American Journal of Innovative Research and Applied Sciences. ISSN 2429-5396 I www.american-jiras.com 10 CHILDREN ASSOCIATED WITH ARMED GROUPS AND ARMED FORCES: EXPERIENCES FROM CAMEROON | Kelly Ngesungwo Jabosung | The University of Buea | Department of Sociology and Anthropology | Cameroon | | Received June 30, 20221 | | Accepted August , 2022 | | Published August 14, 2022 | | ID Article | Kelly-Ref2-ajira200722 | ABSTRACT Background: The Anglophone regions of Cameroon have since 2016 witnessed a socio-political crisis which has deteriorated overtime. Marked by massive displacement and disruption of education, children in these regions have been exposed to various forms of violence and exploitation, association and use by state and non-state armed groups which negatively affects their wellbeing and development. The recruitment of children, including girls, is often considered as forced, coerced, manipulated or “voluntary,” although the distinction has no legal significance and recruitment remains unlawful for minors, regardless of the process. Objectives: This paper explores the national and international frameworks protecting children in humanitarian crisis and the specific experiences of children associated with armed groups and armed forces in the ongoing socio-political crisis in Cameroon. Methodology: The research is based on key informant interviews, FGDs and observations conducted in the Northwest and Southwest regions of Cameroon. The data for this article is based on qualitative analysis of the narratives of 10 children associated with armed groups and armed forces in detention, 10 children associated with armed groups selected from the communities, 10 community members and, 10 INGO staff selected from the communities under study. The sample size was purely purposive, given the sensitive nature of the research. Results: Findings from this research reveals that, children’s association with armed groups and armed forces are diverse in levels and forms which can either be triggered by personal, family and community factors. Conclusion: This paper recommends that, children who have been unlawfully recruited and who are accused of having committed domestic or international crimes during armed conflicts should be regarded primarily as victims, not as perpetrators, and treated as such, and every programming aimed at sentencing or response should aim at rehabilitation and reintegration and not punishment. Key Words: justice for children, child protection, Children associated with armed groups and armed forces, armed conflict, rehabilitation, reintegration. 1. INTRODUCTION Conflict disproportionately affects women and children. In many conflict-affected areas, children form up to half of the population, and girls and boys are frequently illegally recruited into armed forces and groups, ICRC (2012) [1] . The prevailing social conditions (community violence, poverty, the absence of schools and support structures, separation of families and the emergence of unaccompanied and internally displaced children), increases the likelihood of children’s association and recruitment into armed forces and armed groups. Children who are without their parents, because of death or displacement, are more vulnerable than those living with their families, and at greater risk of recruitment into these armed forces or armed groups. Children are most vulnerable to recruitment because, they are easily manipulated, are not fully aware of the dangers and have undeveloped notions of right and wrong. Globally, 250,000 children are estimated to be associated with armed forces and groups, with the situation being more acute in Africa, Save The Children (2010) [2] . Over the last four years, escalating violence and attacks against civilians and children in the Northwest and Southwest regions of Cameroon have forced many families to flee from their homes, putting children and young people at risk of injury and disability, physical and sexual violence, psychosocial distress, separation from families, recruitment, and various forms of association with armed groups and armed forces. According to the latest Humanitarian report provided by OCHA (2019) [3] on Cameroon, 4,300,000 people have been identified as in need of humanitarian assistance of which 2,300,000 are children under 18 years. More precisely, schools have become an important focus of the crisis due to the implementation of school boycotts, severely affecting a whole generation of children. Not only due to the intrinsic dangers and physical violence involved, but because forced absenteeism has exposed these children to significant risks of diverse forms of sexual violence, association to armed forces and armed groups, and family separation. According to OCHA’s 2019 HNO [3] , the risks of sexual and gender-based violence and child protection violations have particularly increased in the Northwest and Southwest region. Essentially due to forced displacement, seizure of daily activities for adults and children out of school; young girls and boys have become considerably more vulnerable, and the crisis has distanced them from education and employment opportunities, making them more likely to be instrumentalised. Displacements, violations of Human Rights and Children’s Rights, family, and community dislocation, have become ORIGINAL ARTICLE *Corresponding author Author & Copyright Author © 2022: | Kelly Ngesungwo Jabosung * |. All Rights Reserved. All articles published in American Journal of Innovative Research and Applied Sciences are the property of Atlantic Center Research Sciences, and is protected by copyright laws CC-BY. