Zlata Filipovic, author of “Zlata’s Diary” (1994), which recounts her teenage years in wartime Sarajevo, and Ambassador (ret.) Donald Steinberg,
Vice President, International Crisis Group, discuss the impact of
violence on children. The well-being of children in war and
post-conflict situations is increasingly recognized as central to
achieving lasting peace. Children’s rights must be respected, and their
perpetrators held accountable if justice and the rule of law are to
prevail. Questions remain about what the international community can
and has done to protect children from violence. What practical steps
can be taken to protect the most vulnerable? How can Congress promote
support for the reintegration of child soldiers into post conflict
societies and help hold violent perpetrators accountable for forcible
recruitment? Why are the U.S. and Somalia the only countries that have
not ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child? What role
might the new UN Secretary General and International Criminal Court
play?
