The Photographer's Diary:
Hope and Horror in Sierra Leone
by Martin Lueders
 
December 19: 

James Kamara, 16, a former child combatant, now lives at the Benin Home, where several former child combatants live. He was with his father, who was shot and killed, when he was captured by the RUF rebels. He was assigned to assist the commander, and took part in countless raids on villages in Sierra Leone.

 
 
 
Tejan Sesay, 12, was abducted by RUF rebels at the age of seven, when they attacked his village and killed his parents. The rebels told him he now had an important job, "to fight for freedom." They trained him to fight and for 3 years, he carried an HMG automatic weapon, and he took part in raids on 29 villages. He told me that before they would conduct a raid, the rebel commanders would inject his with cocaine, and told him "to kill as many people as possible."  After the rebel junta siezed power in 1997, he was allowed to leave and made his way to Benin Home.
 
 
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