Government says ‘no’ to child soldiers

The government had given an assurance that no Namibians aged under 18 would be conscripted into the armed forces, the ‘Namibian’ reported on Friday. According to the report, the undertaking was given by Women Affairs and Child Welfare Minister Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah in the National Assembly on Wednesday. Nandi-Ndaitwah was speaking during debate on the ratification of the Optional Protocol to Convention on Rights of the Child and the involvement of children in armed conflict. The minister was quoted as saying that Namibian children were protected from armed conflicts. Ndaitwah’s undertaking followed Congress of Democrats (CoD) MP Rosa Namises’s concern over reports that Namibian children in the Kavango region were being recruited to fight for the Angolan Armed Forces (FAA). “It has always been the policy of the ruling party, SWAPO, not to integrate anyone under 18 years of age into its armed forces and that is not going to change with the NDF. Thus, why should the Namibian Government allow local youths to fight in foreign armies like the (FAA) if it was opposed to the integration of such youths into its own army?” asked Ndaitwah.