'Child soldiers threat to future'

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South China Morning Post
Wednesday  September 24  1997

'Child soldiers threat to future' 
BURMA by William Barnes 
The Burmese military's routine use of child soldiers is reducing its chances 
of ever living at peace with the country, claimed its exiled critics 
yesterday.
Boys of 14 are regularly used to swell the ranks of the armed forces, which 
may have doubled in size to 350,000 in a decade, the human rights group Images 
Asia reported recently.
Military analysts say such young soldiers can be easily controlled and 
instilled with formidable loyalty.
But the State Law and Order Restoration Council - the junta - is merely 
producing an obstinate military caste that will prove an obstacle to peace in 
the future, claim its opponents.
"The junta's ideal soldier is an unquestioning robot. It is obvious why they 
like to pick such young soldiers," said one political activist in Bangkok.
"But young people can be warped by such experiences. You can bet that they are 
not being trained to respect democracy and human rights."
The 70-page Images Asia report, No Childhood At All, argued that the junta may 
be reluctant to shun the use of child troops when its publicly stated target 
is a military force 500,000 strong.
The report noted that Burma signed the United Nations Convention on the Rights 
of the Child six years ago, prohibiting the use of soldiers below the age of 
15.