By Simon Whelan:
British Army used under-18-year-old soldiers in Iraq occupation
8 March 2007
A recent written answer to a parliamentary question from the Liberal Democrats revealed that the British Army sent 15 soldiers under the age of 18 to fight in Iraq, contravening a United Nation’s protocol on children’s rights.
The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, Article 38, (1989) insists: “State parties shall take all feasible measures to ensure that persons who have not attained the age of 15 years do not take a direct part in hostilities.”
The optional protocol on the involvement of children in armed conflict to the Convention that came into force in 2002 stipulates that its state parties “shall take all feasible measures to ensure that persons below the age of 18 do not take a direct part in hostilities and that they are not compulsorily recruited into their armed forces.”
Prime Minister Tony Blair’s Labour government ratified the optional protocol against the deployment of those aged 18 and under to war on June 24, 2003.
At almost the same time it was sending them to participate in the occupation of Iraq.
See also here.
Dear Kitty. Some blog 
Thursday March 8th is Congressional Call-In Day for MFSO Members
Posted by: “bigraccoon” bigraccoon@earthlink.net redwoodsaurus
Thu Mar 8, 2007 2:47 am (PST)
Dear Members of Military Families Speak Out,
As the U.S. House of Repesentatives prepares to vote on President
Bush’s request for an additional $93 billion that would allow the war in
Iraq to continue, it is time to make sure all of our Members of Congress
understand that a vote in favor of this Supplimental Appropriations
request is a vote to abandon our troops. Who better to deliver the
message “Support Our Troops – De-fund the War!” than military and
Gold Star families and Veterans, who understand the need for funding
directed specifically to bringing our troops home quickly and safely,
and taking care of them when they get here.
This week, organizations across the country are participating in
Congressional “call-in” days, asking their members to call their
Congressional Representative and send a clear message that we
want them to vote against any additional funding to continue the war in
Iraq. Thursday, March 8th has been designated as the day for
military and Gold Star families and Veterans to call our
Congressional Representatives with our message of supporting our
troops by de-funding the war, bringing them home now and taking
care of them when they get here. For those in Congress who have
expressed opposition to the war, but have not yet committed to voting
against this Supplemental Appropriation, we need to remind them that
if they vote now to fund this war, it will no longer be George Bush’s war
— it will be their war. They will have bought it, they will own it, and we
will
not forget.
For contact information and/or to find your Member of
Congress, you can go to . You
can call them toll free using one of the following numbers
that go right to the Capitol switchboard (ask for the office
of your Representative): 800-828-0498, 800-459-1887 or
800-614-2803. When you get your Congressperson’s office, tell them
you are a military family and a member of Military Families Speak Out
and that you would like to speak with your Member of Congress. If your
Representative is not available, ask to speak with their Chief of Staff. If
the Chief of Staff is not available, ask for their Military Affairs aide.
Whoever you speak to – tell him or her how this war has affected you
and your family personally, and that now is time for them to use their
‘power of the purse’ to end this misbegotten war once and for all. Ask
how the Representative will be voting in the upcoming vote on
President Bush’s Supplemental Appropriations bill to continue funding
for the war in Iraq. And — please send us an email at mfso@mfso.org
letting us know what they said.
We need to remind all in Congress that it is not enough to
attempt to have better-rested, better-equipped and
better-trained troops sent to fight and die in an
unjustifiable war. Yes, the war in Iraq has been
mis-managed, but as military and Gold Star families and
Veterans, we are not focused on getting better
management of a war based on lies — we are demanding
that this war be ended.
Thank you for your voice — it’s a voice that Congress needs
to hear now more than ever.
In Peace and Solidarity,
Nancy Lessin and Charley Richardson
for Military Families Speak Out
Military Families Speak Out
P.O. Box 300549
Jamaica Plain, MA 02130
617-983-0710
mfso@mfso.org
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