Sierra Leone Civil War: Soldiers
Most of the soldiers that participated in the Sierra Leonean Civil War (1991-2002) were not even soldiers they were merely boys. Typically the children fighting in the war were between ten and seventeen years old, but the youngest child soldiers were sometimes only seven. Men on both sides captured their “victims” when they were at the weakest or lowest point in their life. The majority of child soldiers are orphaned or from poor, weak, and vulnerable families. Child soldiers were often abducted in the middle of night and forced to murder their friends and families. This ensured that they had no place to runaway to, and even if they did manage to escape, they were unwanted. The rebel group RUF (Revolutionary United Front), which was commanded by retired Sierra Leonean soldier, Foday Sankoh, brought havoc among the peaceful people of Sierra Leone for no apparent reason and then took children from their families and forced them to kill innocent people. It may appear that some children choose to live this way when they voluntarily sign up to join the army, but when a child has no source of food, shelter, or care, what else are they supposed to do?