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John, Uganda »
John's Story
“I was playing at the river one day when I was 13 and the rebels came and took me. I knew exactly what was going to happen to me.”
John*, 18, is a former child soldier who escaped to the Save the Children-supported Gusco rehabilitation centre in uganda. He has a marked seriousness and rarely laughs. Though he did not support the Lord’s Resistance Army soldiers who took him, John had no choice but to obey.
His worst memory is of attacking a refugee camp. “The [government] army came for us with helicopter gunships, all around me everyone was shot and killed. I was sure I would die, but I was lucky and escaped.” The LRA used to tell the children that if they ran away the Uganda n army would kill them. “One day I couldn’t take it any more. I just got up and
started to walk away.”
DownloadReturning home is hard. “I went through a traditional cleansing ceremony and then my family and neighbours welcomed me,” he explains.
“I hope the war ends soon. I think it will take two or three years before things become good for me and my family.”
* John's name has been changed to protect his identity
Other Children's Stories:
Pindi (Angola) » Sarah (Southern Sudan) » Henang (Nepal) » Omar (Sudan) » Sifa (DRC) » John (Uganda ) » Mirwais (Afghanistan) »