of cotton You know because of his business. So he had like around 30 or
50. I don't remember for sure like how many but I knew they were about
that that line. And then we had another hot because if you have a cow that
kind of like a really good cutter camp would you do with you build a hot
you know how I forget you know forget the cutter because the lion will
come and knife and try to hit them so you get to care for them. So when my
father did with you get too hot you know you had too hot too for uh no.
Yeah like three by the way you get to for for cut off or just cough and
then you get one for the good and ship. You know he was a wealthy man.
Yeah he was a wealthy man. Yeah that's going to be a good story for your
family. Their great grandmother. Their grandfather was a crocodile hunter
and kind of a medicine man. You know how to you know how to he jumped
people to you know with this medication you know how to do that you know
he make himself as a nurse and uh where there is no doubt. Yeah that's
wonderful. So what happened when war came how did you know war was coming
? Did you hear about it or did it just come to your village? And that's
the first you heard about it by the way my my uh my my my my my home it's
close to our cover and I'll cover is a tom you know it's a tone way where
the people that have you know like electricity and running water and
things like that they live there so we can see the light, we can see the
electricity and we see the tongue. You know it's close to my my house it's
not far away. Yeah when the war came you know I was very young. I didn't
know what exam is going on. How old were you roughly? I was about around
eight or nine at that time. Uh and then people start you know running
around you know and I can hear the big the big guns coming out from from
the town there you know and people were our father camp and you know take
us through the bushes and then you know it was like a day evening time it
was around uh four million or three p.m. something like that. So the
people that are me from the town which is the arab army they start
shooting people shooting shooting people and they are the bullets and go
past us because you know my my hours my home is very close to the to the
town you know like they should and the bullet can go pass us you know go
to the other billets And then uh this is when I started learning that you
know there is something going on then we run at that evening we run
through the bushes until you know the shooting is stopped after like 30 or
40 minutes and then we came back home later my father came back home first
and see that there is nothing there and then he went and get us and then
now we live in fear. We start living in fear you know they every now and
then you know shooting is charged and we don't we don't know what it is
and then we run away And then we'll come back and then we're not becoming
11 years old. So now Yeah, it was 1983,
1984.
This is when I was around 12 Or 11 at that time because I was born in 1972
remember yeah I was around that time, you know it was 12 or 13 years old.
So now dr john Graham came with his group and uh William you and wine, we
came into the town you know and they need to start shooting, start
shooting in there, you know killing people randomly you know here and
there and then we didn't know. And then when he come out he tells people
in the village that you know we have an issue with people in the town so
we need to control that time. And then we keep saying why what's going on
, okay these people they are, they put out down this is why we do not have
running water, we do not have a road, we see the light over there. We need
to have a light like that. We need we need these kids to go to school and
then you know it's become a permanent you know mindset for people in the
village. So now they know the issue is because you know did people that
shooting the gun, they want us to be like the people in the town, you know
and they want her to be in the go to school and you know do things the way
the other world don't you think? You know? And then at that time we were
recruited to go to the arm. You know I remember that with with Iran Were
you 13 or 12 when I start going to the army. Uh what they did was they
tell us uh there was one commander, I can't remember his name. He say now
all these kids in the village I can take them and I will take them to cuba
to cuba to cuba. So uh we we went we we will collapse like a group of
people to go to uh to eat um refugee camp. To the eternal camera start
already in uh in the border of Ethiopia and can uh and south Sudan. It's
in the pork by the Gambella. You want right now. I want to go now. But now
it's too dangerous. Huh?
Okay. So there was there was a refugee camp already established there and
then at that time. Well uhh
at that time you know the guy told us that you know I would take all the
kids in the village and I would take them to I will take them to eat them
and then from the time there I will take them to cuba. And then you know
now everybody because nobody wants from the building, nobody wants their
kid to go to the army. But when they say they're going to take the kids
and take them to the uh to CUBA to school, it's a different way of luring
the Children into the army, you know. So we were at the group and then uh
after we arrive in the refugee camp, you know now there was a line for
certain people to go there if you don't know anybody there your name will
not appear in the list of the Children that go to CUba. You know, so the
kid were called by the name, you know based on the people that know them,
you know in in uh in the rebel army. So my name was not called at that
time. And then I had a friend of mine, they came with me together, he was
called and then you get it then they took him to build a bomb and then
from Bill Farm they took him to addis Ababa and then they flew to CUba and
then now I was taken back to the boot camp to the army boot camp. So I
went to the army boot camp In a tarp on it was close to the camp and then
I went there and get trained. You know with all kind of group of people
and you were only $13. Only 13, 12 or 13. Were you scared or did you feel
like a game where we're at the first time I was scared. But you know when
I used to it because there was some other kid that they just look like me
you know and we encourage each other you know like we got to do this, we
gotta do that and then we know then we become an armored train and then
you know they keep coming and telling us you know you are the fears your
harmony in case all these big people go away. You will you will turn and
then you will you will move forward and here we are liberated from the
arab rulers. So this is the mindset that they they put it to us at that
time and then you know um I was in the army for a very long time and then
later because the Harmony camp is good camp is closed to the refugee camp.
You know sometimes you sneak up and then you got to go to the refugee
camp. So now I have a family member that came from my tongue. one of them
is my cousin, he came with his wife and he suddenly the refugee camp. Okay
so your family is no longer at their town no more. My father with my
father and mother. They still in the town. They still going back and forth.
You know. Yeah they because the refugee camp to their they were they were
not in the refugee camp but they still in our town but they took me with a
kid together to go to CUBA. And then they let me from there. So I did not
go back home. So in the state I was in the army and then after the army
and I heard about one of my cousins came from our village to the refugee
camp. And then when I heard of him then I came to his home and then this
is when I start going to school you know And start going to school like
around 1987. It was 1987 when I started going to the primary primary
school. Yes you were 1314. I was like around 14 or 15 at that time. And
then I started going to school in the refugee camp And then I learned A. B.
C. D. You know at the age of 15. Did you so did you have to fight? Did
you ever go and fight or? Yes. Yes. We have like a random fight uh that we
go to because we have uh we have Yoko and we had uh modeled all those they
are close to us. You know They took out there a few times and then you
know, we come back and love friends. Yeah. Was it just frightening? Uh
It's frightening. But if you are into it, what can you do? What can you do
? Do you think they use the Children? Or do you think you they really
wanted to prepare you to be the army or what do you think? Now when you
look back on that, when I look back into that, I think the plan was you
know, they were they were not sure whether they are going to liberate the
country at that time. So they put us on the reserve army to uh to take to
take control of the country after they're gone. I think that that was
their plan because you know, they grew young people when they were very
very young. Uh when you do not know anything about, you know no fear, no
mercy, nothing. You know all you do is you know if you get a people there
should you know they say if they say these people are your enemy, there is
no mercy. You just you just shootyeah