Chapter 11 Learning Objectives:
As we watched, a group of men dressed in civilian clothes emerged from under the tiny bushes. They waved their hands, and more fighters came out. Some were boys, as young as we were. They sat together in line, waving their hands, discussing a strategy. My lieutenant ordered a rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) to be fired, but the commander of the rebels heard it as it whooshed its way out of the forest. “Retreat!” he called out to his men, and the grenade’s blast got only a few rebels, whose split bodies flew in the air. The explosion was followed by an exchange of gunfire from both sides.
I lay there with my gun pointed in front of me, unable to shoot. My index finger became numb. I felt as if the forest had turned upside down and I was going to fall off, so I clutched the base of a tree with one hand. I couldn’t think, but I could hear the sounds of the guns far away in the distance and the cries of people dying in pain. A splash of blood hit my face. In my reverie I had opened my mouth a bit, so I tasted some of the blood. As I spat it out and wiped it off my face, I saw the soldier it had come from. Blood poured out of the bullet holes in him like water rushing through newly opened tributaries. His eyes were wide open; he still held his gun. My eyes were fixed on him when I heard Josiah screaming for his mother in the most painfully piercing voice I had ever heard. It vibrated inside my head to the point that I felt my brain had shaken loose from its anchor.
…I searched for Josiah. An RPG had tossed his tiny body off the ground, and he had landed on a tree stump. He wiggled his legs as his cry gradually came to an end. There was blood everywhere. It seemed as if bullets were falling into the forest from all angles. I crawled to Josiah and looked into his eyes. There were tears in them, and his lips were shaking, but he couldn’t speak. As I watched him, the water in his eyes was replaced with blood that quickly turned his brown eyes red. He reached for my shoulder as if to pull himself up. But midway, he stopped moving. The gunshots faded in my head, and it was as if my heart had stopped and the whole world had come to a standstill. I covered his eyes with my fingers and lifted him from the tree stump. His backbone had been shattered. I placed him flat on the ground and picked up my gun. I didn’t realize that I had stood up to take Josiah off the tree stump. I felt someone tugging at my foot. It was the corporal…
“Get down,” he was screaming. “Shoot,” he said, as he crawled away from me to resume his position. As I looked to where he lay, my eyes caught Musa, whose head was covered with blood. His hands looked too relaxed. I turned toward the swamp, where there were gunmen running, trying to cross over. My face, my hands, my shirt and my gun were drenched in blood. I raised my gun and pulled the trigger, and I killed a man. Suddenly all the death I had seen since the day I was touched by war began flashing in my head. Every time I stopped shooting to change magazines and saw my two lifeless friends, I angrily pointed my gun into the swamp and killed more people. I shot everything that moved, until we were ordered to retreat because we needed another plan. (Beah, 2007, p. 117-119).
This except comes from the autobiographical account of being a child soldier-- A Long Way Gone. The author, Ishmael Beah was forced into the Sierra Leone state-controlled armed forces at the age of 13. His parents and brothers were victims of the civil war. After two years in combat, Ishmael was placed in a rehabilitation center by UNICEF. Ishmael went on to graduate from college and become the first UNICEF Advocate for Children Affected by War (“Ishmael Beah, 2012).
Child soldiers are any person under the age of 18 years old who is, or who has been, recruited or used by an armed force or armed group in any capacity, including but not limited to fighters, cooks, porters, spies, or for sexual purposes (UNICEF, 2007). Child soldiers can be male or female.
Why Children? People choose to use kids in wars for a variety of reasons including: they are small, fast, easily manipulated, emotionally immature, and too young to understand or resist.
Top 10 countries that continue to recruit children:
- What is a child soldier?
- Why are children recruited in wars?
- Which countries continue to recruit children?
- Children from Yemen tell their war stories
- Documentary on child soldiers
As we watched, a group of men dressed in civilian clothes emerged from under the tiny bushes. They waved their hands, and more fighters came out. Some were boys, as young as we were. They sat together in line, waving their hands, discussing a strategy. My lieutenant ordered a rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) to be fired, but the commander of the rebels heard it as it whooshed its way out of the forest. “Retreat!” he called out to his men, and the grenade’s blast got only a few rebels, whose split bodies flew in the air. The explosion was followed by an exchange of gunfire from both sides.
