Should Child Soldiers Be Granted Amnesty

Child soldiers are victims, not perpetrators, so they should be granted amnesty. Though to some it may look like these kids are choosing this life, in reality, most aren’t. They either have to join those forces or die, which is terrifying for any child to imagine. Not only that, but they were drugged to kill, making them forget how bad it was that they were doing. And to some of them, that army was the only family that they have, providing better living conditions than those out on the streets. Which is why these children are victims of this terrible event and should be legally forgiven for what they were forced to do. First of all, the kids have no choice to join unless they wanted to die. In one village, the army officials said you could
“...once recruited the children become brainwashed through the use of drugs and alcohol.” (Child Soldiers, page 18). They are not told who to attack before they are drugged, when they have more common sense. Gateway Foundation, a website that helps people by helping them find addiction and drug centers wrote under their Behavioral Problems section, “Aggressiveness” “Impaired Judgement” “Loss of self control”. (Effects of Drug Abuse and Addiction, Gateway Foundation). These are just three of many problems a person would experience when taking a drug, but these three are strong in the children, helping to explain some of their behavior. After the drugs have set in, the leaders tell them what to do, and because the drug has taken over their bodies, they can’t tell what’s right and wrong. “Child soldiers are often ordered to commit abuses against their own families and communities.” (Child Soldiers, Prosecution, page 12). From this, people can see that they, because of the effects of the drugs, are forced to attack their own families. To remember that later would be completely devastating for any child who loved their parents, siblings, other relatives, and