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by- nc/4.0/ . American Journal of Innovative Research and Applied Sciences. ISSN 2429-5396 I www.american-jiras.com 11 normalized in Cameroonian’s daily lives (ibid). Additionally, the destruction of infrastructure has implied further risks to children. Materializing as a direct consequence of the conflict, vital infrastructures throughout the two regions have been destroyed, closed, or abandoned. Hospitals, markets, schools, roads, and other key facilities have experienced the violent repercussions of the crisis. In fact, the destruction of infrastructure is a direct factor in the increased levels of insecurity in the country (ibid). According to the Multi-sectoral Needs Assessment conducted in 2018 by CRS [4] , because of school boycotts, children are facing serious long-term consequences for their development, and have become extremely vulnerable in the short term. Young men and boys who have been targeted by armed forces and armed groups. are often forced to flee their homes to avoid being recruited, yet voluntary enrolment has also been reported to be a coping mechanism adopted by many of them. A traditional leader interviewed by International Medical Corps in July 2018 alerted of the risks to which men and boys were being subjected. Specifically, he warned the organization that to avoid more cases of crime and drug consumption, urgent needs for sensitization are required and the incentivization for creating new jobs could prevent enrolment in armed groups. The recruitment of children, including girls, is often considered as forced, coerced, manipulated or “voluntary,” although the distinction has no legal significance and recruitment remains unlawful for minors, regardless of the process. There are few exceptions to recruitment of children by armed forces, but with limitations to the role they can play (e.g., not in combat roles). In practice, the frontiers between the various forms of recruitment are blurred and purely voluntary recruitment is challenging to determine, as various risk factors and drivers influence child association with armed forces or armed groups [5] . 1.1 Legal and Normative Framework The recruitment and use of children by armed forces and armed groups is prohibited by international human rights law and the international criminal law [6] . In the event of an international armed conflict, children not taking part in hostilities are protected by GCIV (Geneva Convention) relative to the protection of civilians and by AP (Additional Protocol). They are covered by the fundamental guarantees that these treaties provide, the right to life, the prohibitions on coercion, corporal punishment, torture, collective punishment and reprisals (Art. 27-34 GCIV and Art. 75 API) and by the rules of API on the conduct of hostilities, including both the principle that a distinction must be made between civilians and combatants and the prohibition on attacks against civilians (Art. 48 and 51). In the event of non-international armed conflict, children are also covered by the fundamental guarantees for persons not taking direct part in the hostilities (Art. 3 common to the GC and Art. 4 APII). They are further protected by the principle that “the civilian population as such, as well as individual civilians, shall not be the object of attack” (Art. 13 APII). International Human Rights Law, particularly the Convention on the Rights of the Child, provides the core principles for always protecting the rights of all children, more specifically it prohibits the recruitment and the participation in conflict of children of less than 15 years of age. It lays down State obligations in several areas which are of direct relevance to children recruited by armed forces or at risk thereof. These include the protection of separated and unaccompanied children; the recovery and social reintegration of children victim of neglect, exploitation or abuse, torture, ill treatment, or punishment, as well as of armed conflicts; children’s right to education; the prohibition of torture and the unlawful or arbitrary deprivation of liberty; and treatment under the juvenile justice system. The ILO Convention No. 182 on the Prohibition and Immediate Action for the Elimination of the Worst Forms of Child Labour defines