War-affected Children Research Articles

Juana Alicia's Las Lechugueras/The Women Lettuce Workers

Research Article| September 01 2002 Juana Alicia's Las Lechugueras/The Women Lettuce Workers Dyan Mazurana Dyan Mazurana dyan mazurana, Ph.D., is a research scholar and faculty member at the University of Montana, Missoula. She is a 2001–2002 Peace and International Security Fellow at the Kennedy School of Government of Harvard University. Dr. Mazurana is co-author of the United Nations Secretary-General's study, Women, Girls, Peace and Security. She has published widely on women's human rights, war-affected children, armed conflict, post-conflict peacebuilding, and peacekeeping. Search for other works by this author on: This Site Google Meridians (2002) 3 (1): 54–81. https://doi.org/10.1215/15366936-3.1.54 Cite Icon Cite Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn MailTo Permissions Search Site Citation Dyan Mazurana; Juana Alicia's Las Lechugueras/The Women Lettuce Workers. Meridians 1 September 2002; 3 (1): 54–81. doi: https://doi.org/10.1215/15366936-3.1.54 Download citation file: Zotero Reference Manager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search Books & JournalsAll JournalsMeridians Search Advanced Search The text of this article is only available as a PDF. Copyright © 2002 by Wesleyan University Press2002 Article PDF first page preview Close Modal You do not currently have access to this content.

The Psychosocial Impact of Armed Conflict on Children: Rethinking Traditional Paradigms in Research and Intervention

It is undeniable that the impact of war on children is a significant issue that merits continued efforts in research and intervention. It is time for a shift in paradigms; instead of focusing solely on exposure to traumatic events and defining pathology per dominant diagnostic criteria, it is essential that research turn to examining the effect of chronic stressors and exploring how certain mechanisms may be protective or act to moderate the psychosocial impact of war on children. The role of such protective mechanisms must be examined for differences by development and gender and by cultural context and the nature of the conflict situation itself. Investigations of the health and psychosocial well-being of war-affected children and the programs that serve them must attend to the restoration of basic physiologic needs, safety, structure, familial ties, and other sources of support and integration of cultural practices of healing. The coping efforts of young people and their families and the creation of more positive roles for youth also must be explored. Addressing these fundamental issues in research and programming will go a long way in fostering new opportunities for peace, healing, and the promotion of mental health and well-being for war-affected children in modern times.

Human Security and Global Governance: Putting People First

The meaning of security is being transformed. Security traditionally has focused on the state because its fundamental purpose is to protect its citizens. Hobbled by economic adversity, outrun by globalization, and undermined from within by bad governance, the capacity of some states to provide this protection has increasingly come into question. This incapacity is particularly obvious in war-torn societies. The state has, at times, come to be a major threat to its population's rights and welfare--or has been incapable of restraining the warlords or paramilitaries--rather than serving as the protector of its people. This drives us to broaden the focus of security beyond the level of the state and toward individual human beings, as well as to consider appropriate roles for the international system to compensate for state failure. The present discourse of security reflects this change in the global reality and the change in perspective that goes with it. No longer are we limited to discussions of states' rights and national sovereignty. Protecting civilians, addressing the plight of war-affected children and the threat of terrorism and drugs, managing open borders, and combating infectious diseases are now part of a dialogue. This shift reflects a growing recognition that the protection of people must be a principal concern. But the term is not really new. A recognition that people's rights are at least as important as those of states has been gaining momentum since the end of World War II. The Holocaust forced a serious examination of the place of international moral standards and codes in the conduct of world affairs. It also caused us to rethink the principles of national sovereignty. The Nuremberg trials acknowledged that grotesque violations of people's rights could not go unpunished. The United Nations Charter, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and the Genocide and Geneva conventions all recognized the inherent right of people to personal security. They challenge conventional notions of sovereignty when serious violations of rights occur. Human security today puts people first and recognizes that their safety is integral to the promotion and maintenance of international peace and security. The security of states is essential, but not sufficient, to fully ensure the safety and well-being of the world's peoples. Several current challenges are particularly compelling. One concerns the evolution of new links between local conflict and the international economy and the impact of these perverse linkages on vulnerable communities. Doubtless, high-value commodities like diamonds or oil can prolong and intensify conflict. Angola and Sierra Leone demonstrate the extreme impact of personal greed on vulnerable populations. The Security Council embargo on rough diamonds from Sierra Leone is a positive first step toward preventing the use of profits from diamond sales to finance wars and crimes against civilians. Another challenge is the suffering of vulnerable populations in war, one particularly painful aspect of which is the issue of children. At the September 2000 International Conference on War-Affected Children in Winnipeg, over 130 countries along with youth, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), and experts gathered in common cause to improve the plight of war-affected children. Governments adopted a fourteen-point agenda to be taken to the UN special session on children in 2001. Governments also made specific concrete commitments, including greater program investment, diplomatic initiatives, and support for international legal instruments. The compelling need for a permanent court to judge crimes against humanity has been underlined by ongoing events in Kosovo and Sierra Leone. In June 1999, coalitions of like-minded states and NGOs produced the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. This court is a significant new international institution in the battle against war crimes and genocide, a major step toward real international accountability. …

