Guest post by Emily Nimmo who is an Undergraduate Student at the University of Ottawa and completed an extracurricular volunteer placement as a Research Assistant at Mines Action Canada.

The term “explosive weapons" is used for a variety of weapons used in warfare, such as bombs, missiles, and multi-barrel rocket launchers. These weapons are used for mass-destruction, and were designed for use on large and open battlefields. Sadly, as the world has become more urbanized, warfare shifted from being waged in vast battlefields to being waged in urban and populated areas. As a result, approximately 50 million people are suffering greatly at the hands of explosive weapons used in populated areas (EWIPA). Over 90% of victims of EWIPA are civilians. When populated areas are bombed, the blasts destroy the communities and necessary infrastructure. As civilians have been and still are at great risk because of explosive weapons, the Political Declaration on Strengthening the Protection of Civilians from the Humanitarian Consequences Arising from the Use of Explosive Weapons in Populated Areas was formally endorsed in 2022 by eighty-three states. This Political Declaration was negotiated from November 2019 to June 2022, backed by a decade of advocacy by the United Nations (UN), the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), and the International Network on Explosive Weapons (INEW) which Mines Action Canada helped co-found. The Political Declaration creates new international standards for protecting civilians in populated areas who are affected by explosive weapons. It is not a legally binding instrument but is focused on changing policy and practice.

Explosive weapons affect all demographics, but the specific impact on children make explosive weapons and the political declaration a child rights issue. Children are one of the most vulnerable demographics in society, which is why the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) is the most ratified human rights treaty in the world. The UNCRC outlines rights for all children, including the right to protection, education, and healthcare. EWIPA use breaches many of the rights in the UNCRC and has profound negative impacts on children. First, explosive weapons have many immediate effects, such as death and physical injury, as well as psychological harm. In 2024, 3,089 children were reported dead by cause of explosive weapons, and deaths in warfare are often underreported. The use of and harmful effects of explosive weapons are not restricted to any one place; in 2024 civilians in 74 countries and territories were harmed by the use of explosive weapons with these 11 countries being most heavily affected: the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Lebanon, Mali, Myanmar, Nigeria, Palestine, Sudan, Syria, Ukraine, and Yemen.

Children are severely affected by the use of explosive weapons because children make up large portions of populated areas especially in countries where the demographics skew younger. As children have smaller bodies, the impact of shrapnel or crush injuries is significantly higher than for adults. This is because children's bones bend more, making them more prone to long-term deformities, and children also have less blood to lose than adults. According to Pediatric Blast Injury (PBI), children are more likely to die following injuries caused by explosive weapons than adults. Clearly, children are at risk of many dangerous physical effects of explosive weapons. There are also many indirect negative effects that explosive weapons have on children.

Since explosive weapons annihilate communities when used in populated areas, children's futures are at risk. When explosive weapons destroy critical civilian infrastructure, such as health and education facilities, water sanitation systems, and power plants, children are left without access to basic human rights such as the right to the highest standard of health, the right to education, the right to safe water, etc. All of these rights are written in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, which 196 countries have ratified. The real-world indirect effects of explosive weapons are formidable. The demolition of education facilities is a key reason as to why 52 million children in countries where there are conflicts are out of school. Likewise, children in populated areas where medical facilities have been destroyed do not have access to critical healthcare. It is not just a lack of hospitals for children to go to if and when they are injured or sick;they are also highly at risk of preventable diseases because of the lack of access to essential vaccines and other preventive care. Famines are more likely in populated areas where explosive weapons are being used because food and humanitarian systems are disrupted. Both direct and indirect effects of the use of explosive weapons also negatively impacts children' s mental health, as depression and PTSD can be a result of exposure to warfare.

As the UNCRC is the most ratified convention in the world, countries who have ratified this convention must also support the Political Declaration on Strengthening the Protection of Civilians from the Humanitarian Consequences Arising from the Use of Explosive Weapons in Populated Areas. Since children are so heavily affected by explosive weapons, EWIPA and the Political Declaration is automatically a child rights issue. The Political Declaration aims to advocate for the safety of civilians under attack from explosives, which includes all children who are affected. This includes holding perpetrators responsible for violations. The Political Declaration does not have any specific articles addressing children, so it could be strengthened if a reference to child rights was added. Nonetheless, children are heavily impacted by the use of explosives in populated areas, and can and should be protected under the EWIPA Political Declaration.