South Sudan vows to protect children rights amid peace

JUBA, June 17 (Xinhua) -- South Sudan on Monday vowed to maintain peace and stability in order to end the suffering of millions of children who were affected during the more than five years of conflict.

Nadia Arop Dudi, minister for youth, culture and sports, said the current economic hardship caused by the conflict has left many children suffering and especially girls dropping out of school due to early child marriage.

"We are all aware of the current situation that engulfed our country economically, socially, the security situation, food insufficiency have led to our children to suffer," said Arop in Juba during celebrations to mark International Day of the African Child.

"Our government is responsible for all these things and we committed ourselves for peace to become reality, so that our children can be in good situation. In as much as we have the international and regional laws that protect lives of children from all forms of exploitation, violence, discrimination and harmful traditional practices, little progress has been done in the protection and welfare of children," she added.

Arop disclosed that harmful traditional practices like child marriages are still rampant within South Sudan amid ongoing efforts by government and international partners to eradicate them.

In 2017, two million children were forced out of school due to the conflict.

The government in 2016 launched the African Union campaign to end child marriages by 2030 using a national action plan under the ministry of gender, child and social welfare.

More than 3,100 child soldiers have been released by armed groups in South Sudan since outbreak of conflict in December 2013.

"The Day of the African Child commemoration gives us opportunity to renew our shared commitment of putting children at the top of the agenda of upholding their rights and providing the necessary services to enhance their needs," said Arop.

Rowland Cole, UN Development Programme (UNDP) chief technical advisor, said that there is need to empower youth who make up 70 percent of the South Sudan population.

He disclosed that it was inevitable for the country to invest more into education of its girls who make up more than half of the youth population.

Cole added that UNDP in collaboration with the judiciary will be establishing special courts to try gender-based-violence-related cases and cases of juveniles who are caught on the wrong side of the law.

"Harmful traditional practices cannot be justified, the constitution of South Sudan provides for the rights of children and therefore child marriages cannot be justified on the basis of cultural traditional practices," he said.