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World Day of War Orphans 2024- January 6

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World Day of War Orphans - January 6 2024World Day of War Orphans is annually observed across the globe on 6 January to raise awareness about the challenges faced by children who have been left orphaned by wars and about the trauma experienced by war orphans globally.

  • The Day addresses social, psychological, and physical obstacles confronted by war orphans, protects their rights and well-being, and emphasizes the need for global attention and support.

Note:

  • A war orphan is a child or children whose parent or parents died while serving in military duty.
  • The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) defines an orphan as any child under 18 who has lost one or both parents to any cause of death.

Background:

i.The observance of World Day for War Orphans was proposed and started by the French organization, SOS Enfants En Détresse (SOSEED; SOS Children in Need).

ii.It is an organisation dedicated to helping distressed children and bringing global attention to the immense suffering and trauma experienced by war orphans.

Note: Organizations such as UNICEF, the Red Cross, and numerous NGOs have been actively committed to supporting war orphans.

Violations Against Children:

In 2005, the UN Security Council identified and condemned 6 grave violations against children in times of war:

  • Killing and maiming of children;
  • Recruitment or use of children in armed forces and armed groups;
  • Attacks on schools or hospitals;
  • Rape or other grave sexual violence;
  • Abduction of children; and
  • Denial of humanitarian access for children.

Children in War and Conflict:

i.UNICEF estimates that approximately 400 million children, equating to 1 child in every 5 globally, are currently living in or escaping from conflict zones.

ii.UNICEF offers evidence-based violence prevention interventions and response services to child victims of violence in more than 140 countries.

Note: As of November 2023, Sudan has become the largest child displacement crisis globally, witnessing 3 million children escaping widespread violence in pursuit of basic needs.

iii.According to UN-verified reports (June 2023), between 2005 and 2022, over 315,000 grave violations against children occurred in more than 30 conflict zones across Africa, Asia, the Middle East, and Latin America,

  • The actual number of violations is likely to be far higher.

About the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF):
Executive Director– Catherine M. Russell
Headquarters– New York, United States of America
Established in– 1946