scholarly journals Congolese Child Soldier Narratives for Global and Local Audiences

2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 148-166
Author(s):  
Susanne Gehrmann
Keyword(s):  
Democratic Republic ◽  
Child Soldiers ◽  
Child Soldier ◽  
Narrative Strategies ◽  
The West ◽  
Sensitive Issue ◽  
Former Child Soldiers ◽  
Republic Of The Congo ◽  
Global And Local ◽  
Local Narratives

Abstract The article examines narratives by and about former child soldiers in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, a hitherto neglected corpus despite the topicality of child soldiering in African literatures after 2000. Critical readings of three testimonial texts that have been published in France are juxtaposed with the analysis of one testimonial narrative and one youth novel that have been published in Kinshasa. The editorial framing and narrative strategies that speak to different audiences located in different literary fields are identified. The popularity of testimonial narratives in the West relies on the depiction of violence and the iconic function of the child soldier in medial and human rights discourses. By contrast, narratives about the reconciliation and the reintegration of child soldiers prevail in the DRC. Thus, the different functions of global and local narratives on the sensitive issue of children at war are exposed.

Testimonies of former child soldiers in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

2019 ◽  
Vol 101 (911) ◽  
pp. 445-457
Keyword(s):  
Democratic Republic ◽  
Sexual Exploitation ◽  
Child Soldiers ◽  
Armed Groups ◽  
Psychological Violence ◽  
Armed Group ◽  
Former Child Soldiers ◽  
Republic Of The Congo ◽  
Physical And Psychological Violence

In this issue, the Review has chosen to give a voice to former child soldiers in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Children recruited by armed groups experience separation from their families, physical and psychological violence, sometimes including sexual exploitation, as well as interruption of their education. Whether they joined an armed group forcibly or by choice, as a fighter or carrying out a different function – every story is unique, reflecting numerous challenges faced by children in these circumstances. The testimonies below reflect children's experiences, the difficulties they have faced and their hopes for a new life. In order to protect them and their relatives, their testimonies have been anonymized.

scholarly journals Interpersonal violence and suicidality among former child soldiers and war-exposed civilian children in Nepal

2018 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anvita Bhardwaj ◽  
Christine Bourey ◽  
Sauharda Rai ◽  
Ramesh Prasad Adhikari ◽  
Carol M. Worthman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Suicidal Ideation ◽  
Young Women ◽  
Interpersonal Violence ◽  
Teacher Support ◽  
Suicide Risk ◽  
Rating Scale ◽  
Child Soldiers ◽  
Child Soldier ◽  
High Resource ◽  
Former Child Soldiers

Background.Suicide risk reduction is crucial for 15–29-year-old youth, who account for 46% of suicide deaths in low- and middle-income countries. Suicide predictors in high-resource settings, specifically depression, do not adequately predict suicidality in these settings. We explored if interpersonal violence (IPV) was associated with suicidality, independent of depression, in Nepal.Methods.A longitudinal cohort of child soldiers and matched civilian children, enrolled in 2007 after the People's War in Nepal, were re-interviewed in 2012. The Depression Self-Rating Scale and Composite International Diagnostic Interview assessed depression and suicidality, respectively. Non-verbal response cards were used to capture experiences of sexual and physical IPV.Results.One of five participants (19%) reported any lifetime suicidal ideation, which was associated with sexual IPV, female gender, former child soldier status and lack of support from teachers. Among young men, the relationship between sexual IPV and suicidality was explained by depression, and teacher support reduced suicidality. Among young women, sexual IPV was associated with suicidality, independent of depression; child soldier status increased suicidality, and teacher support decreased suicidality. Suicide plans were associated with sexual IPV but not with depression. One of 11 female former child soldiers (9%) had attempted suicide.Conclusion.Sexual IPV is associated with suicidal ideation and plans among conflict-affected young women, independent of depression. Reducing suicide risk among women should include screening, care, and prevention programs for sexual IPV. Programs involving teachers may be particularly impactful for reducing suicidality among IPV survivors.

scholarly journals Vécu Des Enfants Soldats Pendant La Guerre: Une Analyse À Partir Des Projets De l’Organisation Non Gouvernemental Caritas Makeni En Sierra Léone

2017 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 256
Author(s):  
Gnamien Yawa Ossi
Keyword(s):  
Sierra Leone ◽  
Central African Republic ◽  
Democratic Republic ◽  
Democratic Republic Of Congo ◽  
Child Soldiers ◽  
Armed Conflicts ◽  
Child Soldier ◽  
Armed Groups ◽  
Social Reintegration ◽  
Quantitative And Qualitative Methods

The phenomenon of «child soldier» has become very rampant these last years. In Africa, they are very common in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), in Chad, in Uganda, in Sierra Leone, and in Côte d’Ivoire. More recently, they are in Mali and in the Central African Republic. However, armed conflicts have imposed various situations on populations. The children are the main victims. The focus of this study is on child soldiers during times of war. The main objective of this study is to analyze the ways they join the armed groups and the difficulties of their social reintegration. The objective of this study is to analyze the recruitment conditions of children and the difficulties of social reintegration. The hypothesis postulates that there is a link between the passage of the children in armed groups and their psychosocial outcome. The study took place in Sierra Leone. The quantitative and qualitative methods were used. The results of the study show that: the mode of recruitment of children has an influence on their social reintegration. Also, the violent practices in armed conflicts are obstacles to their social reintegration.

scholarly journals The mental health consequences of being a child soldier — an international perspective

2010 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 55-57 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aoife R. Singh ◽  
Ashok N. Singh
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Child Soldiers ◽  
International Perspective ◽  
Child Soldier ◽  
Health Consequences ◽  
Former Child Soldiers ◽  
Child Soldiering

Worldwide there are currently 300 000 child soldiers. Not only does the use of child soldiers lead to individual suffering but it also alters the dynamics of war and makes conflict and instability more likely. It is important both to prevent recruitment and to rehabilitate former child soldiers into their communities. For rehabilitation and reintegration programmes to be effective, it is necessary to understand the consequences of child soldiering. This paper reviews and summarises some of the key findings related to the mental health consequences of being a child soldier.

