Children and youth are especially vulnerable to the effects of conflict and gross human rights violations. In many post-conflict regions, children and youth comprise more than half of the affected population. They are often specific targets of human rights abuse due to their age and societal status.

Children and youth often experience the effects of violations differently from adults. They may be witnesses or victims of first-hand abuse—such as forced recruitment, torture, displacement or sexual assault—resulting in serious physical and psychological harm. If they lose their guardians—through killings, unlawful detention, or disappearances—they suffer the trauma of both separation and loss of support.

Children and youth also risk losing the benefits of education, adequate healthcare and other services at the time in their lives when these are critical to their development.

Adapting Transitional Justice Tools for Children and Youth

Children and youth have a right to share their experiences and take part in justice and reconciliation processes.

Transitional justice mechanisms such as truth-seeking, institutional reform, reparations and criminal tribunals can be powerful tools to address the effects of violations perpetrated against children. They can also raise awareness about the overall effects of conflict and repression to help prevent recurrence.

There is a growing awareness of the importance of including children in transitional justice. The mandate of the Liberia Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) included special protections for youth. Likewise, the International Criminal Court (ICC) has begun paying increased attention to international crimes against children.

Future initiatives must continue to promote and protect the specific needs of children and youth.

ICTJ’s Role

We develop strategies with local and international partners on ways to include children and youth in meaningful post-conflict dialogue, reconciliation and community rebuilding efforts.

The Convention on the Rights of the Child and its Optional Protocols guide our work.

• We addressed the United Nations Security Council on 19 September 2012 as part of the Open Debate on Children and Armed Conflict.
• Based on a comparative review of current and past efforts to reach out to children and youth as part of outreach programming for transitional justice measures, we have published “Engaging Children and Youth in Transitional Justice Processes”, a brief and practically oriented document designed to provide ideas for the development of youth and child tailored outreach programs.
• Through youth trainings and radio programs in Nepal, we raised awareness about pending transitional justice processes and highlighted the ways in which youth can advocate for their interests and engage in the process of dealing with the past.
• In partnership with the Association for Historical Dialogue and Research (AHDR) and The Elders we produced Thinking Historically about Missing Persons: A Guide for Teachers, a set of education materials designed to facilitate dialogue about and engagement with Cyprus’s legacy of conflict.
• We are working with Canada’s TRC to develop new methods for youth engagement and youth-led initiatives.
• We conducted research in Colombia, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Liberia, and Nepal on the successes and failures of children’s involvement in transitional justice processes culminating in the release of “Through a New Lens: A Child-Sensitive Approach to Transitional Justice.”
• We collaborated with UNICEF to produce a publication on Children and Truth Commissions, examining how truth commissions can incorporate children's participation in a sensitive and meaningful manner. We also took part in preparing UNICEF’s Children and Transitional Justice Key Principles Document, which outlines overarching considerations for involving children in these processes.