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Unreported World: Killings of civilians in Congo

I have just watched a film in the Channel 4 series, Unreported World, about the attacks on civilians in north-eastern Congo by the LRA from Uganda.  It was a report from 2009 that was repeated late last night on More 4.  When the LRA enter a village it is unlikely that anyone will survive but there was a woman who lay under a pile of bodies and then came out the next morning.  Children are attacked or they are abducted to be forced into becoming soldiers.  The film-makers travelled with UN workers or with a charity, Medecins sans frontieres.  They were only able to land for two or three hours to interview people and it would have been too dangerous to stay longer.

A boy who had been rescued from being a soldier was asked why the LRA are fighting and he said that asking such questions would result in punishment so they learned not to ask. 

There is also a more recent programme from Unreported World about child soldiers who have been rescued in Congo but I have not seen this one yet.  Many of the films in the series can be viewed on the website.

Also in eastern Africa there are villagers in Kenya being thrown off their land so that water-hungry crops such as bio-fuels can be grown and aid agencies are saying that many people are at risk of famine in Kenya, Ethiopia and other countries due to conflict and climate change.  I will try to give links to the Guardian articles but have been finding a technical hitch.

 

 

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