398 Revista del Instituto Español de Estudios Estratégicos Núm. 2 / 2013 developments in order to fulfil the UN Resolutions are still absent; this despite the fact that it is a subject that has been developed by other allied countries. It is strange that there has been no similar effort made in the area of the protection of minors in armed conflicts because, just as with the protection of women, it should be considered an important aspect of any general strategy for conflict resolution. Armed conflicts have cost the lives of more than two million children over the past decade and have maimed six million others. 20 million children have been displaced or are refugees, and one million are orphans. And this is without counting those who are kept as hostages or kidnapped to be trafficked. There is no system for registering births which means that many children cannot be identified or reintegrated into their families. The Convention on the Rights of Children is not applied, despite having been ratified almost universally. In armed conflicts, children suffer disproportionately, in many ways, and on a lasting basis – sowing the seed for the resurgence of the same conflicts in future generations. The United Nations and the main regional organisations now understand that any long-lasting conflict resolution strategy must guarantee both the effective and the full protection of the rights of women and children, as well as their active participation in peace processes – during which the reconstruction of a state takes place. However, a clear imbalance or asymmetry can be observed in the protection of both groups, to the extent that the measures intended for the implementation of Resolution 1325 and subsequent related resolutions, as well as measures implementing Resolution 1261 and subsequent related resolutions are unbalanced. Perhaps this is due to the fact that it is “common to use the expression ‘women and children’, as if they were one collective group. Linking them together ignores the huge differences between the two groups, which is essential when analysing the different problems they face and thus when finding approaches to tackle them.”6 Spain has an Action Plan for the application of Resolution 1325 and JEMAD (Chief of Defence Staff) guidelines for the implementation of this resolution in the Spanish Armed Forces. NATO has likewise approved directives with the same aim, recognising that their application increases the operative effectiveness of the units – incorporating a gender adviser into the different levels and promoting courses for directed training of these personnel. The EU has also created directives focused on integrating a gender perspective into the capacities and procedures associated with the Common Security and Defence Policy7. 6 PALACIÁN DE INZA, B.: “Mujer e infancia en el conflicto armado”, in ROBLES, Margarita and GARCÍA, Fernando (coord.): Enfoque integral de las perspectivas de género en operaciones, Granada: Editorial UGR, 2013, p. 72. 7 EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT: “Resolution on the 10th anniversary of UN Security Council resolution 1325 (2000) on Women, Peace and Security”, of 25 November 2010.
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