§ Ms DrownTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will set out the time scale for ratification of the Optional Protocol to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child; and what plans the Government have for the deployment of under-18s after its ratification. [19534]
§ Mr. HoonOfficials in both the Ministry of Defence and Foreign and Commonwealth Office are actively working on ratification of the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict, and we aim to ratify as soon as possible. We hope this will be in early 2002. The UK made a statement on signature of the Optional Protocol in September 2000 clarifying its understanding of the obligation on states (Article 1) to take all feasible measures to prevent the direct participation in hostilities of personnel under 18 years of age. The current work is aimed at finalising the detailed administrative guidelines for the armed forces which will give form to that 459W commitment. Meanwhile, we take great care of the types of duty on which personnel under the age of 18 may be employed and ensure that none are deployed unless fully trained.
No service personnel under the age of 17 are deployed on operations. No personnel under the age of 18 carry out operational patrols in Northern Ireland, although 17-year-olds can be based in the Province. Also, under-18s are not deployed as aircrew or in submarines and, in line with UN policy, we do not deploy personnel under the age of 18 on UN peacekeeping operations.
The UK believes that, if it is widely ratified and its provisions properly implemented, the Protocol will represent a major step towards preventing the exposure of children, sometimes as young as seven or eight, to appalling danger and brutality, often by forceable recruitment into non-government forces.