Protecting the fundamental rights of child victims of forced recruitment in Colombia's armed conflict ; La protection internationale des droits fondamentaux des enfants victimes du recrutement forcé dans le conflit armé en Colombie

The recruitment, conscription or enlistment of children in armed groups continues to be a major issue today. Colombia is one of the countries where the conflict is still ongoing, and is a fairly emblematic or at least illustrative case, surrounding a number of issues around the protection of the fundamental rights of child victims of armed conflict, based on the discussion of the effectiveness of a consistent international normative framework, capable of ensuring protection and assistance to children in the midst of hostilities.International law provides a set of standards and legal mechanisms applicable to the protection of children, whether they are direct or indirect victims of conflict. However, an examination of these instruments shows that they are often characterised by the generality of their provisions, which are not always adapted to take into account the specific nature of children and the evolution of conflicts. In addition, they sometimes raise questions of applicability, linked mainly to the adoption by States and their commitment to establishing an appropriate legal framework for children. The persistence of various violations raises awareness of normative shortcomings and requires a redefinition of the objective of adequate protection for children.In this context, the involvement of the International Court of Justice and the convictions handed down by the International Criminal Court for war crimes involving the recruitment and use of child soldiers pave the way for putting an end to the lack of justice in the protection of child victims of conflict; despite the fact that certain regional systems for the protection of human rights, such as the Inter-American system, demonstrate a certain relativity and establish the need to insist on the primary responsibility of States in the protection of children.The Peace Agreement between the Colombian government and the FARC-EP guerrillas in 2016 strengthened the transitional justice mechanisms implemented to enhance the protection of the fundamental rights ...