Isn't it nice to go back in time and enjoy the benefits of being a
child? Imagine yourself with no worries and free from the hustles of
maintaining a hectic work schedule not to mention having to pay bills
on time. Can you still recall those days that you only have to wake
up, get a nice ward breakfast, prepare yourself, and head on to
school?
Boy those days were simple and well a thing of the past. Even though
you've past your time as a child, you're pretty lucky you had the
chance to enjoy it. There are children around the world that are
victims of war. They are forced to hold a gun or trade their innocence
in order to survive. Hold you breathe as we journey into the lives of
the young military blood.
It's sad to note that children are abused by the military in three
different ways. The first one is that they are forced to gear up and
play child soldiers. Now, it isn't so bad not having that toy you
wanted when you were ten, is it now? Next they are utilized as having
some sort of supportive task such as relaying messages, delivering
goods from camp to camp, acting out as spies and look outs and well,
for the young girls out in the open they become slaves sexually.
The third and most gruesome form of abuse is that children are used as
for political agendas and human protection by those good for nothing
cowards in the military. All over the world these things actually
happen. Some of the common places wherein this despicable act is found
in Africa, Asia, Northern and Latin America, Europe, and in the Middle
East particularly in Palestine and Israel. Well, the act of having
children participate in military affairs is not really new.
It is written within the pages of history that most cultures have been
doing it even against the bounds of morality. Let's take a closer
look. It was a common practice in the Mediterranean for children to
act as armor bearers, helpers, and even charioteers for their adult
counterparts. During the antiquity period, children were ordered to
tag along the journey of a family wherein a member is part of the
military. This makes them susceptible to attacks that may be staged
along the way.
Squires or military helpers were famous during the time Medieval
Period in Europe. These are commonly composed of boys aged twelve and
above. There was the Children's Crusade in which children served as
untrained soldiers who head on to battle under the notion that they
will be protected by divine power. Most of the children in this event
in history ended up as slaves. During the Battle of Waterloo, the
'great' Napoleon ordered children to be placed on the front ranks of
the attack. What sort of gun did they carry? No guns.
They served as drummer boys that signalled the attack of the Emperor's
troops. They were simply gunned down during the battle. When the wars
were taken to the seas, children were also dragged away. Young boys
were tasked to bring powder and shot to the ship's artillery crew.
They were tagged as powder monkeys. These are only mere examples of
what children around the globe experience due to the unending power
struggle.
You may mumble how life is so tiring and unfair amidst those high
stacks of paper works on your desk but you're really lucky to have had
a good childhood memory as opposed to those who are part of the young
blood of the military.
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