children as under 18 years and refers to forced and compulsory recruitment of children in armed conflict as one of the worst forms of child labour. An Optional Protocol to the CRC on the involvement of children in armed conflict was adopted in the year 2000 which raised the minimum age for direct participation in hostilities and compulsory recruitment to 18 years, urging armed groups not to recruit or use children under the age of 18 and calling on State Parties to take all feasible measures to criminalize such practices. This Optional Protocol builds on the 1999 African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child which prohibits all recruitment of children under age 18, forced or voluntary, by armed groups and armed forces. The charter is the only regional treaty in the world which addresses the issue of child soldiers. It defines a child as anyone below 18 years of age without exception and charges States to ensure that no child takes direct part in hostilities and to refrain from recruiting any child. The Convention on the Rights of the Child requires States Parties to:  “Take all feasible measures to ensure that persons who have not attained the age of fifteen years do not take a direct part in hostilities” (Article 38/2); and  “Refrain from recruiting any person who has not attained the age of fifteen years into their armed forces. In recruiting among those persons who have attained the age of fifteen years but have not attained the age of eighteen years, States Parties shall endeavor to give priority to those who are oldest” (Article 38/3). American Journal of Innovative Research and Applied Sciences. ISSN 2429-5396 I www.american-jiras.com 12 In Cameroon, the international laws and treaties ratified by the state complements the national laws. The protection of human rights in general and of children is framed in Cameroon by a legal arsenal consisting of protocols, ratified charters and international conventions, national laws, and regulations. This implies that, Cameroon is privy to the international laws protecting children from various forms of recruitment and association with armed groups and armed forces. The preamble of Law No. 06 of 18 January 1996 amending the 1972 Constitution states that " the human being without distinction of race, religion, sex or creed possesses sacred inalienable rights ." In it is also found Cameroon's commitment to fundamental freedoms enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the UN Charter, the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights and all related and duly ratified international conventions. At the international level, as said by the Head of State, His Excellency Paul Biya at the UN Special Session on Children in 2002, " Cameroon has ratified almost all international legal instruments on the child. " It may well include but not limited to:  The Convention on the Rights of the Child on 11 January 1993;  The African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child, 05 September 1996;  Convention No. 138 of the ILO Minimum Age for Admission to Employment, 14 April 1998;  Convention No. 182 on the Worst Forms of Child Labour, on 27 May 2002;  The Optional Protocol to the CRC Protocol of 18 December 1989 on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, instrument of accession dated December 4, 2004;  Supplementing the United Nations Convention of 15 November 2000 against Transnational Organized Crime, the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, especially women and children. Protocol ratified by Cameroon (the Decree of 18 November 2004). At the national level, the Cameroon government have legislative and regulatory measures critical to the implementation of children's rights, and initiated procedures which are at a very advanced stage. These measures are:  The Civil Code which regulates the issue of parental responsibility in its articles 1384 and those following.  The Penal Code in which the protection of children's rights is evident, particularly in the provisions of Articles 29, 39 al.6, 48, 80, 179 (custody of a minor), 340 (infanticide), 341 (attack on descendants), 342 (slavery and pawning) 198 paragraph 1 (b) and (c) (banned publications) and 337 and following articles that deal with the child and family.  The adoption of Law No. 2005/007 / of 27 July 2005 on the Criminal Procedure Code, which has many favorable provisions for the child who commits or is victim of an offense.  The adoption of Law No. 2011/024 of 14/12/2011 on the fight against the traffic and trade of persons, repealing Law No. 2005/015 of 29/12/2005 on the fight against the traffic and trade of children.  