Ethnic Conflict in Burundi

Matatu ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 48 (2) ◽  
pp. 403-417
Author(s):  
Marie-Thérèse Toyi
Keyword(s):  
Host Country ◽  
Democratic Republic ◽  
Democratic Republic Of Congo ◽  
Child Soldiers ◽  
Republic Of Congo ◽  
Standard Education ◽  
Cultural Exchanges ◽  
Former Child Soldiers ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Culture Education

In spite of the laudable political and humanitarian efforts to tackle the cyclical ethnic-related conflicts in Burundi, the impact of the refugee and returnee phenomena on the culture, education, and economy of the country and beyond has not yet received its full due attention. This study aims at increasing awareness on this issue. It first identifies the refugee- and returnee-related new linguistic trends in Burundi, together with their subsequent impact on education. How many Burundians learned Kiswahili in exile in Tanzania or in the Democratic Republic of Congo, not only for educational or professional purposes but also for survival, but who, back in Burundi, saw their language of exile become an obstacle to the pursuit of a standard education? Why has their plight not attracted as much attention as did that of war orphans, widows, and former child soldiers? This study also surveys the cultural exchanges between Burundian refugees and returnees with their host country and their motherland.

scholarly journals Looking for the child soldier

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 46-70
Author(s):  
Milena Jakšić
Keyword(s):  
International Criminal ◽  
Child Soldiers ◽  
Trial Chamber ◽  
Criminal Court ◽  
Criminal Investigation ◽  
Child Soldier ◽  
Legal Proceedings ◽  
First Case ◽  
Former Child Soldiers ◽  
The Hague

This article follows a criminal investigation for recruitment of child soldiers, by asking the following questions: how does one find child soldiers? How does one bring them onto the judicial stage? The article explores the different moments that marked the investigation by the Office of the Prosecutor in the first case brought before the International Criminal Court in The Hague, that of Thomas Lubanga Dyilo. After describing the successive stages of the investigation, the article analyses the conditions under which former child soldiers testified before the ICC. None of their nine testimonies was judged credible by the ICC Trial Chamber I. The different moments that marked these legal proceedings bring to light the instability of the category of child soldier and the uncertainty that regularly threatens the labour of judicial elucidation.

scholarly journals Histoire du politique au Congo-Kinshasa: Les concepts à l'épreuve (1) Mobutu (2)

Afrika Focus ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 30 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Colin Hendrickx
Keyword(s):  
Cold War ◽  
Key Words ◽  
Democratic Republic ◽  
Review Article ◽  
The West ◽  
The World ◽  
Republic Of The Congo ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Cold War

This review article analyses two publications which deal with the history of the independent Democratic Republic of the Congo/Zaire, emphasising the reign of President Mobutu Sese Seko. In comparing the two publications, originating from two decidedly different traditions, the pre- sent article concludes that, twenty years after the fall of the Mobutu regime, there is not (yet) a historiographic consensus on the character of the Mobutu regime. Jean-Pierre Langellier, com- ing from the world of journalism, emphasised in his biography of Mobutu the importance of the President’s friendship ties with the West, and the influence of the Cold War. Conversely, scholar Gauthier de Villers relativised the deterministic character of the Cold War on the regime, as well as the unconditional amical ties of Mobutu with his Western allies. Key words: Congo, DRC, Mobutu, Zaire 

The relative innocence of child soldiers

2017 ◽  
Vol 54 (3) ◽  
pp. 352-366 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Mastey
Keyword(s):  
Child Soldiers ◽  
Character Trait ◽  
Child Soldier ◽  
Former Child Soldiers ◽  
Moral Innocence

This article concerns the portrayal of childhood innocence — both moral and legal — in the child soldier narrative, a predominantly African genre of writing. I begin with an analysis of how these stories establish the moral innocence of their young characters through prevailing narratological structures that culminate in the loss of this innocence, usually by means of scenes in which child soldiers kill or sexually assault other characters. The purpose of these scenes and subsequent reflections on them by some child soldier characters is not to disabuse readers of their notions of childhood innocence, but rather to heighten awareness of it by drawing explicit attention to it during moments of duress. The narratives do not present innocence prosaically as an abstraction or a plainly-stated character trait (Shklovsky, 2015). Instead, they invite readers to viscerally perceive it (and its inevitable loss) through disturbing portrayals of violence. Scenes of lost innocence also serve an integral plot function in the genre as prerequisites for the rehabilitation of former child soldiers after their decommission. This narrative trajectory emphasizes the essential innocence of the characters in their roles as victimized children. However, in the process it also downplays concerns about their possible culpability as soldiers.

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