In Uganda, child soldiers armed with fully automatic rifles scour the countryside in search of new conscripts for the infamous Joseph Kony, leader of the Lord’s Resistance Army.
“When the issue of child soldiers comes to the table, everyone is quiet,” Scopas Poggo said. “No one has clean hands in Africa.”
Monday at the Drexel Gateway Theater the documentary “Invisible Children” was shown by the Golden Key Society depicting the sad plight of children in northern Uganda. After the documentary, a panel of two Ohio State faculty members, an OSU alumnus and an “Invisible Children” expert answered questions from the audience.
“Once someone’s fundamental rights are violated, it’s everyone’s problem,” said Jean-Claude Malik-Ba, an assistant professor at Columbus State.
According to the documentary, children commute long distances every night to towns where they huddle together in hospitals for protection from the rebel raids. These children, if captured, are brainwashed into the bloodlust ghouls of the LRA and soon will be raiding villages to find more children.
Amid the volleys of questions, Malik-Ba stood up and delivered a small, but powerful speech. Looking over the audience, he asked if anyone was from Africa, to which there was no response. He said the African-American culture needed to get more involved to make true progress.
The Ugandans also find this unacceptable and the scene is slowly becoming international thanks to groups such as Global Youth Partnership for Africa.
OSU alumna Halle Butvin is program coordinator for GYPA and recently led the Global Kimeeza II trip, a student youth summit in Uganda. This trip allows students to explore the problems occurring in the region and gives them confidence. This gives political leaders a perspective on the situation.
The GYPA is looking to “serve as a catalyst for change, to offer a chance to the children,” Butvin said.
Poggo, an assistant professor at OSU from Sudan, answered questions by illustrating the bloodied and intertwined past of these nations.
“The table is quiet at Juba peace talks and is not making headway, children are still suffering and someone must pay,” Poggo said.
Kony has since withdrawn from negotiations and fled to Democratic Republic of the Congo, fearing the wrath for his war crimes, illuminating the potential of an even bigger conflict if governments get caught in cross-border fighting.
According to the documentary and panel, these children are the new lost generation and the entire region of Africa will suffer if international action continues to be stagnant.
“We must get more critical mass, right here and over there,” Malik-Ba said.
Bradley Lusenhop can be reached at [email protected].