Decree No. 2011/408 of 09/12/2011 on the organization of Government, establishing several departments in charge of the promotion and protection of children’s rights. These are, for example, the Ministry of Social Affairs (social protection of the child), the Ministry of Women's Empowerment and the Family (promotion of children's rights), the Ministry of Basic Education (teaching Nursery and General Primary), the Ministry of Secondary Education (technical and general education), the Ministry of Public Health (Prevention and health care to the mother and child), the Ministry of Youth and Education Civic (promotion of leisure and post and extracurricular activities, etc.).  The Labor Code and regulatory acts relating to labor from which children are prohibited.  Decree No. 90-524 of 23 March 1990 established a National Commission for Juvenile Delinquents, Abandoned Children, or those in Moral Danger. 2. MATERIALS AND METHOD The researcher made use of mixed methods, drawing on its strengths. The Qualitative approach was used to provide an in-depth understanding of the experiences of adolescents and other research participants. Given that, the subject matter of the study is subjective (individual experiences) in nature, focusing on what qualitative approach provided a rich description and narrative which constituted a bridge that connects qualitative sociological studies. The descriptive statistics provided summary information on demographics (age, sex, and years of experience). The principle of voluntary participation was strictly adhered to. The respondents were not coerced into participating in the research and they were asked to voluntarily give information. Prior to the FGDs or interview session, were informed about the purpose of the study and what to expect during the interview. The researcher guaranteed the participants confidentiality in the entire research process. Given that the study is qualitative in nature, the researcher ensured that the sample size was large enough to allow for an in-depth understanding of the subject under study and small enough to allow for deep, case- oriented analysis thereby avoiding saturation. The researcher was also guided by Britten’s numerical guidance for qualitative study in determining the sample size. American Journal of Innovative Research and Applied Sciences. ISSN 2429-5396 I www.american-jiras.com 13 The participants included 10 children associated with non-state armed groups in detention (4 girls and 6 boys, mean age 15.75 years), 10 children associated with non-state armed groups in the communities (8 boys and 2 girls, mean age 16years), 10 community members (7 men and 3 women, mean age 40.7) and, 10 INGO workers (6 women and 4 men, mean age 27.89) from the selected communities who participated in the FGD and key informant sessions examining the experiences of children associated with armed groups and armed forces, with a focus on the risk factors for association, Roles and possible mechanism that can be used to curb children’s participation in the ongoing socio-political crisis. The communities were selected based on the impact that the crisis has had (intensity and duration). The FDG sessions with adolescents in detention centres were held in prisons (2 central prisons), while the FGD sessions and KIIs were conducted at the level of the communities. The questions were administered as interviews lasting approximately 45minutes to 1 hour, though it sometimes exceeded to 1 hour 30 minutes due to the experience sharing by the adolescents. Consent was gotten from the Regional Delegation of Penitentiary (as informed by the university to aid the data collection process for the researcher’s dissertation). At the level of the communities, consent was gotten from the participants (adult participants) and ascent was given by the adolescents participating in the sessions. 3. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Levels And Forms of Children’s Association with Non-State Armed Groups and Armed Forces The FGD sessions revealed that, children’s association with state and non-state armed groups are in different levels and forms. As illustrated in the diagram below, children are associated with armed forces at 5 levels, the level of association determines the level of risk and vulnerability. Table 1: levels and forms of children’s association. Categories of children Threat event Likelihood Impact Risk level Close relatives of combatants Exposure to violence Possible Significant High Trauma Possible Significant High Disruption of childhood Possible Significant High Arbitrary arrest Likely Minor moderate Stigma Likely minor Moderate Messengers/spies Exposure to violence Possible Minor Low Distortion of childhood Possible Significant High Arrest/conflict with the law Possible Significant Moderate Trauma Likely Significant Moderate Cooks/laundry (adolescent girls)- General housekeeping Exposure to violence Possible Significant High GBV Likely Significant High Risk of arrest during military invasion of camps Possible Likely Moderate Stigma Possible Possible Low Sexual purposes Exposure to violence Likely Severe High Trauma Likely Severe High Pregnancy Likely Significant High STDs/HIV/AIDS Likely Significant Moderate Disruption of childhood Likely Severe High Stigma