Summary: "The present report has been prepared in accordance with the provisions of resolution 1612 (2005). It is presented to the Security Council and its Working Group on Children and Armed Conflict as the first country report pursuant to paragraphs 2, 3 and 10 of that resolution. The report, which covers the period from July 2005 to September 2007, provides information on the current situation regarding the recruitment and use of children and other grave violations being committed against children affected by armed conflict in the Union of Myanmar. While the monitoring and reporting structures as outlined in the mechanism endorsed by the Security Council in its resolution in 1612 (2005) are in place, the modalities of an effective mechanism, including security guarantees, access to affected areas and freedom of movement of monitors without Government escort, are lacking. This first report therefore sets forth the general scope of the situation based on the information available to the United Nations country task force on monitoring and reporting at the present time. Although there has been progress in terms of dialogue with the Government of Myanmar and two non-State actors, the report notes that State and non-State actors continue to be implicated in grave child rights violations. The Government of Myanmar has made a commitment at the highest level that no child under the age of 18 will be recruited. The Government has set up a high-level Committee for the Prevention of Military Recruitment of Underage Children and a working group for monitoring and reporting on the same issue. Further, there are Government policies and directives prohibiting underage recruitment. To date, the Government has not acceded to the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict (2000). Two non-State actors (the Karen National Union and the Karenni National Progressive Party) have signed Deeds of Commitment to cease the recruitment and use of children, to declare their adherence to the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child and have committed themselves to appropriate follow-up action. The Government has committed to bringing its current action plan on the prevention of the recruitment of children into its armed forces, the Tatmadaw Kyi, into line with international standards and to facilitate action plans with the United Wa State Army and other non-State actors. The Government of Myanmar has also recognized the need for the United Nations country task force in Myanmar to engage the Karen National Union and Karenni National Progressive Party in the development of action plans and monitor their compliance in accordance with Security Council resolution 1612 (2005). A principal difficulty with regard to monitoring grave violations of children?s rights remains the lack of access to some locations of concern. Access to conflict-affected areas is severely restricted by the Government, a situation that impacts greatly on monitoring and possible responses to child rights violations."