Argumentative Essay: Child Soldiers

Around the globe, in the past and present, children are being recruited to fight as soldiers in wars sometimes as young as 5 and up until they are 18 or older. These children soldiers should not be given amnesty because giving them amnesty could give others encouragement to keep using them, everyone has the same rights which means everyone has the same consequences, and some child soldiers have committed the most violent and harsh acts in wartime, and they can be dangerous to keep in our country.

Child soldiers are victims to an unfortunate outcome when viciously stolen from reality and their childhoods. Drugged, brainwashed,and armed these kids are taught at an impressionable age that in war it's kill or be killed. They are given no other option than to participate in this war, so child soldiers should be granted amnesty.

Overall, this subject is a huge part of politics today and should be taken seriously by people everywhere. Child soldiers should be given amnesty for their crimes because they were forced to fight in wars that were not theirs. Opposition to this argument would say that they are the perpetrators of these awful war crimes. This is false because they are forced to do these things even of they don’t want to. Keep this in mind next time you hear about a child soldier being arrested

As previously stated, child soldiers are typically viewed as more easily replaced than other soldiers. In turn, this leads to more brutal punishments and a lack of consideration for their wellbeing. The punishments inflicted on the children are similar or worse than the ones inflicted on their adult counterparts which imposes damage that is more destructive to a child than to an adult (Sierra Leone’s Former Child Soldiers). Additionally, the Revolutionary United Front used drugs and alcohol in order to control children and increase their intensity and because of this, many children quickly became addicts. A former child soldier, Ishamael Beah spoke of his experience of cocaine and marijuana withdrawal after being taken off the battle field

Many child soldiers have done very bad things to innocent people.Child soldiers are responsible for the deaths of thousands of people. Many may argue that drugs and alcohol influenced the children to make the decisions that they should not have made. It takes too many resources to figure out if they are still a threat to our society. Even after intense counseling and therapy, we will never know for sure that they are cured unless we let them into the public's eye. Child soldiers should not deserve amnesty.

War. It’s a terrible event to take place with where people are dying left & right, people losing several of their limbs, soldiers get tortured & drugged for information, & it leaves the area where it took place in a disarray that can last decades even a century. Some of the worst acts committed in a war has been coming from children. 300,000 children have joined in the effort with 40% of all militia using child soldiers. Child soldiers should not receive amnesty but instead, be rehabilitated so they can function in society once more. The reasons are because they are brainwashed, to prevent them to slip back in, not have them commit even more heinous acts, not turn them into adult soldiers, & to give victim’s justice.

Imagine looking around you and seeing children your age and younger falling to their knees in pain, imagine hearing guns and screams all around you, now just imagine you are one of those children falling to their knees in pain and you had no choice to join into this gruesome reality that children 5-15 and older have to participate in without a choice. This is just an example of what most children have to go through for weeks or maybe months at a time. This is exactly why I'm against the prosecution of child soldiers. The deeds that they perform are because they have either been manipulated, have no choice, or they just don't know right from wrong. Prosecuting a child soldier is probably the worst decision ever and here is why.

Child soldiers are victims of cruel recruiters who take advantage of their innocence, forcing them to commit acts that no child should ever experience. They are given drugs to brainwash them and make them unaware of what they are doing (Helping to heal child soldiers). The only things they know are the orders they’re given, orders that they can either follow or be killed (Child Soldiers: Victims or Perpetrators). Child soldiers should be given amnesty as it is unjust to prosecute a child for actions they were forced to commit while under the influence of drugs. Instead, rehabilitation should be provided to give these children a second chance.

For my social justice project, my partner and I chose child soldiers. I really wanted to do this topic because I do not think that people really understand how terrible it is. People will say they are against child soldiers, but I see no efforts to stop it. There are over 300,000 child soldiers in the world today, and I believe that the number will only grow if people do not take against against it. During class I hope to inspire my classmates to see these as a more serious and prevalent issue that needs to be solved. I found a very nice poem to open class, that calls people to fight this injustice. I have two bible verses (Matthew 18: 2-3; 1 Corinthians 3: 16) and a quote from Pope Francis that fits very nicely into the presentation.

As reported by Forbes.com 300,000 child soldiers are active in conflicts around the world. 40% of armed forces (including national armies, militias, gangs, terrorist organizations and resistance forces) in the world use children. They are then scared and change completely. Whether it is attitude or physically, the children are changed because of the horrible impact the grown adults on the little adolescents.These child soldiers should be given amnesty because they are brainwashed and manipulated, forced against their will, and are intimidated more easily than adults.

First, the children should be given amnesty because the soldiers are brainwashed and forced to fight. From the article, What We Can Learn from Child Soldiers, it says, “Child soldiers forced into military service… in the first few weeks of being abducted… they know what they are doing is wrong, but the more they kill people, the more they rape or do other things like that, their brain and moral compass switch off.” This quote shows how the children change from the time they are recruited to when they are in a fight and are killing people. Can you imagine a child as young as the age of ten

Child soldiers are any children under the age of 18 who are recruited by a state or non-state armed group and used as fighters, cooks, suicide bombers, human shields, messengers, spies, or for sexual purposes. In the opinion of many people including parents, children, and political figures, the use of children in wars or for the purpose of being soldiers is unfair and wrong. Therefore, based on all of the cruelties the children face such as their lives being threatened, their being taken from their families and forced to commit these heinous acts, and not being treated fairly while they are serving, it is in many’s opinion that these children be given amnesty, and are forgiven for their acts.

Many countries have ongoing wars that are affecting families and citizens, but most importantly the children. Terrorist and rebel groups are recruiting and drugging young children to force them to fight on their side of the war. The debate is whether or not Child soldiers should be granted amnesty after they are rescued from these devastating situations. Many children are forced into fighting and should be granted amnesty in order to help them recover. Theses kids were too young to truly understand what they are doing.

Child Soldiers Most Americans don’t want war in America, the sad fact is that it is already here. In the sad issue of child soldiers first arose in World War One and has stuck around in many foreign countries. America has fought the war of deciding whether or not the child soldiers should be put on trial for killing American soldiers. The issue of Child soldiers is complicated and there are very plausible point for both arguments.

Argumentative Essay Joy White In 2014, there were more than 300,000 child soldiers actively fighting across the world. This number has exponentially increased from the 2010 estimation of about 80,000. These children deserve another chance at a better life away from war, which involves pulling them out of these negative situation of death and destruction and into something that will help them to realize what the right thing to do is. Some kind of treatment should be given to the victims of the traumas associated with child soldiering.