Voice 1
They went collect firewood. When they went to collect firewood, they caught them in the bush, they captured them and they moved with them.
One of the ladies who went to collect firewood with her had ran away and left them. Then one of the LRA chased the woman.
When he chased the woman, he failed to catch her. When he returned they gathered them together in one place.
They got a razor blade from their pockets. They started cutting her ears, both sides. They left her ears and cut her mouth.
Then they chased one of the women. She went to collect the firewood. After cutting her ears and cutting her mouth, they were now left to go home.
So they traveled in the bush for 2 days. When they reached the main road, they waited for the vehicles. When the vehicles came, they picked them and took them to the hospital.
She was picked up by the NGOs, she was taken to Kampala, and the mouth was fixed back.
They went and collected her friend – they were cut together. She was taken to the hospital.
So from there, she gives thanks to God, because God has protected her. She is still alive up to now. She is giving thanks to Active Blessing for being on the ground there.
Alex
In 2003 on the 30th of March the LRA came and attacked in a place called Omir Anema in the Kitgum district.
The LRA came and took 8 people and 7 were killed. He is the only one who survived.
He started moving with them. They gave him a lot of luggages to carry. They moved with them from Kitgum up to Soroti carrying crates and bags of salt. They carried very huge luggage and he was caned. When they were caning him, he thought of escaping.
He escaped from them on the 7th of July.
When he escaped from the Soroti district, whereby there tribe is ____. Whoever escaped and is an Acholi should be killed.
They started caning him seriously. They caned him on both of his two legs. He was cut on the head with a panga (machete).
One of the ladies who was a good Samaritan called on the police. Police came and rescued him from the hands of the civilians. When the police came to rescue him from the civilians he was already half dead.
He was carried to Soroti hospital. From Soroti hospital due to the wound on his head and legs, he was transferred to Malagwa hospital in Kampala.
So when they saw the injury on his legs, they thought that if they leave it that way, it would kill him. And they thought of cutting it off. After cutting off his leg, they started working on his head and now the problem is he is not feeling well and the hand also is paralyzed and the head is also not working well.
Because of his many problems he transferred from the hospital in Kampala to Gulu. From there they gave him help with the amputation to help him move around. This is what happened. He thanks Active Blessing for give them more help since they don’t have any help at all.
James Pidu
Will you please introduce yourself. He is called James Pidu.
What do you have for us? He was caught in 1990 in May around 4pm. There was battalions of LRA moving together. They were capturing people, cutting off their ears, cutting off their legs, their hands.
They captured him. They cut off his ears. After the LRA cut off his ears, he was left as a sign to show the people in that village that they can caught off their ears and mouth.
They already killed 4 people, and the fifth one to be killed was him.
He was beaten in the chest, in the head, and now he is feeling that the chest is not OK. And the ribs has gone inside the stomach. Up to now, he still feels the pains, and the doctor says he is having some wounds in the stomach.
After beating him seriously, cutting off his ears, he was left as a sign, he was left lying in a pool of blood. From there, some friends from the village came and they carried him to a place called Parabe Hospital.
From there, the UPDF, the Uganda army soldiers from the government side, carried him from Parabe Hospital to the Kitgum Hospital.
He stayed in hospital for about 6 months. From there he was discharged and went back to Parabe, his own village. He is having a problem with his ears. The ears are not there.
He cannot hear properly. Plus the chest which was beaten. He is having problems with the wound. He cannot carry anything heavy. He cannot walk for long. He cannot ride for long because of the chest problems.
He cannot dig to sustain his life just because of the problem with the chest. So someone must help him and give him food. He always prays to God to help him survive. He gives thanks to Active Blessing coming to helping them to get the help with survival and to make their life easier in the community.
He also prays that God would help guide him and protect him. Not to be left out as people without hope. That through that there would be hope for them for the future.
Gastone
Would you introduce your name? Gastone.
What do you have for us?
The LRA came in great number when he was seated as his home. When he was abducted he was taken 10 kilometers from his home. From there they asked him what is the local ¬¬_____of the place. When they asked him what is the local ____ of the place, he refused. Upon refusing, they started beating him, until they boxed his right eye. They pierced his left eye. After that, they started beating him with a hammer. So by the time they left him, he was lying in a pool of blood. He did not know anything.
He thanks Active Blessing for coming down and seeing their problems and helping them with their problems.
Alfred Pager
Will you please introduce your name? Alfred Pager.
What kind of story do you have for us? Some years back, he was captured. It took almost 2 months in the bush.
By the time he came back, the rebels came and abducted him for the 2nd time. The time they were captured, they were taken over 2 miles. They started cutting their hands off as a reason to why they were escaping.
They took him back. He was supposed to tell his people that they would do the same thing to them.
That is the time the government, the soldiers of the government of Uganda, brought him home and started treating his hand. His hand was cut. That was the painful thing that was done to his body. That is the kind of thing he has gone though. That is his experience.
He thanks God and thanks Active Blessing.
Voice 6
Tell us your story you have passed through.
He was captured by the Kony rebels of the LRA, the Lord’s Resistance Army.
For the first time he stayed for three months.
The first time they got him, the first time they abducted him, he escaped from the bush and came back home.
The second time they abducted him, they got an ax, and they cut off his hand. So the time they cut his hand off, they told him to run and tell his brothers and sisters they would do the same act they did to him.
Then he was got by the government troops and helped to the hospital. That is where he is being helped up to now.
So his gives his thanks to the sister from United States of America and to Active Blessing for giving their life to volunteering. To come and take care of them, the disabled people. He gives thanks to them. He gives thanks to the almighty Lord for protecting them.
At least they didn’t take his life, he is thankful for that. He keeps praising the Lord for that. He gives thanks to everybody.
Elder Akella
Would you please introduce yourself? She is called Elder Akella. What kind of story do you have?
Rebels got her in the house. When she was with her kids in her house. They ordered them to come out of the house. They started beating up the kids. They started cutting her with a panga (machete). They were telling her to lay down. They told her to make a sign of the cross when she spotted water. They cut with her children. Some kids were taken back in the house. The kids started running and they took them back in the house. This time she died (collapsed). They all ran. Some of the kids even ran. So they cut her head plus her hand all together.
With God’s protection, she was taken up to life and brought up to the hospital. So the time they took her the hospital, she didn’t know what was taking place.
She thanks God that she is still alive. She is even speaking right now because God has saved her from all kind of bad things that happen to her. She gives praises and thanks to the new people that come from outside. That God used them to help her.