O Emmanuel Jal performs at the Voice of Slavery Concert in London last March.

KNOW YOUR WORDS

guerrilla

guh-RlH-luh dee-HYOO-muh-nyz-ing

not part of a regular army removing human traits

The words defined here are in the story.

dehumanizing

"I
I believe I've survived for a reason: to tell my story, to touch lives," raps Emmanuel Jal in his song "Warchild." That might sound like a typical rap. In fact, rappers often sing about the street battles they have fought. Jal is different The 20-something singerhe's not sure of his exact agewas born in Sudan, a country in Africa. Jal is not talking about living on the streets or dealing drugs, or making any other boasts that rappers sometimes do. Jal is talking about actual battles. When Jal was a little boy, his country was involved in a civil war. The Sudan People's Liberation Army kidnapped Jai and forced him to become a child soldier when he was about 7 years old.

O Child soldiers in the Sudan People's Liberation Army wait for their next command.
have faced requires love and understanding. "It can take years and years to work through the trauma," Goodman said. Sometimes child soldiers, including Jal, escape or are rescued from their lives of fighting. "After individuals turn in their weapons, they go through a transition center," Goodman said. The goal of the treatment, he explained, is to train the children to be successful, go back into their communities, and make a living. However, if their families are gone, the children must go into foster care or camps for refugees. Even if a child is rescued, he or she isn't necessarily safe. "A lot of kids who go through the [rescue] camps are sent back home," Goodman says, "but then they are re-recruited."

Lost Innocence
In as many as 20 countries around the world, children are forced to fight as guerrilla soldiers. Armies target kids as young as 7 because they are easy to control. Child soldiers see acts of violence, often by the soldiers trying to recruit them. Tlneir countries are usually at war or have unstable governments. They're forced to serve in such rebel armies as the Sudan People's Liberation Army and in Uganda, the Lord's Resistance Army. Not all child soldiers are forced into armies. "Some of them volunteer because they are out of food," Colby Goodman told Extra. Goodman works for Amnesty International USA, an organization that promotes human rights. Child soldiers can be pushed into the front lines. They are ordered to do dehumanizing tasks and take drugs. "If they don't follow orders, they'll be killed," Goodman said. 'They can be tortured or deprived of food." The child soldiers become killing machines.

A New Start
Although many child soldiers will never be saved, some are able to leave the fighting and continue their lives. Jal has been able to shed his former life as a child soldier. His music, a combination of rap, soul, Afro-beat, and gospel, tells of his experiences. His lyrics describe his new life: "Fighting a different fight, the fight of love. I chose to love" 0 For more information about Emmanuel Jal, visit myspace.com/emmanueljal. To learn more about Amnesty international and ways to help soldiers, visit vvww.amnesty.org.

The Path Back

Undoing the brainwashing that child soldiers deprived refugees dee-PRYVED re-fyoo-JEEZ

denied, not allowed to have people escaping to safety

January 2b. 2008 KYW Extra