Ugandan orphans, abductees and former child soldiers, distraught by the country's 21-year-old civil war, often spend their lives isolated by their communities and without the hope of a future, said Anywar Ricky Richard, the founder of Friends of Orphans, a nongovernmental organization in Uganda.
Abducted child soldiers are frequently forced to kill their parents. The effect of war on a child can be devastating. Often, they are shunned from their communities and return psychologically wounded, Richard said.
Combating this destitution is the aim of the organization, which operates in Pader, home of the Acholi people. The organization strives to contribute to the "rehabilitation, empowerment and reintegration of former child soldiers, abductees, child mothers and orphans and to combat the spread of HIV/AIDS," Richard said.
Richard and Alem Oryem Francis, the program director of Friends of Orphans, spoke Wednesday about the reconciliation efforts in Uganda in Mary Graydon Center 200.
The presentation, which included an informational movie, was the first in a series provided by the School of International Service Graduate Student Council's Foreign Affairs Committee. The series is "aimed at providing students with a real life perspective to their studies," said Graduate Student Center Vice President William James Meeker, a master's student in SIS.
Meeker worked personally with Friends of Orphans and saw firsthand what he described as "the incredible supplement to the student experience" when he visited the internal displacement camps and witnessed reconstruction efforts.
Friends of Orphans helps children in their communities and provides them with the skills they need to better their future.
Richard discussed the multifaceted approach of the organization, which provides shelter and a community for the war-affected youth and includes a human rights program, peace building and conflict management program, an HIV/AIDS program and an educational program. The educational program is ultimately aimed at providing these children with a vocational skill they can use to provide themselves with an income.
The organization also provides children with opportunities to engage in ritual dancing, which helps reincorporate them into the community.
The Lord's Resistance Army, a rebel group, has been in constant battle with the Ugandan military for the past 21 years, Francis said. The attacks have been indiscriminate toward civilians, and more than 25,000 children have been abducted.
For more information on current efforts in Uganda or how to get involved, go to www.frouganda.org.
