To be a child in the Congo...

I cried when I read this article.
You cannot dare compare our troubles in the western world to those far away.
Compared to these children, ours are spoiled rotten brats.
We are not thankful enough for how good we have it.
I don't think anyone can read these and feel nothing.

The heart of darkness, in one boy’s story, is a human organ eaten raw.

“When you kill a Tutsi, you remove his heart and mix it with special potions, like a medicine,’’ explains Popy Matenda, rather blandly. “Other parts of the body can be eaten too but the heart is special. It gives you the strength of the person you killed, like you are sucking in his spirit. It’s a kind of magic.’’

When we got to their base, they put me in a pigsty for three days with my arms tied behind my back. Every day they would come in and beat me. They wouldn’t give me any food. On the fourth day, a man pointed his gun at me and said, you can either work for us or I can kill you — which do you choose?’’

There was no choice. Like other child soldiers, Jamarie was indoctrinated into the Mai-Mai subculture, trained on weapons and instructed on village-looting. As a rite of passage, he too was given girl slaves for sex. “They were not very good workers. Girls always cry and get sick. Then we’d leave them behind.’’

These children are abducted from their parents who can't or won't fight back. Innocence doesn't exist any more.
They are made into killing machines, some start as young as 9 years old, killing and raping.
If there is a hell, It's already on planet Earth.

ARTICLE HERE:
www.thestar.com...
I do NOT understand why Nations will attack for suspected weapons of mass destruction, yet abandon those suffering an attack of human rights.
Ya'll need a priority shift.

These poor babies who are the same age or barely older than my own child being put into such a horrifying situation truly sickens my soul and breaks my heart.

It truly makes me stop and take a moment to be thankful for all we have, we work incredibly hard to get every single thing we have, but we are truly so blessed despite all the minor things that go wrong on a day to day basis.

reply to post by AccessDenied


Its amazing how much we take for granted AD.
These children have no hope,no future and have been thrown to the dogs for either a religious motive or a political motive.
Not exactly humanity at its finest.
I have always wondered why it exists when it could be stopped if it was decided enough is enough.
I have always said Africa is the way it is because someone wants it that way.
You get a star and a flag from me.

gripping story of a child’s journey through hell and back.

There may be as many as 300,000 child soldiers, hopped-up on drugs and wielding AK-47s, in more than fifty conflicts around the world. Ishmael Beah used to be one of them. He is one of the first to tell his story in his own words.

In A LONG WAY GONE, Beah, now twenty-six years old, tells a riveting story. At the age of twelve, he fled attacking rebels and wandered a land rendered unrecognizable by violence. By thirteen, he’d been picked up by the government army, and Beah, at heart a gentle boy, found that he was capable of truly terrible acts. Eventually released by the army and sent to a UNICEF rehabilitation center, he struggled to regain his humanity and to reenter the world of civilians, who viewed him with fear and suspicion. This is, at last, a story of redemption and hope.

www.alongwaygone.com...


This is much like what was described by the OP. I have read this book. If you want to learn more about child soldiers, this is something you should read.

I am aware that this happens and it infuriates me. Nations MUST take care of their people with kindness, compassion, and love. I sometimes look around at the world and its chaos and cruelty and think, how could this even be possible? There are so many barbaric people, people without a conscience or morals. All over the world, I am seeing that human lives do not matter to people in power. How can we, as civilized, kind and compassionate souls fight against an entire world of madness?

About a year ago, I learned about micro loans given to people in third world countries which helped the people tremendously. They turned their lives around with so little.

If the Nation's governments don't care, how do we change that? People need to take their power back somehow and get rid of all those people in power who are worthless, greedy and cruel.

How is it that we can both provide foreign aid, and occupy a nation to supposedly fight for it's freedoms, yet allow this to happen?
Who chooses what we make a priority?

If Humans were not so willfully ignorant they'd stop electing (or putting into power) leaders who seek to exploit and kill them.

I hardly can believe I am of the same species as most people I meet - they are so animalistic and unthinking.

I do not think it is unreasonable to suggest that some Humans are more evolved than others - with empathy being the most "progressive" phenotypic trait.

In other words - perhaps those of us who are unusually empathetic should seperate ourselves and for our own country culture - we have little in common with the majority of these brutal apes.

I personally believe there is an inherrent causal relationship with empathy and intelligence - with advanced empathy requiring complex abstraction in the Human mind.