Likely Moderate High Exposure to arbitrary arrest (conflict with the law) Likely Significant Moderate Combatants Exposure to extreme forms of violence Likely Severe High Death Likely Significant High Disruption of childhood Likely Severe High Trauma Likely Severe High Conflict with the law Likely Severe High Rejection by family and community Likely Possible Moderate Risk Factors for Association and recruitment In the context of Cameroon, the reason for association varies significantly based on the nature and causes of the crisis, family, and community dynamics. The field notes revealed that there are commonalities amongst adolescents in their trajectory to recruitment and association with non-state armed groups. These factors could be at personal level, influence from family and community as discussed below:  Promised Utopia: Adolescent boys and girls join “the struggle” to contribute their quota in regaining the promised land. According to the participants, they believe that things will get better when they finally secede and rebuild the “Ambozonia” nation. This promised utopia is painted as a nation with maximum employment American Journal of Innovative Research and Applied Sciences. ISSN 2429-5396 I www.american-jiras.com 14 opportunities, good/paying jobs, better opportunities, functional schools, and health systems. All these promises motivate adolescent boys and girls to join and stay dedicated to the course. They pledge their allegiance to the course and see dead as a worthy course. Other socio-economic benefits (short term benefits) like access to money, power, food, shelter, safety encourage out of school adolescent to join.  Association of older siblings: from the field notes and conversations raised during the FGDs, the participants shared several opinions on how the association of older sibling influences younger siblings. One of the minors in DCP recounted his experience as follows. …I am not an “amba boy”, my elder brother is. On the day I was arrested, the military came to the house to take my brother; it seems some people had given them information that my brother was part of the fighters. When they got to our house, my brother was not at home (since they live in camps), so I was arrested instead me to punish my brother. I am not sure my parents know that I am here because I took us from M village. The oldest of the minors, had this to say. For me I think that it is easy to join the fighters when your older brothers are part of it. This is because you see how much power they have, respect they get from the communities and from their conversation, you become so familiar with the group and their ways of doing things. In some communities, it is the only option since most sources of income like bike riding have been banned and schools are not functional. Owning a weapon is perceived as a sign of power, being part of the team is like an adventure, fun experiences and wearing military uniform also gives a lot of pride and honour. From the above analysis, it can be observed that involvement of family members in armed groups has a significant impact on association. Children may take on the roles modelled by older siblings and parents either to seek revenge, preserve power, and fight inequalities or to promote the ideology championed by these role models.  Lack of Schools and alternative sources of employment: The NSAGs uses education as a major tool in the context of the crisis. Education has been disrupted for the past four years, with major educational structures being destroyed intentionally or unintentionally during cross fires and attacks on villages. Families responded to this by sending their children to zones with functional schools, this is however an additional cost on low-income families. Families who are unable to move, stay behind thereby exposing the children to the risk of joining NSAGs as the only option to stay active and productive. The minors also highlighted the lack of employment opportunities as a major cause of association. The researcher gathered that, most young boys join to secure a source of livelihood, to take care of themselves and their parents. It was reported that, some adolescent girls join to gain access to basic needs and get a “covering”/protection over themselves. Although economic incentive is more often mentioned as a driver for boys as they are socialized to be providers, this applies to girls in some contexts too, but is rather focused on contributing to the family income. Some parents send their daughters to work for the armed group or armed force, as this may be one of the very few options to earn money during wartime.  