Discussion on the Rights of the Child
Statement by the Delegation of the United States of America
Human Rights Council – 49th Session
March 9, 2022
Note: Due to time Council time constraints, the following statement could not be delivered in the Council chamber.
The text has been provided to the Council Secretariat for the official record.
The United States thanks the High Commissioner for her report. We remain concerned about the situation of children due to ongoing conflicts around the world amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
A generation of Yemeni children is growing up knowing nothing but war, displacement, and crisis, and many parties to the conflict recruit child soldiers. More than 10,000 Yemeni children have lost their lives or been maimed in conflict, and more have died from preventable disease or starvation due to the humanitarian crisis created by the war. Ensuring the safety and security of children is essential to any durable resolution to the conflict in Yemen; the parties to Yemen’s conflict must cease attacks and engage seriously on a path to peace.
Russia’s premeditated, unprovoked, and unjustified attack on Ukraine is causing loss of life and human suffering, especially for Ukraine’s children. Russian military strikes have hit civilian facilities and critical infrastructure, including at least one hospital, an orphanage, and kindergartens. Hostilities have resulted in at least 102 civilian deaths and injured 304 civilians. More than 500,000 people, including thousands of children, have fled to neighboring countries. Eastern Ukraine is one of the most mine-contaminated regions in the world and children on the move are at grave risk of losing limbs from landmines. To protect children in Ukraine from death and serious injury, Russia must cease all aggression against Ukraine.
How can we ensure that children today do not become a lost generation given the twin challenges of the pandemic and ongoing conflict around the world?