Political Challenges Behind the Implementation of the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child

摘要

I hope to offer some insights into the politics, diplomacy, and policy choices involved in a government addressing the issue of child soldiers. To do this, I would like to review some history and then discuss the development of the U.S. position and the U.S. approach to the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child. As is often the case, the larger problem involved in solving big problems is political will. How do you gain the support of whole nations or international organizations? How do you obtain and follow up on political commitments? My account today is from the perspective of a U.S. diplomat. For five years I was the Deputy Assistant Secretary in the International Organizations Bureau of the Department of State. Before that, I spent much of my career in Africa.