The statement was delivered during the 61st session of the Human Rights Council as part of its Annual Full-Day Meeting on the Rights of the Child. The 2026 session focused specifically on the human rights violations faced by children in armed conflicts—a deeply pressing issue, as the Council noted a record 520 million children currently live in active conflict zones. The full-day meeting brought together member states, UN agencies, and civil society organizations to evaluate both the prevention of these violations and the necessary frameworks for the recovery and reintegration of affected youth. Panellists included the Ms. Vanessa Frazier, Secretary-General’s Special Representative on Children in Armed Conflict and Mr. Benoit Van Keirsbilck, Member of the Committee on the Rights of the Child.
In an oral statement delivered to the Council, Humanists International highlighted the devastating, long-term consequences of interrupted education during these emergencies. The statement noted that missed classes compound existing inequalities, fuel long-term poverty, and severely impact children’s mental health and socialization.
However, the organization stressed that where education does continue during times of war, it must not be co-opted to fuel further division. Humanists International argued that when conflict feeds off nationalism or religious differences, schools must be fiercely protected as places of strict neutrality and safety. Examples raised included Afghanistan, Myanmar, and Russia.
This intervention ties directly into Humanists International’s broader, long-standing advocacy for children’s rights and secular education. The organization has consistently argued at the UN that children possess their own independent right to freedom of thought, conscience, and expression. These fundamental rights are routinely violated when objective, rights-based education is replaced by religious, sectarian, or nationalist indoctrination.
During the address, the organization also called out the frequent failure of community and faith leaders to safeguard vulnerable youth. Humanists International urged these leaders to stop absconding from their duties, to actively foster reconciliation, and to unequivocally condemn human rights abuses committed in the name of religion; particularly sexual violence.
This final point is in line with calls for the UN Security Council’s Working Group on Children in Armed Conflict and the Global Call to Protect Children in War. The duties of religious leaders is also called upon in the Beirut Declaration on “Faith for Rights,” and Humanists International engages with its CommUNity of Practice.
Featured Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash.
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