Catherine was 14 years old when she was abducted in the middle of the night by the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA). She spent eight weeks with the rebels before being rescued by the government army.

Abduction
"We travelled through the night, looting items from several places along the way. As we travelled, they [the LRA] kept asking us, 'do you want to go home?' Those who answered 'yes' were beaten with machetes on the back. Some of the girls continued to say we wanted to go back, so they smashed our feet with stones and said they would pierce our feet with spears. We begged for our lives.

Duties
"Abducted children had to carry luggage and leftover food for the rebels. I was also responsible for making the meals. If we did not want to eat, we were accused of wasting food. Boys were ordered to beat us.

"After a few days, I was initiated into their 'family.' I was anointed on the forehead with shea nut oil. Then I was given to a man as his 'wife.'

Escape
"When the government army attacked our camp, I was ordered to run away. I could not run much because my feet were swollen. I knelt down and held up my hands in surrender to the UPDF (Ugandan People's Defence Forces).

Recovery
"I was taken to the World Vision Children of War Centre, where they said I was very malnourished. I also had swollen legs. World Vision staff nursed and fed me. Now I'm very healthy.

"I want to go back to school and put into practice what I learned at the rehabilitation centre. At the centre, we were taught to respect each other and forgive one another. We lived with many of the children we helped to abduct while with the LRA. We made peace with each other—that's the greatest thing I have learned from the centre."

What You Can Do
Encourage our government to take stronger actions in support of peace in Uganda. Click here to download a letter you can send to the foreign affairs minister.

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