6 November 2008 107 views No Comment Print This Post  Email This Post

British Jewish students have staged a protest march in Jerusalem against the shocking rate of child abductions in Uganda. The rally was organised by ‘Gulu Walk’ campaign, an organisation raising awareness for the plight of children in Uganda.

Over 100 walks were held worldwide this weekend, in honour of the 30,000 children abducted over the past twenty years in Uganda, a shocking statistic provided by a United Nations report. The report also stated that after their abduction, children were normally forced into child soldiers, forming what is known as The Lord’s Resistance Army, an army of children who go from village to village terrorising families and destroying huts and crops. The other option for abductees is to be sold into the sex slave trade.

The British students, all aged 18-19 belong to RSY-Netzer Reform Judaism youth movement. They are spending a year in Israel learning about Judaism, Zionism and youth leadership. Although most of the other 100 marches were taking place on Saturday, the Jewish group chose to hold theirs on Sunday, so as not to violate the Shabbat.

One student, Deborah Blausten, 18, stressed the importance of the march in relation to Jewish principles. “Judaism says you mustn’t stand idly by while your neighbour’s blood is being shed. Even more so now, when we live in a global village-it makes their plight even harder to ignore. We have no excuse for not knowing,” she said.

Missing children in Uganda do not receive the same amount of support from the government or police as in Europe or the USA.  In the areas of Acholi and Lango, nearly every family has lost a child as their village was attacked. Citizens distrust the government, who remain powerless to stop the unwavering forced of destruction cultivated by Uganda’s warlords.