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World Apathy Towards Africa

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World Apathy Towards Africa

Bringing much needed awareness toward genocide and civil war in Africa.

What Has Been Going On?

In the past, Africa has been looked down upon as a continent. The only thing it has basically been noted for is its stunning array of wildlife. The reason that it is like this is because of all of the issues involving the people and governments in Africa. The people are riddled with health problems, poverty problems, and violence issues. On the other hand, the governments are associated with corruption and violence as well. It seems as though most of the world feels that if all of the problems in Africa are ignored, then all of of the problems will go away. This couldn't be further from the the truth.

The focus of the website is to bring awareness to the issues of violence in Africa. Not to take away from the other issues going on like the HIV/AIDS epidemic as well as the severe poverty situation, but those seem to be more publicized than the acts of violence that are occuring. This site will be covering three of the countless incidents that should be known by everyone. These three are the genocide in Rwanda from 1994, the genocide that is occurring in Darfur, Sudan, and the civil war in Uganda. Hopefully you will be able to learn something from this site and you can then spread the word. Maybe someday we can all change what has been going on.

Back in the Day...

Rwanda: 1994

A few years ago (2004 to be exact) the actor Don Cheadle gave an amazing portrayl of a hotel manager in Rwanda in 1994 when the genocide of the Tutsi tribe began. In the film, he took in Tutsi's in an effort for them to escape the Hutu militia. This film did an amazing job as an accurate account of what had happened.

If you haven't seen that film and did not know what was going on when the conflict occurred, then there is some information you should know about. In the span of a mere 100 days about 800,000 Tutsi's were killed. That's 8,000 people everyday for a little over three months. One of the worst parts about this was that even when U.N. tried to establish a presence they would have to pull out due to the danger, therefore, there was no helping the Tutsi's until the conflict was over. The nightmare ended with some Tutsi forces being able to push the Hutu rebels into Zaire.

In More Recent Years...

Darfur, Sudan

In more recent years, there has been a genocide occuring in Darfur, Sudan. This act has actually been getting a little more attention than other atrocities that have been occuring. There are a lot of actors and actresses that are trying to boost their humanitarian image by going on television commercials, pleading for people to contribute money and other donations to send to Darfur to help those who have lost everything. This isn't really a bad thing what they are doing on commercials, it is just odd that millionare actors aren't helping as much as they can, that is beside the point though. By the numbers, about 250,000 people have been killed in Sudan while about 2.5 million people have been driven out of their homes. It is disgusting that people are doing things like this to other human beings.

To paint you a little more vivid picture of what is going on, here is an execerpt from an eyewitness account from Brian Steidle, a writer from the Washington Post, made after visiting the affected region (warning: this account is graphic, read at your own discretion). "Just two days after I had taken Mihad's photo, we returned to Alliet. While talking to a government commander on the outskirts of the town, we heard a buzz that sounded like a high-voltage power line. Upon entering the village, we saw that the noise was coming from flies swarming over dead animals and people. We counted about 20 dead, many burned, and then flew back to our camp to write our report. But the smell of charred flesh was hard to wash away." This is what is really happening over there that is not made known of through today's media. As graphic as it may be, it is important for people to really know whats going on over there so that maybe a change can occur and things like this can stop.

Child Soldiers...

Civil War: Uganda

The most shocking story of these three is the one about the civil war in Uganda. This war has been going on for the past twenty years and barely anyone knows what is going on over there. This war is between two groups; the Ugandan government and a rebel group named the Lord's Resistance Army or LRA. The reason that this war is so notable is simply because of what the LRA has been doing over the past twenty years. They have been kidnapping children and forcing them to fight in the war along their sides or to be in essence, sex slaves.

It is the boys that fight in the war. They are taught to fight, loot, and even burn villages. They are then told to torture and eventually kill their neighbors. In the mean time the females have it just as bad if not worse. They are forced to become sex slaves for the soldiers and in some cases forced to become the "wives" of some of the rebel commanders.

These children are being kidnapped at a young age and essentially are being brainwashed since when children are young is when they are most impressionable. Those who are not kidnapped have to make a hike to village squares in Uganda so that they can be watched and not kidnapped. No matter where they are through out the day, they have to make the same trek every night for fear of kidnapping or even death.

What Needs to be Done...

Your help is needed.

Africa and its people need help in the worst possible way. There is death left and right. People are dying from the AIDS epidemic and through war and genocide. There are people and children starving and living in poverty. Their own governments can't even help them due to the amount of corruption that is contained within them. The least that we can do is make these issues and others known. Spreading the word about them will give people knowledge and through that knowledge powerful things can happen. If you feel so compelled to help other than spreading the word, donations can be made to various organiztions all over the world that are working as hard as they can to help out in Africa. Something desperately needs to be done, and that something starts with people who care.

World Apathy Towards Africa

World Apathy Towards Africa

Contents at a Glance

Contents at a Glance

What Has Been Going On?

Back in the Day...

Rwanda: 1994

In More Recent Years...

Darfur, Sudan

Child Soldiers...

Civil War: Uganda

What Needs to be Done...

Your help is needed.

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