Socialization and reintegration challenges: A case study of the lord’s resistance army

Abstract

What challenges do former child soldiers face when reintegrating in their societies? And what disrupts their attempts to readapt to civilian life? The answers to these questions appear to be a complex mixture of variables. Recent empirical research on reintegration of former child soldiers (Machel, 2001; Wessells, 2004, 2006; Borzello, 2007; Blattman and Annan, 2008; Dunson, 2008; Eichsteadt, 2009) provides only incomplete insights into the true underpinnings of successful return. Many of these children still face severe problems when it comes to their reintegration (Wessells, 2004; Borzello, 2007; Vermeij, 2009). In this chapter I argue that many of these problems arise due to socialization processes within rebel groups. More specifically, this chapter will highlight how socialization processes within the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) challenge the reintegration of child soldiers. During 3 months of field research in Northern Uganda I conducted 65 interviews with former child soldiers and commanders from the LRA in Uganda. The respondents, of which 34 males and 31 females were accessed through the War Affected Children Association (WACA) in Gulu, and the interviews consisted of 12 open questions. Based on this field research, this chapter will reveal that socialization within the LRA jeopardizes the reintegration of its child soldiers. It will illustrate the large extent to which socialization within the LRA remains an influence in the life of many former child soldiers after they have returned from the bush.