Invisible Children- Source #3

While many articles I have read focus on the issues of the child soldiers and the Ugandan war on a larger scale, the the Washington Post article "A Child's Hell in the Lord's Resistance Army" gave an up-close personal account of what it is like to be an abducted child soldier. The article tells the story of Grace Akallo, who was abducted by the LRA from her school, St. Mary's College. Before reading this article, I assumed that the LRA would mainly abduct boys, as they may prove to be more efficient and effective soldiers. However, in the article Grace explains that she, along with 138 other girls, were marched out of their school by the LRA. After being taken to a forest, the rebels eventually allowed 109 of the girls to go free with one of the nuns, while they kept the remaining 30; Grace was part of the latter group. She recounts how she was forced to beat and kill other children as part of her "initiation" as a soldier. In addition to this, the article explains how many girls who are abducted are taken as "wives" by LRA officers, leading to repeated sexual abuse. This article was very instrumental in helping me to understand the horrors experienced by child soldiers. The fact that this first-hand account was told through the eyes of a young girl reveals that the child soldier issue is not isolated to only young boys, but rather extends, unfortunately, to all of Uganda's children.