by Alpha Jalloh, Sierra Leone, December 1999
THEME = CHILDREN
The United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone
(UNAMSIL)
has the task of disarming 45,000 former
combatants.
At least 6,000 of these are children -
a
worrying situation for charitable organisations and for
UNICEF
A few of the child combatants have already been disarmed and are being looked after by charitable organisations. The aim is to change these children's violent attitudes, dissuade them from drug addiction and prepare them for re-entry into the social life of the nation. Sad to say, of the estimated 6,000 children known to be carrying arms, only a few have turned up at demobilization centres with their guns.
Father John Thompson is an American Salesian Father and director of the Don Bosco Homes in Sierra Leone. He says that by early December, seven former child combatants had been taken in by the Don Bosco Homes. The Don Bosco Home in Lungi, a town situated just across the river from Freetown, takes care of street children. The Don Bosco Home in Freetown takes care of both street children and former child combatants.
Father Thompson said he has no problems with the first group placed in his care. They are mostly within the eleven to eighteen years age range. "We aim to help them understand that what they have done is not good. During the war they were forced by older rebels to commit atrocities. They developed violent tendencies and turned to drugs. Now, they must come to appreciate that a change of life is necessary".
Let's look at one young person's experiences. Kenneth Williams is aged 18. He is a former child combatant presently living in a Don Bosco Home. He says he was abducted from his home in Berry Street, Freetown, when the rebels invaded the city in January 1999. "When fighting broke out between the Revolutionary United Front and former soldiers of the Sierra Leonean army, I was among those who were sent to fight", he said.
Then there's Sahr Yusufu who is just eleven. He explains: "I was nearly killed when an Alpha jet belonging to ECOMOG tried to bomb the vehicle we were in, which was carrying looted items to a secret location".
The children at the Don Bosco Home in Freetown are divided into two groups. Some receive vocational training in carpentry and tailoring; others receive a non-formal education from teachers employed by the Home. The teachers, however, say the children are very troublesome. "They are very difficult to deal with, but we have to be extremely patient with them", says Samuel Bojohn, the Home's supervisor.
What happens when the time comes for the young people to leave the Home? Father Thompson says that efforts are being made to trace their parents but there is a problem in re-uniting the children with their families. Some families even reject them. "Our relatives ignore us when they come across us in the streets", admits Sahr Yusufu. Kenneth Williams says that those following the vocational training course, are looking for some kind of sponsorship "so that we can establish small workshops when we finish our vocational training".
Apart from the Don Bosco Homes, there are other organisations taking care of former child combatants. The Family Homes Movement is a Catholic rehabilitation centre which takes care of both boys and girls. (The Don Bosco Homes only accept boys). Father Kwesi Adarkwa, a Ghanaian, is the Movement's national coordinator. He says the Home helps children who were going to school before they were abducted, to resume their education in various schools in Freetown. Those who are illiterate receive vocational training at the Home situated at Lakka, in the outskirts of Freetown.
The Home also takes care of children under five years old. "These are children whose mothers were killed behind rebel lines. Because of what they have been through, they are frequently ill and are difficult to take care of. Sad to say, some of the children we have in care, are still addicted to drugs which makes them behave abnormally. They are receiving psycho-therapeutic treatment."
Female child combatants have been the worst affected by the war. They have been raped, used as "wives" by rebels and sent as combatants to attack government troops. Many were killed and those who survived, fell victim to Sexually Transmitted Diseases because of the promiscuous life they were subjected to. The SOS Children's Home in Freetown has shown great concern for the girls' plight. Christiana Salomon is the Home's national coordinator. She says health services have been provided for the girls. "Because of their plight, they have been isolated by society. This is completely wrong because they did not choose to become part of the rebellion. Now they are rejected by society in general and by their own families".
These are but some examples of the wonderful work being carried out by a number of charitable organisations in Sierra Leone. A whole generation of young people are dependent on such organisations - a generation which faces a bleak future without such help.
END