Most child soldiers are used by non-governmental armed political groups. How can they be stopped from using child soldiers?
Non-governmental armed groups are not bound by international law in the same way as governments. However, child soldier recruiters may face prosecution by the International Criminal Court, established in 1998. The statute of the court defines the use of children under 15 in hostilities as a war crime. The court announced its first investigations in 2003, in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda, where child soldiers have been extensively used by armed groups. In 2006 it prosecuted a Congolese warlord for recruitment of child soldiers. The Special Court for Sierra Leone issued its first indictments in 2003, including against former Liberian president Charles Taylor. The indictments included charges of recruiting or using children under the age of 15 in hostilities. The court was established in 2002 to prosecute those suspected of responsibility for war crimes and crimes against humanity during the 1991-2002 war. For updated information on prosecutions by the ICC and the Special Co
