child soldiers in the age of fractured states
current global estimates of children engaged in warfare range from 200000 to 300000 . childrens roles in conflict range from armed and active participants to spies cooks messengers and sex slaves . child soldiers in the age of fractured states examines the factors that contribute to the use of children in war the effects of war upon children and the perpetual cycle of warfare that engulfs many of the worlds poorest nations . br the contributors seek to eliminate myths of historic or culture based violence and instead look to common traits of chronic poverty and vulnerable populations . individual essays examine topics such as the legal and ethical aspects of child soldiering ; internal un debates over enforcement of child protection policies ; economic factors ; increased access to small arms ; displaced populations ; resource endowments ; forced government conscription ; rebel enforced quota systems ; motivational techniques employed in recruiting children ; and the role of girls in conflict . br the contributors also offer viable policies to reduce the recruitment of child soldiers such as the protection of refugee camps by outside forces naming and shaming and criminal prosecution by international tribunals . finally they focus on ways to reintegrate former child soldiers into civil society in the aftermath of war .