The persistent use of child soldiers in war continues to be a serious problem for many countries locked in conflicts around the world, yet surprisingly little attention has been given to those actors who are recruiting children in the greatest numbers: namely, non-state armed groups (NSAs). In recent years, several NSAs have entered into formal commitments with UNICEF to end their child recruitment practices; what is more interesting, they have done so during periods of active conflict. Why have these armed groups signed such agreements? Are there observable patterns among these NSAs that could better help us predict the likelihood of engaging with other groups in the future? This Masters thesis endeavours to look more closely at the nature of these specific actors employing children in war, and the dynamics surrounding negotiated agreements, in order to answer the question: why do non-state armed groups agree to end their child recruitment practices during periods of ongoing conflict?
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:LACETR/oai:collectionscanada.gc.ca:QMM.116124 |
| Date | January 2008 |
| Creators | Reta, Runa. |
| Publisher | McGill University |
| Source Sets | Library and Archives Canada ETDs Repository / Centre d'archives des thèses électroniques de Bibliothèque et Archives Canada |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Coverage | Master of Arts (Department of Political Science.) |
| Rights | All items in eScholarship@McGill are protected by copyright with all rights reserved unless otherwise indicated. |
| Relation | alephsysno: 003164474, proquestno: AAIMR67069, Theses scanned by UMI/ProQuest. |
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