GCPEA News

GCPEA Joins 61 Organizations Calling on the US Government to Help Protect Education from Attack

May 29, 2014

The Global Coalition to Protect Education from Attack (GCPEA) joins together with 61 international development and humanitarian organizations to condemn the abduction of nearly 300 schoolgirls in Nigeria by Boko Haram and to urge the United States government to take swift action to protect education from attack around the world.

Tragically, deliberate attacks on schools, students, and educators as a tactic of war are not uncommon. Between 2009 and 2013, targeted attacks on education and incidents of military use of schools and universities were reported in at least 70 countries worldwide. Education Under Attack 2014, the most comprehensive examination of such attacks to date, reports in detail on 30 countries where there has been a significant pattern of attacks or military use of schools over the last five years.

The letter to Secretary of State John Kerry, USAID Administrator Rajiv Shah, and members of Congress, urges the US to work actively with other governments and international organizations to ensure protection of schools and colleges and take steps to mitigate the impact of attacks on young people’s right to education. It also calls on the US government to assist in the finalization, endorsement, and fulfillment of the draft Lucens Guidelines for Protecting Schools and Universities from Military Use during Armed Conflict.

See the specific recommendations and the full list of organizations in the community sign-on letter.

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