Publication year: 2011
Source: Child Abuse & Neglect, In Press, Corrected Proof, Available online 9 August 2011
Sofie, Vindevogel , Kathleen, Coppens , Ilse, Derluyn , Maarten, De Schryver , Gerrit, Loots , …
Objective: Child soldiering can be considered as one of the worst practices of institutionalized child abuse. However, little is known about the scope and nature of this abuse and the consequent experiences of children enrolled in an armed faction. This research aims at enriching the knowledge on the experiences of child soldiers in the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) in northern Uganda. Methods: The databases of 4 former Interim Care Centres for returned child soldiers in northern Uganda, comprising socio-demographic information of 8,790 returnees, and additional data from the Rachele Rehabilitation Centre on war-related experiences of 1,995 former child soldiers, are analyzed using descriptive…