FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Ugandan Children Kidnapped and Made Soldiers Against Their Own Families

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Dec. 5, 2006 -- At a concert, audiences don't often see the man who plays bass even talk to the crowd, let alone hold up a pair of wicker sandals.

That's exactly what Third Day's bass player Tai Anderson did on stage at the Bryce Jordan Center on October 29, 2006 during their "Wherever You Are" tour with David Crowder and Hyper Static Union.

Behind him was a slideshow of faces. Children's faces - caked with dirt and scared. Faces of children abducted by the Ugandan militant group, The Lord's Resistance Army (LRA). Faces of children forced to fight against their very own families.

The sandals Anderson held were of a child in Uganda, Africa who was stolen from his family to serve as a soldier for this brutal army.

In Uganda, children as young as 8 years old are abducted methodically by a rebel group called the Lord's resistance Army (LRA). They are enslaved and trained as brutal warriors. The leader of the LRA named Joseph Kony, age 46, proclaims himself a prophet charged with "purifying" the Ugandan race. He and his lieutenants have been charged by the International Criminal Court for their crimes against humanity, backed by the Bush administration.

The plight of these Ugandan children was first brought to the attention of the public when three students became stranded in northern Uganda and lived with their families. They were so affected by their experience that they made a film about it called "Invisible Children: Rough Cut." It details the lives of what are called "Night Commuters."

These Ugandan children travel far from their homes every night to city centers as far as 10 miles away in search of safe places to sleep and for fear that they will be abducted. They travel without supervision or food and often sleep little. The film was shown in the United States in June of 2004, after which its influence prompted the commitment of several non-profit organizations like Invisible Children Inc. and World Vision.

In a Washington Times article on July 31, 2006, a child named Sam, now 12 years old, who was abducted by the LRA six years ago told his story of fear and fighting a war that he could not escape until he was rescued by the Ugandan Army. He was forced to kill others, sometimes biting off their skin till they bled to death. The army of children like Sam raised by the LRA would attack villages at night, killing all in it except the children who they took to train as more soldiers.

Nearly 20,000 Ugandan children have been rescued or have managed to escape. According to estimates of the United Nations, about 300,000 children under age 18 are currently fighting in conflicts around the world and many are being trained for combat by force, to kill or be killed. Many of these children have been forcibly abducted, and physical, sexual, and emotional abuse is common.

"I chose to support a Ugandan child through World Vision because I believe we can't just sit by and watch something so horrible. As Christians, we are called to take action in love to do something about it," said Rhonda Dougherty, 42, of Bloomsburg, Penn. "The presentation at the concert convinced me that I could and should do it."

Holly McCollough, a graduate of Bloomsburg University in kinesiology said, "It was so moving to see pictures of the kids. I just imagined what it would be like if they were me. What if I had to grow up like that? It's very important that we know about things like this. We hear so much about the Sudan, but I'd never heard about the children in Uganda."

In August, the LRA agreed to sign a truce that could end one of the longest wars in Africa, and on October 21, 2006, many took part in World Vision's GuluWalk 2006. More than 15,000 people took part in 2005. Up to 15,000 women and children may be freed by the LRA as part of the ceasefire agreement.