A/HRC/23/57 standardized. Moreover, victims are reluctant to report their cases due to the associated trauma and shame and the fear of being stigmatized. One interviewee mentioned that women and girls who were victims of rape do not report the incidents because they think that “if they do it, there will be no future for them”. In one interview, the Mission was informed that a victim of rape had committed suicide at the end of February 2013 after several attempts. G. Violations of the rights of the child 49. The Mission received information about the enrolment and use of children by armed groups. The Mission held meetings with representatives of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the Malian authorities concerning the transfer, on 8 and 9 March 2013, of six child soldiers who had been captured in Tessalit by the French army, then handed over to the Malian authorities and referred to UNICEF. 50. The Malian authorities assured the Mission that, in conjunction with the international community, they were working to reintegrate children who had been associated with armed groups. On 28 January 2013, the authorities released an interministerial circular stating that child soldiers who had been captured or had escaped should be viewed as victims and should be treated as such. The circular also called on all relevant authorities to work together in the reintegration of these children. 51. The educational system has been particularly badly affected by the occupation of the north by armed groups, with serious consequences for the right to access education for around 700,000 children. Since the violence began in the north, at least 115 schools have been closed, destroyed or pillaged. Some have even been contaminated with unexploded ordnance abandoned by the armed groups. In addition, many teachers have been displaced and have not yet returned to the north. It is essential that the schools are rebuilt and that teachers are encouraged to return to the north and are given training and access to teaching materials. As of April 2013, around 200,000 children still did not have access to schooling. H. Intercommunity tensions and risk of reprisals 52. Relationships between communities in the north of the country continue to be marred by persistent tensions between, inter alia, the Songhays, the Peuls, the Arabs and the Tuaregs. These tensions create a considerable risk of violence. Incidents such as the clash between Arabs and Tuaregs in Ber on 5 May 2013 appear to be precursory signs of such violence. The fact that the militia often have a specific ethnic composition heightens the risk of violence. It is therefore vital that future political dialogue is inclusive and allows for the effective participation of all communities, in order to reinforce the importance and the benefits of coexistence in this region. 53. Despite a considerable decrease in the number of violations being reported against members of the Arab and Tuareg communities alleged to have supported armed, jihadist groups during the liberation of the northern cities between January and March 2013, the risk of reprisals remains high. For example, during a mission in the Timbuktu region from 8 to 12 May 2013, the MINUSMA human rights teams noted that members of the Tuareg and Arab communities aged between 15 and 50 years’ old had fled, and that the few remaining members of these communities, most of whom were either elderly or sick or children, were hiding in their homes for fear of reprisals and stigmatization. Refugees based in various camps in Burkina Faso confirmed that young people aged between 15 and 40 years’ old have fled the region. Some are in refugee camps while others are hiding in villages in Mali where living conditions are reported to be difficult. 12 GE.13-15228