CHILDREN AND CONFLICTS: CHILDREN AS INSTRUMENTS AND OBJECTS OF INTERNATIONAL SECURITY

Djeca su prisutna u međunarodnoj politici tijekom cijele povijesti. Međutim, njihova uloga u politici rata i mira mijenjala se s promjenom predodžbi koje su odrasli imali o vrijednosti djetinjstva. Moderna koncepcija djetinjstva kao perioda nevinosti i ranjivosti koju treba zaštititi dala je djeci meku moć i učinila ih instrumentima političke i ratne propagande kroz brojne uloge, poput uloga simbola nacionalnog identiteta, ikona rata, zona mira, sredstava legitimizacije nasilja i druge. Ranjivost odraslih spram djece, više nego ranjivost same djece, generirala je politički kapital djetinjstva i omogućila njegovo korištenje kao sredstva manipulacije odraslima. Djeca su također direktno uključena u oružane sukobe, kao žrtve i kao počinitelji. Djetinjstvo na taj način postaje objekt međunarodne sigurnosti. Oko 350 milijuna djece danas živi u zonama oružanih sukoba, više od jedanaest milijuna njih je u izbjeglištvu, dok 300 tisuća djece služe kao vojnici. Evolucija novih ratova, koju prati trend proliferacije naoružanih skupina, privatizacije nasilja te premještanja ciljeva rata iz političko-ideološke u ekonomsku sferu, omogućila je još intenzivniju eksploataciju djece u sukobima. Napore uložene u stvaranje učinkovite međunarodne pravne zaštite djece potkopavaju brojne kontradikcije u međunarodnom pravu koje otvaraju prostor za pitanje je li učinkovita međunarodna zaštita djece uopće moguća.Children have been present in international politics throughout the whole history of humanity. However, the roles they played in the policy of war and peace has been changing with changes of ideas that adults had about the value and vulnerability of childhood. The modern conception of childhood as a period of innocence and vulnerability that needs protection has given soft power to children and made them instruments of political and war propaganda through numerous roles, such as the symbols of national identity, the icons of war, the peace zones, instruments of legitimizing violence and others. The vulnerability of adults towards children, more than vulnerability of children themselves, has generated political capital of childhood and enabled its use as an instrument of manipulating adults. Children are also directly involved in armed conflicts, either as victims or as perpetrators. Thus, childhood becomes an object of international security. About three hundred and fifty million children currently live in conflict zones, more than eleven million of them are made refugees, and three hundred thousand children serve as soldiers. The evolution of so-called new wars, followed by the trend of proliferation of armed groups, the privatization of violence, and shifting of war goals from political to economic sphere, has enabled even more intensive exploitation of children in conflicts. Great efforts made in creating effective international legal protection of children have been undermined by numerous contradictions in international law which leads to the question whether effective international child protection is even possible