A/HRC/21/50
65.
Active participation in hostilities does not solely denote children‘s direct
participation in combat but encompasses activities linked to combat such as scouting,
spying, sabotage, and the use of children as decoys, couriers, or at military checkpoints.
Also prohibited is the use of children in ―direct‖ support functions such as carrying supplies
to the front line.
66.
The commission notes that international law requires that child detainees must be
separated from adults, unless to do so would involve a violation of the right of families to
be housed together. The requirement to incarcerate child and adult detainees separately is
set forth in the CRC.64
H.
Pillaging
67.
By definition pillage (or plunder) is theft within the context of, and in connection
with, an armed conflict. Under the Rome Statute, pillage is ―the forcible taking of private
property by an invading or conquering army from the enemy‘s subjects‖. 65 The Elements of
Crimes of the ICC specify that the appropriation must be done for private or personal use.
The prohibition of pillage is a long-standing rule of customary and treaty-based
international law. It constitutes a war crime to pillage a town or place, even when taken by
assault.
I.
Destruction of personal property
68.
International human rights law protects an individual‘s home from interference by
the State. Article 17 of the ICCPR prohibits arbitrary or unlawful interference with a
person‘s home or correspondence. The Human Rights Committee has interpreted this
provision to mean that no interference can take place except in cases envisaged by the law,
and that law must comport with the objectives of the ICCPR. 66 Article 11 of the ICESCR
commits States Parties to providing everyone ―an adequate standard of living for himself
and his family, including housing, and to the continuous improvement of living
conditions‖.
64
65
66
See CRC Art. 37 (c).
Rome Statute, Art. 8 (2) (e) (v).
General Comment 16, Art. 3.
59
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