6-1-2013

World Day of War Orphans

World Day of War Orphans was initiated by a French NGO called “SOS Enfants en Détresses”. It is celebrated on January 6 highlights the plight of war orphans. Many countries have little choice in dealing with their growing orphan problem except to place them in orphanages. In these places, children are fortunate to receive food, shelter medical care, and clothing.

In recent decades, the proportion of civilian casualties in armed conflicts has increased dramatically and is now estimated at more than 90 per cent. About half of the victims are children. An estimated 20 million children have been forced to flee their homes because of conflict and human rights violations and are living as refugees in neighboring countries or are internally displaced within their own national borders.

More than 2 million children have died as a direct result of armed conflict over the last decade. More than three times that number, at least 6 million children, have been permanently disabled or seriously injured. More than 1 million have been orphaned or separated from their families. Between 8,000 and 10,000 children are killed or maimed by landmines every year.

An estimated 300,000 child soldiers - boys and girls under the age of 18 are involved in more than 30 conflicts worldwide. Child soldiers are used as combatants, messengers, porters, cooks and to provide sexual services. Some are forcibly recruited or abducted; others are driven to join by poverty, abuse and discrimination, or to seek revenge for violence enacted against themselves and their families.

Orphans throughout the world face many challenges: Malnutrition, starvation, disease, and decreased social attention. As the most vulnerable population on planet Earth, they have no one to protect them and are most likely to suffer from hunger, disease, and many other problems. There are today an estimated 150 million orphans worldwide and the number is rapidly increasing. The orphan crisis is a growing worldwide humanitarian and social crisis that has serious implications for all nations. Their stories are as much a part of war as the fighting itself. They are victims of wars spawned by adults who should foster a tradition of care and protection for them.