I lay there with my gun pointed in front of me, unable to shoot. My index finger became numb. I felt as if the forest had turned upside down and I was going to fall off, so I clutched the base of a tree with one hand. I couldn’t think, but I could hear the sounds of the guns far away in the distance and the cries of people dying in pain. A splash of blood hit my face. In my reverie I had opened my mouth a bit, so I tasted some of the blood. As I spat it out and wiped it off my face, I saw the soldier it had come from. Blood poured out of the bullet holes in him like water rushing through newly opened tributaries. His eyes were wide open; he still held his gun. My eyes were fixed on him when I heard Josiah screaming for his mother in the most painfully piercing voice I had ever heard. It vibrated inside my head to the point that I felt my brain had shaken loose from its anchor.
…I searched for Josiah. An RPG had tossed his tiny body off the ground, and he had landed on a tree stump. He wiggled his legs as his cry gradually came to an end. There was blood everywhere. It seemed as if bullets were falling into the forest from all angles. I crawled to Josiah and looked into his eyes. There were tears in them, and his lips were shaking, but he couldn’t speak. As I watched him, the water in his eyes was replaced with blood that quickly turned his brown eyes red. He reached for my shoulder as if to pull himself up. But midway, he stopped moving. The gunshots faded in my head, and it was as if my heart had stopped and the whole world had come to a standstill. I covered his eyes with my fingers and lifted him from the tree stump. His backbone had been shattered. I placed him flat on the ground and picked up my gun. I didn’t realize that I had stood up to take Josiah off the tree stump. I felt someone tugging at my foot. It was the corporal…
“Get down,” he was screaming. “Shoot,” he said, as he crawled away from me to resume his position. As I looked to where he lay, my eyes caught Musa, whose head was covered with blood. His hands looked too relaxed. I turned toward the swamp, where there were gunmen running, trying to cross over. My face, my hands, my shirt and my gun were drenched in blood. I raised my gun and pulled the trigger, and I killed a man. Suddenly all the death I had seen since the day I was touched by war began flashing in my head. Every time I stopped shooting to change magazines and saw my two lifeless friends, I angrily pointed my gun into the swamp and killed more people. I shot everything that moved, until we were ordered to retreat because we needed another plan. (Beah, 2007, p. 117-119).
This except comes from the autobiographical account of being a child soldier-- A Long Way Gone. The author, Ishmael Beah was forced into the Sierra Leone state-controlled armed forces at the age of 13. His parents and brothers were victims of the civil war. After two years in combat, Ishmael was placed in a rehabilitation center by UNICEF. Ishmael went on to graduate from college and become the first UNICEF Advocate for Children Affected by War (“Ishmael Beah, 2012).
Child soldiers are any person under the age of 18 years old who is, or who has been, recruited or used by an armed force or armed group in any capacity, including but not limited to fighters, cooks, porters, spies, or for sexual purposes (UNICEF, 2007). Child soldiers can be male or female.
Why Children? People choose to use kids in wars for a variety of reasons including: they are small, fast, easily manipulated, emotionally immature, and too young to understand or resist.
Top 10 countries that continue to recruit children:
- Afghanistan
- Central African Republic
- Democratic Republic of Congo
- Iraq
- Myanmar
- Nigeria
- Somalia
- South Sudan
- Syria
- Yemen
Yemeni Child Soldiers: Youni, a 13 year old boy, was recruited into the war and was made to fire missiles and fight. During his time with the soldiers, he picked up bad habits like smoking weed, but eventually he stopped. Fortunately, he was able to get out of the war and he is now back in school. Read more here:
https://www.cnn.com/2018/02/02/middleeast/yemen-child-soldiers-intl/index.html (also photo source)
https://www.cnn.com/2018/02/02/middleeast/yemen-child-soldiers-intl/index.html (also photo source)
Child Soldier Documentary above
Ask Yourself:
Additional Resources:
https://www.child-soldiers.org/
https://www.hrw.org/topic/childrens-rights/child-soldiers
https://www.dosomething.org/us/facts/11-facts-about-child-soldiers
https://www.forbes.com/sites/realspin/2012/12/09/for-child-soldiers-every-day-is-a-living-nightmare/#6082b3a027bd
Ask Yourself:
- Did you know child soldiers are trafficking victims?
- Did the list of countries with the most child soldiers surprise you?
- What did you think of the video? How do you feel about this issue?
- Did you know that there continue to be child soldiers today?
- How do you think being a child soldier impacts their life?
Additional Resources:
https://www.child-soldiers.org/
https://www.hrw.org/topic/childrens-rights/child-soldiers
https://www.dosomething.org/us/facts/11-facts-about-child-soldiers
https://www.forbes.com/sites/realspin/2012/12/09/for-child-soldiers-every-day-is-a-living-nightmare/#6082b3a027bd