Desire to seek revenge and protect the community: the participants highlighted the quest to seek revenge as a major reason for association. This is common when children loss close family members during a crossfire. In some villages, orphans are expected to join the NSAGs to revenge and protect the community from subsequent attacks. Some adolescent girls who have been molested by the SAGs, join the NSAGs to seek support, protection, and empowerment to revenge for this act and protect other women and girls in the communities from all forms of violence perpetrated by the SAGs, joining NSAGs is therefore perceived as an alternative solution to regain control over their lives.  Violent Communities: the involvement of communities in armed conflict significantly influences the recruitment of boys and girls. Community ties with an armed group or defense militia can lead to pressures on families to let their children contribute to the fight for the protection of the community, families who fails to support are often termed and treated as black legs and targeted by the NSAGs. Armed groups also tend to benefit from a very strong supporting base as such communities puts pressure on families to satisfy the request of the armed group in return of “peace” or protection of the community. The low presence of the State in remote areas, the absence of government structures, basic services, livelihood options and strong inequalities regarding social distribution of wealth leaves the population at the mercy of armed groups. In addition to this, displaced or refugee population are also more at risk to be recruited due to their increased vulnerability, and IDP or refugee camps may be an easier entry point to access people affected by conflict and to recruit children.  Abduction: According to the participants interviewed, abduction was not a very popular means of recruitment in the context of the Anglophone crisis. It can however be a common form of recruitment for girls but not for boys. American Journal of Innovative Research and Applied Sciences. ISSN 2429-5396 I www.american-jiras.com 15 These girls are abducted to serve in different capacities, sometimes they act as spies for the military or NSAGs, giving information and updates on the activities of either camps. The girls also serve as cooks, wives (not formal wives) and others serve as combatants. One of the respondents noted that. Sometimes, these girls are not forced to join, they may voluntarily associate themselves with NSAGs for protection (protection for themselves and families), the prestige and honor that comes with being the girlfriend of a commander etc. Source: Male CAAFAG (kII) One of the girls recounted that. … we were arrested at the camps, we were dating the boys so we went there to cook and the military came to attack the area. When they got there, they ran away leaving us behind. We were arrested and taken to the gendarmerie and brought to this big prison after some days. I am an orphan so there is no one to bail us. I don’t like being here… Preventing and Responding to Child Recruitment Effective prevention and response measures requires action at all levels, from the individual, family, community, and society. In this paper, Prevention focuses on measures aimed at preventing the recruitment and use of children by armed groups while Response will target children already associated with armed groups and armed forces at the different levels identified above. The response strategies will major on desistance and disengagement (the processing of getting children to abstain or cease from group activities that they had previously engaged in, either passively or actively), rehabilitation and reintegration. In 2018, the Cameroon government created a demobilization and rehabilitation centre for ex-combatants, but the intervention is not sensitive to the needs of children as child soldiers and adult ex-combatants are lodged in the same facility, which poses a major safeguarding concern for children as it exposes them to greater risk and can have consequences, lasting and damaging, for their future development. In armed conflicts, children with prisoner-of-war status benefit from the protection of the Third Geneva Convention and Additional Protocol I and cannot be prosecuted for taking part in hostilities. This status is supposed to be emphasized in the context of Cameroon, through research and advocacy, highlighting the association of children as vulnerability and a major child protection risk and concern. ICRC proposed the following strategies when dealing with or programming a response for children associated with armed groups and armed forces.  That detained children are housed separately from adult detainees, except where they are lodged with their families.  If the child is not freed, and in the event of prolonged detention, that the child is transferred as soon as possible to an appropriate institution for minors.  That the child has direct, regular, and frequent contacts with his or her family  That the child is provided with food, hygiene and medical care appropriate for its age.  