I read a memoir recently from a child soldier (now adult) that fought alongside his country’s army in Sierra Leone that inspired me to write this piece and hopefully shed some light on the matter to those that are currently in the dark.
There is said to be an estimated 300,000-500,000 child soldiers in the world, with Africa being home to 200,000 of them–a number I feel to be much greater.
Children have been incorporated into war/war life throughout the history of the world; however, since the early 1980s, that number has drastically risen, specifically in Western and Central Africa. Countries in Africa that are using child soldiers now, and have in the past, include: Algeria, Angola, Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Ivory Coast, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sudan, Uganda, and numerous others.
Most people are familiar with the use of children as soldiers during the American Civil War, but they were also used by Nazis and, most recently, in the War in Iraq. So what are the differences between child soldiers in those wars and the ones in Sierra Leone, Liberia and the Congo? Religion, independence, and political ideology have been the driving core in the past. In Africa, greed and power fuels harsh and manipulative regimes, and most of the world has done nothing to interfere.
Why choose children? The children living in African countries torn by war are typically between the ages of 7-10, with most of the children being around 10-years-old. In turn, this means they have little education, almost all live in poverty, their environments are already unstable from living in a war zone, and most have lost their parents and other family members. This all makes children susceptible to manipulation and/or easy to force into combat through intimidation, drugs, abuse, and abduction. Most children that join the army or rebel forces, do so under economic pressures, as a survival strategy; this is sometimes the case for them to simply be able to have a meal available each day. Child soldiers are extremely loyal and are very good at obtaining information, as a result of appearing youthful and innocent.
So why should we be concerned about the welfare of a child in Africa? All I ever hear when these topics are brought up for discussion is, “We have so many problems here in America that need to be fixed first!” These issues may seem foreign, but even if inhumane treatment of children doesn’t make you want to stand up for human rights, there are more reasons that will. The exploitation of children in Africa is not a small matter–it is a process of self-destruction. This directly correlates to the lack of growth within Africa. These children are future leaders, teachers, business owners, travelers, and parents. The cycle of war is damaging enough; when involving children, it will only create more war, anger, hurt, hate, and violence.
The children are raped, witnesses to rape, forced to murder strangers and their own family members to prove their bravery and loyalty, and are given drugs to which they become addicted. All of these children have had their lives stolen from them. The children in these countries are the true victims of these wars and we cannot afford to turn a blind eye to any situation as dire as this one. Even spreading awareness is drastically influential. We have to ensure these children will never again have to face a combat situation.
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