From experience, though, I do not believe advanced Intelligence requires a similarly corellated empathetic capacity.

Perhaps now is the time to take the next step - free ourselves from the shakles of this thoughtless, barbaric system.

New leaders are emerging to lead us into a new way - time to put your money where your mouth is if you really want change you can believe in!

It seems really ALL of us have priorities askew.
Yes, if it doesn't affect us directly, Why bother?
Nice western philosophy we have.
We live in abundance. We brag about it to.
No wonder other nations despise us.
We care more about being bigger, better, having more STUFF than we do our fellow man, OUR CHILDREN.
We are all of one planet.
Thoroughly disgusted and heartbroken,
-AD

[edit on 11-6-2010 by AccessDenied]

reply to post by TruthMagnet

I agree completely with your assesment it is almost as if we are another race. Most of these people are modern day Babylonians and Romans mostly animals. Animalistic behavior Is still promoted and encouraged as a way of keeping the masses at eachothers throat. Look no further than all those who enlist in the military for an example of these mindless animals. The majority sadly are followers and will do whatever is shown them.

As far as the OP no one in power cares about dying black children they have the lowest value of life. America already raped virtually every resource from Africa, think they care about the ruins? If there isn't large profit to be made no one cares about humanitarian crises.

Originally posted by AccessDenied
How is it that we can both provide foreign aid, and occupy a nation to supposedly fight for it's freedoms, yet allow this to happen?

Two tragedy's befouled Africa in the post war period the first being that geographical rather tribal borders were drawn up . The second and fatal blow was the fact that a then new found sense of guilt over colonization . Guilt never makes for sound policy just look at how the International Community forced a Marxist backed terrorist on Zimbabwe . Moderate Black nationalists who actually wanted what was best for there country were ignored and only made up one in ten of the population of that demographic .

Who chooses what we make a priority?

No one wants to admit just how bad the policy failures were in the 60's towards policy was screwed up . Instead of a gradual hand of over to black majority rule that could have started with 50/50 power sharing agreements leading to something like the short lived Zimbabwe Rhodesia government .

It was only the decade before British and Commonwealth forces were dealing with Communist insurgents in places like Malaysia . Things would have been much different had the same thing been done in the likes of Rhodesia and elsewhere . Today people are made to feel good by the likes of food aid that has been given out all over Africa . But again we see bad policy in action because food aid has been going on for so long that it has suppressed local incentive to grow crops .

reply to post by xpert11


The bad policy is that politics over ride basic humanity.
Why does it matter if this is happening in Africa, Australia, China or the US?
So those deemed not worthy by TPTB, are left by the wayside.
If that is the case than foreign Aid is a freakin' joke.

Originally posted by ISHAMAGI
reply to post by TruthMagnet

 

As far as the OP no one in power cares about dying black children they have the lowest value of life. America already raped virtually every resource from Africa, think they care about the ruins? If there isn't large profit to be made no one cares about humanitarian crises.

Exactly!

Although it pains me - in my older age - I have come to realize that unless we can reform the system - all attempts at aid and charity internationally will really be - at best - bandaids - and - at worst - actually conuter productive benefitting warlords and rouge intelligence agencies.

I do believe we can sucessfully contribute locally to the needs of people - often rather effectively - but for national or international "uplifting" we really need to remove those in power who are actively blocking true reform.

Eventually I do see the Human race as needing an elite group of "civilized" alphas running the show - who do not share governmental power with the other caste.

Although such a concept seems initially outrageous and perhaps even unpalatable to those who are empathetic - if it was created intelligently it would lead to a "Federation" style partial utopia - which could be maintained indefinitely - or at least until the Earth became to hostile for Humans to convieniently live on.

After that you get into a whole "The Foundation Novels" type series of challenges for governing and maintaining a progressive Galatic empire about which I would hesitate to speculate.

Originally posted by AccessDenied
The bad policy is that politics over ride basic humanity.

Well even if you can convince those who are in love with UN just what a cruel joke that organisation is and American right wing nut case that US troops should be used for anything other then combat , you are still left with a problem .

So those deemed not worthy by TPTB, are left by the wayside.

Well the problem that I mentioned above even if the International will existed for a greater deal of intervention such a policy is going to have its limitations . Put another way it just wouldn't be possible to intervene everywhere its needed .

If that is the case than foreign Aid is a freakin' joke.

Some of my views have changed rather dramatically since I have been on ATS . But my views on foreign aid to Africa haven't changed its more bad policy alright .