The representation of child soldiers

Bébé Bataillon: La Représentation et le Traitement des Enfants Soldats

Baby Battalion: The Representation and Treatment of Child Soldiers

Expository Oral

Term Two, 2014

Year 12 English Authority

Topic: Controversial Cultures

Teacher: Mr Harrop

Good Shepherd Catholic College

Written by Sasa (Yue Hua) Liang

Table of Contents

Bébé Bataillon: La Représentation et le Traitement des Enfants Soldats

Baby Battalion: The Representation and Treatment of Child Soldiers

Written by Sasa Liang

Good morning distinguished guests and dignitaries. My name is Sasa Liang, a student from Good Shepherd Catholic College Mount Isa, and today I am here to discuss the controversial issue of child soldiers in post-colonial Africa, how they are represented throughout various literary and non-literary texts, and how these representations influence prevalent Western ideologies, attitudes and beliefs of the predicament.

The use of child soldiers in Africa traces back to when the former French colonies abducted African children to use as combatants. These children were formerly known as "enfants soldats". Today's child soldiers are portrayed as vulnerable, exploited and manipulated victims of war throughout various literary and non-literary texts, influencing Western ideologies regarding children in combat in multiple ways.

After World War II, Africa slowly gained independence from European imperial powers. In 1949, article 77.2 of the Additional Protocol I was included in the Geneva Conventions, prohibiting children under the age of 18 from armed combat and declaring the use of combatants under the age of 15 to be a war crime (Amnesty International, 2013). Despite this, the United Nation's Children's Fund claims that approximately 120,000 children have been recruited into armed groups in Africa within the last decade (UNICEF, 2013). Some have been...