Child Soldiers Research Paper

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Child Soldiers are Victims Child soldiers are victims of war because their world gets destroyed. While child soldiers may help people/countries win wars, the kids involved are scarred forever. Some may volunteer because they need clothes, food, and money, but are unaware of what they are getting themselves into. Once they enlist, these children are forced to fight in extreme combat and are given drugs so they don’t know what they are doing. If they don’t follow orders, they are beaten and their families are killed. Child soldiers are killed every day in war. In certain situations child soldiers are no different from child criminals and have been responsible for some of the most brutal acts in war time. For example, in Sierra Leone, child soldiers commit acts of rape and kill many civilians at once. (“Child Soldier, Prosecution”) Ishmael Beah, a…show more content…
This shows how they don’t have a choice. If they do not kill, then they will be killed. Some kids, however, may want to kill the enemy to avenge their family, and join the military to earn money. They feel as if they need to kill people for others to feel the same loss. The point is children are killing only because the people close to them have been killed and they have no choice but to kill others. However some child soldiers are able to steer away from this lifestyle and keep from getting trapped in such savage behavior. Most child soldiers are forcefully recruited, or they don’t realize what enlisting entails. This is because they have never been in a war before, and many of them will die. Child soldiers volunteer for the army because they are hungry or they need clothes. (“Child Soldier, Prosecution”) Many child soldiers do not realize the severity of the situation they are getting into when they enlist. Take Ishmael Beah for example, a former child soldier who said

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