Research question: How counter-terrorism laws and international conventions on protecting women and children in the conflict areas will guarantee proper life prospects for development in childhood and adolescence?
Questions to underpin the study
1. How do family morals and norms serve for keeping family strong in the context of constant threats of terrorist attacks and influences of terrorist groups?
2. How to introduce new alternatives for children’s development to stop the path from a child soldier to a child terrorist?
3. What is the role of religious institutions in counter-terrorist attacks given the concepts of vengeance and hostility?
4. What is the relation between women’s nurturing approaches and children’s life prospects?
5. Why should the World Community introduce more strategies to protect children and women as the main priority in the countries affected by terrorism?
Objectives
The War on Terrorism in the wake of the 9/11 tragedy has united many countries of the world under the main strategy of ousting terrorist leaders to disorient their followers from the terrorist groups. The main approach was to fight terrorism by destroying the terrorist cells and by using and exchanging the intelligence, supporting affected countries with military and humanitarian aids, and creating the international consensus on the need to keep fighting terrorism through counter-terrorist tactics and military strategies.
However, another objective is to understand the role of the family and the fragility of women and children living in the conflict areas. They are constantly under a threat of physical, sexual, and other types of abuse and assault. On the other hand, boys are seen by the terrorists as new recruits with no choice but to join the terrorist groups. Women are unlikely to protect their children without powerful support from the outside. There is a direct relationship between the disruptions in the institution of family and inclinations of the new generations to follow the wrong path of aggression, hostility, violence, and unnecessary sacrifices that will lead to more victims of terrorist attacks.
Therefore, instead of fighting terrorism by terminating active terrorists, a new strategy might be of greater value to stop the wave of new recruits to the terrorist groups. This topic provides a more rational and long-term approach to bringing peace in the most endangered areas in the Middle East, Africa, Latin America, etc. Further interventions in protecting the institution of family, starting with women and children, should also be related to effective and high-quality education as the auxiliary strategy to cement the basics of peaceful, non-hostile, and non-violent development of children’s personalities.
From the historical perspective, the tragedy of World War II was also in the lack of international institutions to increase the value of universal human rights and the protection of the most vulnerable populations. Currently, the best practices aimed at creating more opportunities to protect women and children should be implemented to ensure the most effective counter-terrorist practices serving to block access to the training camps of the terrorist groups. After the recent withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan by the U.S. and NATO, the topic of protecting women and children has become more critical and essential if the World Community does not want to let new terrorist attacks happen.
Therefore, I wish to pursue research in this area to make the record straight about how and why terrorists recruit children and abuse women followed by what the international organizations and world governments can suggest protecting these vulnerable populations for the sake of spreading peace. It is commensurate with the humanitarian and not necessarily military interventions as long as the international consensus on the need for more strategies to protect women is strategically important and needed to date so that to outwit the major terrorist organizations and whole terrorist enclaves like the Taliban or Boko Haram in their hostile and inhuman approaches in sharing terrorist agenda among innocent people.
I would like to conceptualize the problem of children’s stolen childhood and adolescence because they are targeted by terrorists. On the other hand, empowering women in the conflict areas by providing them more opportunities associated with education, employment, and participation in public events is also essential. Peaceful outcomes come with the reformed minds of the new generations that are likely to create new precedents of ousting the spread and influence of terrorist groups more effectively. Protecting children and women through establishing safe conditions for life and career prospects is another significant objective. However, understanding the complexity of the problem and current indecision among states and international organizations on the protection of women and children in the areas of military conflicts and the countries with poor and unstable socio-political development, this study will conceptualize the main criteria and approaches to implement the strategy of protecting women and children. This will ensure that new generations will have a full and versatile life in their childhood and adolescence so that to enter adulthood as valuable, reasonable, and progressive members of their respective societies.
