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The lecture began at 5:00 pm, Wednesday, April 9, and was given by Radhika Coomaraswamy, former UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Children and Armed Conflict; the discussant was [...]

The article presents a speech by Radhika Coomaraswamy, the former Under Secretary General of the United Nations, delivered at the Sixteenth Annual Grotius Lecture Series in the 108th Annual Meeting of the American Society of International Law, held in Washington D.C. on April 9, 2014. Topics of the speech included development of women's and children's rights under the international law, human rights issues such as humanitarian intervention and sexuality, and civil, economic, and social rights.

In our continuing series of reflections by human rights practitioners on their work, Radhika Coomaraswamy reflects here on her tenure as Special Representative of the United Nations (UN) Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict. In the interview, Ms Coomaraswamy discusses the impact of monitoring and reporting efforts following the adoption of UN Security Council resolution 1612 (2005) regarding violations against children in the context of armed conflict. She also reflects on some of the challenges of dealing directly with armed groups who recruit and use child soldiers, and on a range of other issues with which her office is concerned – including questions of accountability, justice, reparations and the reintegration of former child soldiers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]