For the last 18 years they have had no smile and living without a
future ahead of them, but living a daily life of death and survival. In
short one could easily sum up, that they are the hopeless in a hopeless
environment and in a hopeless future.
However the pain, and
uncertainties do seem to come to an end, thanks to a small Dutch
community non governmental organization (NGO) 094, which has joined
hands with North Hope, a local (NGO), to build a camp far away from the
hostile war environment.
Even though they live thousands miles
away from their own homes, they look comfortable, despite the fact that
they are actually refugees living in another land in their own country.
This pain alone is enough. These are the children from Northern Uganda
areas striken by an 18-year-old war.
The innocent children do
not know their cause for suffering, what wrong they have done to live
in the horrible conditions they have been forced into, all they know is
that during the day, some people in military wear come to their
villages, torch up their wattle and grass thatched houses, kill their
friends, take away others and leave others with cut limbs, lips and
older ones, their breasts.
All this suffering is inflicted by
non other than self styled prophet Joseph Kony and his killing
machines, who have failed to reach their original goal to over throw
the government of Yoweri Museveni, and replace it with one of their
own, a presumably rule run under the Biblical Ten commandment.
Joseph
Kony and his Lord#8217;s Resistance Army rebels intensified their
rebellion in the early 1988. Since then, people living in the areas of
their operation have never got peace, nor a quiet sleep, let alone have
full meals (lunch and supper).
Early this year, they did
intensify their attacks. During Easter they struck several times and
over 300 children, women and the old were killed, abducted or maimed.
This
may sound a minor incidence, but Kony#8217;s group has abducted over
20.000 children in this part of the country. The senior rebels
forcefully marry off the females.
In this little camp, life is
changing though, thanks to the community of Ooij and some partner
Organisations in Netherlands who contributed the funds that has helped
set up projects in this camp.
Deep in the jungles several miles
away from Gulu, Kitgum, Pader and Lira down in Masindi district is
Kapanga refugee camp, is a new home for the likes of 8-year-old Janet
Akwinyi who has come to bear the burden of a war.
O94 is a
small NGO, which has decided to make life quiet, easier for Janet. For
this, they have planned to invest over 500.000 Euros in Kapanga camp
and run it alongside Hope North.
This is done in a bid to build
a strong investment foundation for the children North after the war,
according to the officials from 094 who paid a visit to the camp
recently.
The organization president Billy Gunterman and the
Secretary General Clemens Olthoff said efforts were being made to build
a self-sustaining camp for the refugees who have to start a new life,
which has to be looked at soon enough.
Olthoff said that among
the projects planned in the camp is the building of a bakery,
vocational institute, secondary school, a guest house and setting up a
piggery among others.
Some of the projects have been completed
and these include a primary school building and a tap water project,
this first of its kind in the area and the purchase of an operational
truck for the camp at a cost of 8000 Euros.
It is through such
initiatives that the wounds from this bloody war can heal, and a future
of a new child like Janet built for the better.
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