Letter complaining about Child Soliders

An example of the use of child soldiers being used is in Sierra Leone. In 1991 a vicious war broke out in the country between the government and rebel forces. You may thing that in this day and age the problem of child soldiers is small, but in 2001 up to10'000 children where fighting in Sierra Leone, of which 5'000 of this where used in armed combat with the others being used to carry ammunition and clean up. The girls however where used as sex slaves. Over the year's people, children have been forcibly made to carry out atrocities and the idea of violence imbedded in their minds.

Children who have spent their lives in armed combat have more than likely been severely traumatised and brutalized. Some of these children may escape the fighting but are forever left with the idea that the use of violence is a legitimate means of achieving their aims. This is nearly certainly the case when the person still lives in a society where there is poverty and injustice. Apart from the problems of trauma after war, the former child soldiers also face rejection from their communities. Communities in countries where child soldiers are used often find it hard to accept child soldiers back into their community. People who as children have carried out horrendous atrocities are looked upon with disgust and usually find it extremely hard to find employment. These children where not given a chance to live a normal life. They didn't ask to be taken from their families and abused like many are. I like to tell you about Alhassan Sheriff Kamara who is from Northern Sierra Leone. When he was only nine he was out playing football with his friends when the rebel front (RUF) captured him and took him away for training in how to use an AK47 assault riffle. For the next three years he was involved in heavy fighting almost every day. He said "When you where going into the battle, you didn't know if you where going to survive or not" As many other child soldiers Alhassan was beaten regularly and forced to execute captured prisoners of war. Alhassan recalled one time when he was ordered to kill a captured Guinean soldier. He said "I allowed him to escape. I fired shots in the air. I just felt sorry for him" Alhassan was lucky and freed but there are over 300'000 others just like him frightening in the world today. I found his story extremely distressing and disturbing, as I'm sure you did. I don't see why Alhassan and others like him have to suffer through this.