STORY Forward Peace
FORWARD PEACE: RECONCILIATION AND REINTEGRATION OF FORMER CHILD SOLDIERS IN NORTHERN UGANDA
PHOTOGRAPHY | AMANDA VOISARD CLIENT: Grassroots reconciliation group
Northern Uganda is home to tens of thousands of former child-soldiers, many of which were said to have been part of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA). The LRA, a militant group formed in 1987, was an outgrowth or continuation of the Lords Salvation Army and was very active in the de-establishment of northern Uganda. Over the course of the 20-year conflict, millions of lives were destroyed and irreparable acts were committed against civilians, often at the hands of these young militants. Despite many acts of reconciliation on the part of these ex-soldiers, there is still a long road-ahead to make amends in their communities. While the war is over, the impact on the local community has been substantial, emotionally, physically, and culturally. Post-conflict rebuilding can be a slow and arduous task, primarily in remote regions like the northern Uganda/South Sudan border. While some of the war-affected areas have received significant aid and have made major strides towards reconciliation ---in particular Gulu town, the northern capitol-- the more remote rural regions has been almost void of assistance and counseling since the war ended. In these areas many former combatants are subject to hostilities by the local community, stigmatized for their role in the war. These young men and women continue to be forced to deal with their demons both personally and publicly. Their childhoods were stolen, and most are severely under-educated and are now stigmatized labeled as ‘child soldiers’.