That the child spends a large part of the day outdoors whenever possible  That the child can continue its schooling. Community level Family Individual Community -strengthen capacities of community structures to engage in local advocacy with stakeholders -social norms and behaviour change -mass sensitization on stigmatization and shaming Family -strengthen the capacities of families to provide response and consistent care to children in this category (positive parenting and life skill sessions) -parenting support services through line munities -social connectedness (belonging, social capital) -stability -safety -mastery -access to resources -Justice for children -Train military officials on child protection with emphasis on CAAFAGs as victims not criminals -Strengthen the capacities of Borstal institutions to serve as reception centres for children in this category -Social protection through line ministries Structural level American Journal of Innovative Research and Applied Sciences. ISSN 2429-5396 I www.american-jiras.com 16 Children who have been unlawfully recruited and who are accused of having committed domestic or international crimes during armed conflicts should be regarded primarily as victims, not as perpetrators, and treated as such. Their treatment must accord with international law and with standards for juvenile justice. States must fix a minimum age for criminal responsibility, which should not be below 12 years at the absolute minimum. No child under the age of criminal responsibility must be prosecuted. Criminal laws, procedures and institutions should be adapted to the specific needs of children. Furthermore, when children are prosecuted for crimes under international or domestic law, allegedly committed while associated with armed forces or armed groups, they must be tried before independent and impartial judicial bodies and afforded all the judicial guarantees that are generally recognized as indispensable. The purpose of any sentence that is handed down against these children should be to rehabilitate them and ease their reintegration into their communities, hence the emphasis is on correction and rehabilitation and not punishment. 4. CONCLUSION From the above analysis, children associated with armed groups and armed forces require long-term, structured, and sustained rehabilitation and reintegration programs this is because the factors that predispose children to recruitment and association with armed groups and armed forces are multifaceted. An integrated approach is required to target prevention and response, with major efforts on advocacy, prevention, rehabilitation, and reintegration. List of acronym used in this article: FGDs: Focused Group Discussions, ICRC: International Committee of the Red Crosss, OCHA: United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, CRS: Catholic Relief Services, UN: United Nations, AP: Additional Protocol, GCIV: Fourth Geneva Convention, ILO: International Labour Organization, FGD: Focused Group Discussion, INGO: International Non-governmental Organization, KII: Key Informant Interview, STD: Sexually Transmitted Disease, HIV: Human immunodeficiency Viruses, AIDS: Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome, DCP: Digital Contact Platform, NSAG: Non State Armed Groups, CAAFAG: Child Associated with Armed Groups and Armed forces, 5. REFERENCES 1. Annual report 2012—ICRC. (00:00:00.0). https://www.icrc.org/en/doc/resources/documents/annual-report/icrc-annual-report-2012.htm 18.pdf. (n.d.). Retrieved July 12, 2022,. Available on: http://www.minjustice.gov.cm/index.php/en/legalis/publications/download/64/287/18?method=view 2. Dhingra, Anjali. 2019. “Rehabilitation of Juveniles.” IPleaders. Retrieved July 12, 2022 ( https://blog.ipleaders.in/rehabilitation-of-juveniles/ ). 3. HPC 2020—Presentation Field—OCHA Cameroon NWSW on 21 August 2019 | Food Security Cluster. (n.d.). Retrieved July 12, 2022, Available on: https://fscluster.org/cameroon/document/hpc-2020-presentation-field-ocha 4. Cameroons Anglophone crisis: recent developments and issues for congress. Congressional Research Services. Available on: https://www.everycrsreport.com/files/20180406_IN10881_7921c74e5e11af1985e7cfe56d23aebe140f3a7a.pdf 5. The Alliance for Child Protection in Humanitarian Action (2022) CAAFAG Programme Development Toolkit Guidelines. New York. Caafag_toolkit_- _guidelines_en.pdf. (n.d.). Retrieved July 12, 2022,. Available on: https://alliancecpha.org/sites/default/files/technical/attachments/caafag_toolkit_-_guidelines_en.pdf 6. Principles and guidelines on Children Associated with Armed Forces or Armed Groups. Principes de Paris. (n.d.). 36.Sc-2010-annualreport.pdf. (n.d.). Retrieved July 12, 2022, Available on: https://www.savethechildren.org/content/dam/usa/reports/annual-report/annual-report/sc-2010-annualreport.pdf How to cite this article: Kelly Ngesungwo Jabosung. CHILDREN ASSOCIATED WITH ARMED GROUPS AND ARMED FORCES: EXPERIENCES FROM CAMEROON. Am. J. innov. res. appl. sci. 2022; 15(2): 10-16. This is an Open Access article distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non- Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/