Former child soldiers begin rehab

The government of the Republic of Congo has launched a one-month pilot project for 115 former child combatants, the first national effort designed to help them return to civilian life. "We will teach the children rudimentary reading writing and arithmetic during the month,” Daniel Mberi, a representative of the project, said. The project, launched in Brazzaville on Thursday, falls under the government's Labour Office. Nobody knows how many former child soldiers there are in the country, according to Christian Mounzeo, president of the local human rights NGO, the Rencontre pour la paix et les droits de l'homme. Many, he said, were still walking around with guns. In 2003 there were around 5,000, according to a study by another NGO, the Union pour l'étude et la recherche sur la population et le développement, and financed by the United Nations Children's Fund. Most of the children were in former conflict zones, particularly in the Bouenza, Lekoumou, Niari and southern Pool regions, according to the study. The children fought in the various armed conflicts that took place in the country between 1990 and 2000. Many of their families and communities have since rejected them. Most have never been to school. "We are starting by helping them catch up on their education," Madeleine Yila, the national coordinator of the pilot project, said. Through the US $312,000 project, which is funded by the US government, the children will receive civic and health education as well as HIV/AIDS awareness training. They will also be taught carpentry, farming and hairdressing. However, Mounzzeo said he doubted that one month would be sufficient time to rehabilitate these children. "It is necessary to change their basic mentality," he said. Yila said this was the first effort to rehabilitate child combatants in the country since the armed conflicts ended. "The project could be extended if more money is forthcoming," she said. "We could also manage the activities on a larger scale." The government also has another 350 million francs CFA ($644,521) to help former child combatants through the National Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reinsertion Programme, but that has not yet begun.