The Secretary of State is in violation of US law, according to a “dissent” memo published by department employees first reported by Reuters.
Officials at the State Department accused Rex Tillerson of breaking the Child Soldiers Prevention Act (CSPA), which prohibits aid and military assistance to nations that conscript troops younger than 18 years old.
In June, Tillerson removed Afghanistan, Iraq, and Myanmar from the list of offending nations, overruling recommendations from career diplomats who cited evidence that each country still employs child soldiers.
A July 28 memo was published by department officials in response to Tillerson’s decision. The document was submitted through the State Department’s “Dissent Channel,” which allows employees to lodge policy disagreements without fear of retribution.
The dissenting officials argued that the de-listing of offending countries “is inconsistent with US law,” “compromises US credibility,” and “undermines the department’s work and harms children.”
“It has risked sending a message to the authorities in all three countries—and to the international community—that minimal efforts are enough,” the memo adds.
It goes on to state that the Secretary of State’s actions convey “that we as a government are not interested in upholding international norms, nor in holding countries accountable for ongoing abuses against children; and that we are willing to neglect the legal foundation and principles guiding our advocacy and diplomacy.”
Tillerson responded to the dissent, by attempting to distinguish Afghanistan, Iraq, and Myanmar from other offending nations that were “making little or no effort to correct their child soldier violations.” He claimed the trio was instead “making sincere — if as yet incomplete — efforts.”
Countries still remaining of the CSPA list include the Democratic Republic of Congo, Mali, Nigeria, Somalia, Sudan, South Sudan, Syria, and Yemen.
President Obama also selectively enforced the law, which was codified in 2008. He routinely issued waivers to Iraq and Myanmar, exempting them from the law’s restrictions.
Tillerson, however, de-listed the countries without offering a waiver.
The dissenting officials warned that a “broad range of State Department reports and analyses” could be weakened due to the selective enforcement of the CSPA.
A separate critical department product, however, the Trafficking in Persons (TIP) report, was already facing credibility questions.
A 2015 Reuters expose found that career officials at State were overruled by Obama administration political appointees over which countries should be included in the list of human trafficking worst offenders.
In that case, Malaysia was given a pass in the 2015 TIP report so that it could later be considered for entry into the Trans Pacific Partnership—the sweeping trade deal, which was a top priority for the Obama White House at the time.
We’re not backing down in the face of Trump’s threats.
As Donald Trump is inaugurated a second time, independent media organizations are faced with urgent mandates: Tell the truth more loudly than ever before. Do that work even as our standard modes of distribution (such as social media platforms) are being manipulated and curtailed by forces of fascist repression and ruthless capitalism. Do that work even as journalism and journalists face targeted attacks, including from the government itself. And do that work in community, never forgetting that we’re not shouting into a faceless void – we’re reaching out to real people amid a life-threatening political climate.
Our task is formidable, and it requires us to ground ourselves in our principles, remind ourselves of our utility, dig in and commit.
As a dizzying number of corporate news organizations – either through need or greed – rush to implement new ways to further monetize their content, and others acquiesce to Trump’s wishes, now is a time for movement media-makers to double down on community-first models.
At Truthout, we are reaffirming our commitments on this front: We won’t run ads or have a paywall because we believe that everyone should have access to information, and that access should exist without barriers and free of distractions from craven corporate interests. We recognize the implications for democracy when information-seekers click a link only to find the article trapped behind a paywall or buried on a page with dozens of invasive ads. The laws of capitalism dictate an unending increase in monetization, and much of the media simply follows those laws. Truthout and many of our peers are dedicating ourselves to following other paths – a commitment which feels vital in a moment when corporations are evermore overtly embedded in government.
Over 80 percent of Truthout‘s funding comes from small individual donations from our community of readers, and the remaining 20 percent comes from a handful of social justice-oriented foundations. Over a third of our total budget is supported by recurring monthly donors, many of whom give because they want to help us keep Truthout barrier-free for everyone.
You can help by giving today. Whether you can make a small monthly donation or a larger gift, Truthout only works with your support.