SCHOOL PROJECT

The Project Rebound for schools

For three years the journalist Mirco Keilberth is visiting schools and universities and reports about the war of the child soldiers in central Africa. In some schools also Jack Wolfskin CEO Manfred Hell and the singer Wolfgang Niedecken shared their experiences about Northern Uganda and explained their commitment for the former child soldiers. Most students heard for the first time about the fate of the same age in Uganda and in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Many where touched by the stories and through the series of talks at various schools their own projects about children in war emerged.
Interested schools are provided by Mirco Keilberth with fact sheets and teaching material.

Mirco Keilberth

I am committed for several years in the matter of the child soldiers of central Africa.
Their fate is one of the saddest aspects of the conflicts in the Great Lakes Region of Africa.
The world doesn`t care very much about the hundreds of thousands of refugees in Congo and Sudan, because the conflicts are wrongly kept permanently or seen as a kind of natural disaster.

In the meantime the Lord`s Resistance Army is terrorising four countries and became a part of their conflicts. In Sudan Joseph Kony is fighting against the SPLA, the army of the new state of South Sudan.
In the Congo hundreds of villages are on the run while the rebels get a grip on the mineral mines. In the Central African Republic the LRA has joined forces with other rebel groups and continues to kidnap children.

It is not enough to read the few articles in the papers to understand the complex situation in Central Africa. The reduced coverage about Africa in european media even reinforces stereotypes instead of enlightning them.
For those interested it is difficult to get in touch with people of the region, so to meet NGO staff or journalists who work in Africa is the best way to get a deeper understanding of the apparently chaotic circumstances and reasons behind the conflicts.
So was my interest in region aroused by meeting colleagues who worked on the ground talked about their experiences.
With my lectures about the topic of child soldiers I want to give the young people a chance to venture deeper insight the seemingly complicated situation in Central Africa and also arouse interest about the life of Ugandan youth of the same age.

Four years ago a teacher friend of mine asked me to discuss with his pupils about child soldiers, the not ending wars of Central Africa and the reason behind all the atrocities.
I reported about the daily horror and routine of refugee camps, the causes of conflict, but also of the fascinating sides of Africa. I told them about the courageous women I met and the African joy of life one experiences even in the most horrible circumstances.
The students of the Rudolf-Steiner-Schule in Hamburg-Ottensen listened with pointed ears and where desperately interested in the life of their peers in Uganda.
They asked many questions and were more impartial than many editors. They were more open minded about Africa than many adults.

Quickly the idea arose to visit more schools and to start school projects about the topic. Meanwhile I visited more than a hundred schools and presented films, photos and my experiences in front of single classes or even hundreds of kids. Since then study groups were founded, photo exhibitions, papers and activities under the countrywide campaigns of the Red hand Day originated.

Together with Manfred Hell and Wolfgang Niedecken we discussed with 13- to 18- year-old students about the globalisation, poverty and the pros and cons of development aid. And about the duty not to look away, when it comes to the situation of a whole young generation in Uganda and the Congo.

The LRA-conflict teaches us all a lesson about globalisation, politics and the failure of the international diplomacy. And about Africa that is not only about war and misery.

Many former child soldiers formed theatre groups, cooperatives and youth clubs to create some perspective for themselves.
Citizen initiatives in Uganda, the democratic Republic of Congo and in Sudan try to stop the collapse of the state, they fight against daily corruption and lawlessness.

Also this is Africa and it pays off to have a close look into projects like Rebound.
Especially young people learn a lot through engaging in this matter. Many I met already noted: not only monetary donating helps, even attention results into public pressure on politicians and perhaps is even more powerful. Commitment is worth it!

Three years ago the war with the LRA was a forgotten conflict, closed to the worldwide public. Many small initiatives around the globe changed that, now the world politics try to end the tragedy.

If you are a teacher or student or pupil and if you are interested in a presentation with photos and videos please do not hesitate to contact me.

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