Helping Child Soldiers Find a Better Future: Afghanistan
Decades of war and poverty created enormous risks for children in Afghanistawho face displacement, destruction of their homes and communities, landmines, hunger and discrimination. ActionAid works to change these young lives for the better.
Afghanistan sustained decades of war and poverty before the highly repressive Taliban regime’s overthrow in late 2001. Hamid Karzai, elected president in 2004 and attempted broad reforms. But the government has limited power outside the capital city of Kabul and the booming drugs trade and increasing conflicts threaten stability.
ActionAid helps ex-child soldiers and war-affected boys and girls gain an education and the skills necessary to help them earn a living and break free from the cycle of violence. The program offers nine months of literacy and vocational training in subjects such as tailoring, mechanics, carpet weaving and embroidery.
Children are especially vulnerable. Years of war destroyed schools and social areas, leaving young people with no chance of an education and nowhere safe to play. Many have lost loved ones and have seen terrible crimes. Large numbers in rural areas were intimidated into joining the fighting, while others endured forced servitude to the soldiers, washing their clothes, cleaning compounds, cooking and carrying weapons.
"We had a lot of problems in the Taliban time," says 18-year-old Vahidullo. "We were the defenders of our village. I was a child soldier. We did not have guns all the time but every so often, it would be my time to put the Kalashnikov on my shoulder and walk around with it. We were shown how to use it but fortunately I didn't have to." Vahidullo is now a trainee in a tailoring shop, where he is earning enough money to help send his younger brothers and sisters to school. "My hope for the future is that I'll be able to take care of my family and get a good knowledge of my trade," he says.
While it is usually boys are the ones armed and forced to the front line of the battle, girls often carry the traumatic scars of war. "I am attending the literacy class with a classmate whose father killed my father during the conflict in our village," says 17-year-old Hamida Shah. "But this is the best place for me at the moment compared to the many sad years that I have had to endure. Besides learning to read and write and receiving training to be a tailor, I am also trying to forget the terrible days I had to go through after my father’s death."
ActionAid's centers are a place for children of all ethnic backgrounds to engage in sports and games and to socialize. Other groups in similar centers in other districts are planning to start sports competitions in the future. This could help establish a nationwide network of youngsters who will communicate with one another and grow up together. Ultimately, these young people will decide the future of their country.