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Sudan Voices: Children in Conflict |
when is this on?
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Sudan’s 21-year long war has devastated the lives of countless children and adolescents. Beyond the ongoing conflict in the western region of Darfur, the prospects for peace in southern Sudan are high and the country’s beleaguered children are hoping for a dramatic improvement in their lives. This programme looks at the impact of two decades of war on the nation’s children and uncovers some of the projects being undertaken to rehabilitate this lost generation.
Patience Alidri from Save the Children UK’s Sudan programme explains, “Children have been traumatised by the sheer fact that they have witnessed their parents, their brothers and sisters killed in the war and lost in the war. They’ve seen their families destroyed, they’re homes destroyed and they’ve been displaced. They’ve had to live out in the open and they’ve had to suffer cold. I mean that in itself is one impact of the war on the children.”
 Martha had three brothers before the war devastated her family, as it had so many before. Two of her brothers were murdered by government militia whilst the third fled for his life to neighbouring Kenya. Martha and her sister survived the situation by joining the rebel forces as cooks, preparing meals for the soldiers. Regina also joined the rebel groups and describes her experiences: “I have no parents as they were taken by the Arabs. That is why I decided to stay with the army. I pounded grain for the army, carried water for the army and moved with them wherever they were going. I spent many years with them, six years I think. This denied me access to education and it’s all because my parents were not there.”
Many girls suffered abduction, rape or forced marriages during the war, however there are no accurate statistics. All the children who became embroiled in the conflict lost their childhood and their demobilisation from the military is just the first stage in their rehabilitation. Most communities in southern Sudan lack the necessary infrastructure and services to support these young people in their development, so it falls to the non-governmental organisations to pick up the pieces.
Projects like the ‘children’s groups’ organised by Save the Children are encouraging these children of war to play, learn and communicate their experiences. They are able to make friends and recapture some of their lost childhood. As Martha says, “If there is peace, girls will go to school and become qualified and you can get a job. Then you will get money. This means you don’t have to work in the fields. You can go to the market and get what you need.”
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Last Updated ( Friday, 14 September 2007 )
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