One controversial issue over the past couple of years has been the topic of child soldiers. On one side, people argue that child soldiers should be prosecuted. On the other hand, others contend that they should be given amnesty. My own view is that child soldiers should be given forgiveness for what they have done because they were forced into killing, they were manipulated, and they only had one choice once they entered the army: Kill or be killed. When villages are attacked and families are taken away for children, they don’t know any better and they believe that the commanders are the adults that they should trust. Therefore, the crimes that the kids committed aren’t their own fault, but the people that put them in that position.
The young adolescents that join armies do kill people and commit crimes, but this is not their choice.”Armed and underage” by Jeffrey Gettleman states, “Thousands of boys, some as young as 10, are purchased, kidnapped, or terrorized into joining the country’s army.” This goes to show that the crimes the child soldiers commit are against their will so they should not get in trouble for doing things that they do not want to do. “In Afghanistan, there have been …show more content…
If you were a kid that was taken away from your family, brutally forced to join an army, finally made it out alive, and then you were prosecuted for all of the crimes you committed. That would be very harsh and unfair. Children that suffer through pain, lack of food and water, and see terrible things while they are in the midst of war. It would almost be cruel if kids make it out alive and make it back to somewhere safe, but then are hit with the devastation that they are going to be prosecuted for committing crimes that they were forced to commit. Take a minute or two to put yourself in a child soldier’s shoes and imagine what it would be like, and that might make you think twice before you say that they should be
The young adolescents that join armies do kill people and commit crimes, but this is not their choice.”Armed and underage” by Jeffrey Gettleman states, “Thousands of boys, some as young as 10, are purchased, kidnapped, or terrorized into joining the country’s army.” This goes to show that the crimes the child soldiers commit are against their will so they should not get in trouble for doing things that they do not want to do. “In Afghanistan, there have been …show more content…
If you were a kid that was taken away from your family, brutally forced to join an army, finally made it out alive, and then you were prosecuted for all of the crimes you committed. That would be very harsh and unfair. Children that suffer through pain, lack of food and water, and see terrible things while they are in the midst of war. It would almost be cruel if kids make it out alive and make it back to somewhere safe, but then are hit with the devastation that they are going to be prosecuted for committing crimes that they were forced to commit. Take a minute or two to put yourself in a child soldier’s shoes and imagine what it would be like, and that might make you think twice before you say that they should be