laws have been ratified by the African Union to protect children from harm. In 1990, the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child prohibited the recruitment and direct participation of children across the continent under the age of eighteen in armed conflicts.16 However, these regulations have not been able to prevent the problem of child soldiering that haunts Somalia today. Perhaps the greater issue which must be investigated addresses children who are willingly join the army. More specifically, due to the consequences of living in a world constantly ravaged by war, circumstantial factors have left children no choice but to join militarized factions.

There are many factors that can influence a child’s decision to become associated with groups like the Al-Shabab. The most common is poverty and a lack resources for survival. With an overwhelming number of families living in destitution, children are lured to the AlShabab by promises of food, shelter, money, and security. Eighteen-year-old Adbinasir Omar Hashi, felt like he had no choice: “My family was poor, and we did not have enough food to feed my brothers and sisters…I was so desperate that I joined the militia.”17 By joining the army, children hope that they will be able to sustain themselves, and that they will also be able to send their earnings back to their families. Additionally, children who live with

the consequences of displacement from civil conflict, or the death of their parents struggle with finding a sense of purpose and belonging. As Somalia suffers from ongoing warfare, families are often separated, and children are left without protection. Alone in the world, a child loses their own personal identity; by joining the army, they regain their sense of identity and belonging in a community even though this acceptance is led by a misguided belief.18 Finally, within the army, children receive rewards such as shoes and money which serve as status symbols. When asked why he stayed in the militia for so long, one former child solider replied, “The gun gives me power, and I know how to get what I need. Why should I go back to the village when I have no money and no job, no education?”19 Therefore, becoming a child soldier has a strong appeal to youth who are reassured that their lives will improve when they join the militia. Whether it be through material possessions or psychological reassurance, a child can always be deceived into participating in this devastating lifestyle, thus perpetuating the vicious practice of child soldiering.

The crisis of child soldiers that plagues Somalia will not be resolved quickly. As has been made clear, children are seen as Stefanie Glinkski, “The Horrific life of a Child Solider,” 12 February 2018. Getty Images. Fair use. a disposable and easy source of labour based on their innocence. Consequently, groups like the Al-Shabab have recognized this and have chosen to exploit children into committing all sorts of unspeakable and horrific acts of barbarity. This brutality not only scars children mentally and physically, but it also perpetuates the country’s never-ending cycle of violence and poverty. Although, it appears the source of child soldiers in Somalia is children being forced into this way of life, the root cause of child soldiers can be traced even further back to a hopeless social situation that points children into joining the armed forces. As families live under the weight of poverty, militias offer a twisted form of safety which is very attractive to young children who are poor, unsupported, and unprotected. Thus, there must be a balance between stopping to extremist groups who continue to take advantage of children, while at the same time organizing a humanitarian response to the harsh realities of a poverty-stricken country.

Heather Lam History major