The Political Economy of War-Affected Children

The nature of armed conflict has changed since the rise of globalization and the end of the Cold War. Now wars predominantly take the lives of civilians, over half of whom are children. This article examines the effects of armed conflict on children. In particular, it discusses refugee and internally displaced children, child soldiers, the sexual assault and exploitation of girls, and children traumatized by war. How the international community should respond to protect children and prevent war is explored in relation to the political and economic context within which wars occur.

The Political Economy of War-Affected Children

The Political Economy of War-Affected Children

Human Security and the New Diplomacy: Protecting People, Promoting Peace

Written by diplomatic practitioners, Human Security and the New Diplomacy is a straightforward account of challenges already overcome and the prospect for further progress. From the evolution of peace-keeping, to peacebuilding, humanitarian intervention, war-affected children, international humanitarian law, the International Criminal Court, the economic agendas of conflict, transnational crime, and the emergence of connectivity and a global civil society, the authors offer new insights into the importance of considering these issues as part of a single agenda. Human Security and the New Diplomacy is a case-study of a major Canadian foreign policy initiative and a detailed account of the first phase of the human security agenda. The story of Canada's leading role in promoting a humanitarian approach to international relations, it will be of interest to foreign policy specialists and students alike. Contributors include David Angell, Alan Bones, Michael Bonser, Terry Cormier, Patricia Fortier, Bob Fowler, Elissa Goldberg, Mark Gwozdecky, Sam Hanson, Paul Heinbecker, Eric Hoskins, Don Hubert, David Lee, Dan Livermore, Jennifer Loten, Rob McRae, Valerie Ooterveld, Victor Rakmil, Darryl Robinson, Jill Sinclair, Michael Small, Ross Snyder, Carmen Sorger, and Roman Waschuk.

War-Affected Societies and War-Affected Children

The article is an overview of essential issues of children's development living under the conditions of war. The concept of `child victims' is discussed. `Victims' include not only killed and wounded children, but also many kinds of child survivors suffering from psychosocial distress. `Victims' include, furthermore, child and adolescent soldiers exposed to militaristic socialization characterized by the unlearning of humaneness. In the work for prevention of war and organized violence, the concept of `peace' should not be reduced to mean the absence of armed struggle and person-to-person violence. It should be expanded, as in modern peace research, to include also structural (societal) and cultural (e.g. mass media) violence. War and organized violence not only produce accumulation of atrocities and victims but also involve the mobilization of counter-movements and dissidents governed by the principles of care, love, sacrifice and solidarity.

Positive Youth Development in War-Affected Children in Uganda

The war in northern Uganda with Joseph Kony and his Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) created over 20 years of terror and turmoil. Tens of thousands of youth were either abducted as child soldiers and/or sex slaves; or they were placed in internally displaced peoples’ (IDP) camps, where they lived with inadequate social provisions, such as food, health care, education, and safety. Our study used interviews and focus groups to learn about how these youth were coping post-war. In particular, we focused on youth with positive purpose and goals to understand ways in which they were supported to hold fast to positive development and life goals. Findings indicated that rehabilitation, financial support for education, role models, and sports/arts have helped many youth who experienced war in northern Uganda find pro-social purposes in their lives.Keywords: Positive Youth Development; Uganda; War-affected youth; Youth Purpose; Former child soldiers.