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IRIN Web Special on Life in northern Uganda
"when the sun sets, we start to worry..."
W A I T I N G���F O R���T H E���L I G H T - Continued
Child commuters settle down for the night at the St. Joseph�s Mission Hospital
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Prossy (14) lives with her grandmother in Paicho, some 10 km outside Gulu town.
My father was killed by the rebels in 1996. My mother died in 1998 after a long illness. I walk every evening to the Noah's Ark centre in Gulu town. I go to school each morning with nothing to eat. During the fruit season, you can get something to eat during the day, but now there are no fruits, so the only time I eat is in the evening when I go home from school. I have to eat very quickly so as to leave home before dark. Sometimes when the situation gets worse, I have to hurry so as to reach the centre before dark. At times I do not wait to eat at home. I do not want to end up like my sister, who was abducted in 1994. I don't think she is alive. We have not heard anything about her from other children who have come back.
We are tired of walking without eating. This war should stop, so we can return to our normal lives.
Lilian (12) spends her nights at the Noah's Ark
"The rebels first abducted my brother in 1997. He has never come back. We don't know where he is. I don't think he is alive, because I have not heard any reports about him from other children who have come back. This year, one of my elder brothers and two younger sisters were also abducted, on the same night. None of them has returned.
Both my parents have died. I don't remember when they died - I was still very small. My aunt adopted me. I was told rebels came home and murdered them. I am only left with two brothers. We all come to Noah's Ark every evening. In the morning, we leave for school. There is no feeding programme in our school. Even in schools which have feeding programmes, parents still have to pay for the food, salt, onions and firewood.
No, I don�t think of the future. I don�t think I�ll go to secondary school. There is no one to help. All my relatives are very poor now because of this war. They are all scattered in camps. Rebels killed some of them. My aunt is very ill. She can�t do anything but cook.
Albert has 18 children under his care, of which seven are his. They all trek to Gulu town each night.
My family used to have 1,500 head of cattle. We had tractors and other farm machines. All this was spoiled by the war. Three of my brothers have been killed by rebels. I have been left with their widows and children to look after. We manage only through very hard labour. We have been displaced from our village since 1990, and even here we are not safe. They [LRA] abducted one of my brother's children from this compound. This problem is big and we don't have any hope for the future. We have appealed for the international community to come and help, but we have not seen anything. You know you should live with your children, but the conditions do not allow you to stay with them. Some of them sleep on verandas, some at Noah's Ark.
Waiting for dawn at Gulu�s bus park
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Some of the mothers go to town with the children. I am always worrying about the children. They are too young to be on their own. There are also a lot of dangers at night. Some have been knocked down by bicycles. Some have been bitten by snakes. The older girls are disturbed by men. Robbers also sometimes attack them.
We see the children again at 7:30 in the morning. They don't get breakfast. Those who are supported with food are in IDP camps.
The women don't rest. They do small businesses. They do all the work, because I am disabled. I cannot walk and my hearing was spoiled when rebels beat me badly in 1989. This problem has caused a lot of disability in our area. But there are no programmes for people with disabilities, so we only depend on the power of God.
Emanuel, a social worker at the Noah's Ark centre in Gulu
We have 1,200 children here, 500 boys and 700 girls. The numbers depend on the security situation. Other children prefer to go to town to sleep on the verandahs, but girls usually prefer to come here for protection.
Our biggest concern is their behaviour. Those who sleep on the verandahs are becoming spoiled. They think there are good things on the street. On the street, they are free to do what they want. They watch videos and all sorts of things which are not good. This means that the number of children on the verandahs is growing every day, because more and more children prefer the free life in town.
They are ruining their future. There has to be a way of getting off the street or there will be no future. Teenage girls often are late. We hear that men usually disturb them. The local government is talking all the time about this problem, but I don't think they are serious. NGOs are taking more responsibility for the children. The parents also are not serious. They are not checking to make sure that their children are where they are supposed to be. It is their responsibility to find out if the children have reached their sleeping place.
Young child commuter with blanket provided by relief workers
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Normally, when they [children] are here, we teach them good behaviour through the Bible. It is difficult to control the children. Some children fight. Others steal each other's blankets. When it rains, the mats in the tent get wet. I must solve these problems. We try to counsel them and give them the word of God. These children need to be evangelised because they have a lot of problems. They are the target group of the rebels.
A few months ago, the rebels were operating near the town. Some of our children were abducted on their way here. There were about 15 of them. Some of them are still missing. We do not have a feeding programme at this centre, so children have to wait and eat at home. Some of them eat late.
I live just outside Gulu [town]. Last night, rebels abducted some people from my area. I can only trust in God to protect my six children. Some of them sleep here, in this centre. The youngest one remains at home. He is still too young.
Many of these children are orphans. Some of the children here have no clothes. If you visit their homes, you find that there is a big problem. Parents are always thinking of where to get food. There is no way of even getting money to pay fees for their children. In some families, you find that parents are totally traumatised by the war and have become drunkards.
[Ends]
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