”I shed my blood for you. I played your game although I didn’t know the rules. I saw your face shine while mine was drained of its color.”

At 9 Years Old, China Keitetsi began her life as a child soldier.

Today, she is an effective advocate and has bravely campaigned to stop the use of child soldiers worldwide.

Denials

The Ugandan government claims that China was 17 when she joined the army and denies her allegations.

In attempts to counter her story, the New York Times reports Ugandan government officials visited the Danish publisher of China’s tell-all book to challenge China’s story, which became known internationally. (more…)

When I brought my concerns to my friends they too were concerned about the use of military force and we had an intense conversation about the morality of us, in the United States, making decisions that most likely will result in the death of Ugandans.

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Following are all segments of Uganda Rising, a documentary about Northern Uganda which raises the question of whether what’s occurred in Uganda is genocide. The film  focuses mainly on the brutality of the Lord’s Resistance Army.

Good segments in the film show the reality of forced displacement and the “protected villages” which the Ugandan government claimed  would protect civilians. In reality, the camps became the number one cause of death during “Africa’s longest running war.” (more…)

Commonly overlooked, but widely documented, the Ugandan government’s use of child soldiers has been reported by the UN for years. The Ugandan government also uses captured soldiers to hunt for the Lord’s Resistance Army. The 105th battallion in the Ugandan army is composed of ex-LRA combatants who are often sent after the LRA. (more…)

Juliane Okot Bitek writes eloquently in the Black Star News about activism that cheapens and downplays its cause. Spearheading a simulated “rescue” of child soldiers this past April 25th, Invisible Children, a popular and wildly misleading organization based in San Diego, California, has done more to hurt the northern Ugandan situation, than help it. (more…)