Abstract
This Article argues that both international and domestic law obligates the United States to address the special needs of child soldiers seeking asylum. Although the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (formally Immigration and Naturalization Services) established Guidelines for Children’s Asylum Claims in 1998, this Article argues that these policies failed to incorporate sufficient procedural protections or any substantive changes to the asylum determination system itself. Without necessary procedural and substantive changes to asylum law, the United States will do little to ensure that those most in need of refugee protection receive it. Ultimately, what is needed is an asylum system focused and centered on the best interest of the child principle as described in the 1989 Convention on the Rights of the Child for both procedural and substantive asylum determinations.
Recommended Citation
Everett, Jennifer C.
(2009)
"The Battle Continues: Fighting for a More Child-Sensitive Approach to Asylum for Child Soldiers,"
Florida Journal of International Law: Vol. 21:
Iss.
2, Article 4.
Available at:
https://scholarship.law.ufl.edu/fjil/vol21/iss2/4