The number of underage soldiers in the German Armed Forces has reached a 5-year high
Berlin, January 23, 2023 – The German Armed Forces (Bundeswehr) recruited 1,773 underage soldiers last year, a sharp increase of 43 percent compared to 2021 (1,239). Among them were 327 girls aged 17. Almost one in ten newly recruited soldiers in 2022 was a minor. This information comes from the Ministry of Defense's response to a written question from Left Party MP Ali Al-Dailami.
“It is a damning indictment of the German government that the Bundeswehr recruited almost 1,800 underage soldiers in 2022 – the highest number in the last five years,” said Ralf Willinger of the children’s rights organization terre des hommes , spokesman for the alliance “Under 18 never! No minors in the Bundeswehr”.
"This concerns 17-year-old girls and boys who, as reports from the Ministry of Defense show, are exposed to high risks such as accidents, severe psychological stress, and sexual abuse while serving in the German Armed Forces. We call on the new Minister of Defense, Boris Pistorius, to finally put an end to this tragedy and raise the recruitment age for soldiers to 18, as more than 150 countries worldwide have already done."
UN Committee on the Rights of the Child recently reiterated this demand : "Sexual abuse, sexual harassment, and other forms of violence against underage soldiers in the German Armed Forces must be urgently investigated, and the perpetrators must be held accountable. The recruitment age for the German Armed Forces must be raised to 18. All advertising and marketing to minors for military service, especially in schools, must be prohibited."
More information:
- Response from the Ministry of Defense to a question from a member of parliament (1980034-V267, 2021) which proves that underage female and male soldiers in the German Armed Forces are exposed to numerous risks.
- Spiegel Online, September 7, 2022 : "Federal Administrative Court ruling: Student intern harassed – soldier demoted." A German army soldier was convicted after locking up and sexually harassing a student intern.
- Further information, such as interviews with underage Bundeswehr soldiers, the studies "Why 18 matters – an analysis of the recruitment of children" and "Shadow Report Child Soldiers 2020": www.unter18nie.de