1 00:00:01,433 --> 00:00:03,400 AMNA NAWAZ: How do you recover from a brutal war? 2 00:00:03,400 --> 00:00:08,166 As Uganda struggles to reconcile its violent past, education offers a glimmer of hope. 3 00:00:10,200 --> 00:00:13,600 Special correspondent Fred de Sam Lazaro reports on one effort to teach former child soldiers. 4 00:00:14,700 --> 00:00:16,800 It's part of his series Agents for Change. 5 00:00:16,800 --> 00:00:21,566 FRED DE SAM LAZARO: The residents of the Lamunu, like many communities in this region, are 6 00:00:23,600 --> 00:00:28,166 trying to regain their rhythm to bring back some sense of normalcy with activities that 7 00:00:29,566 --> 00:00:33,833 have long defined community, like their 35-member dance club. 8 00:00:35,833 --> 00:00:39,266 For nearly three decades, this region was the epicenter of one of the most savagely 9 00:00:40,500 --> 00:00:42,633 violent conflicts in recent history. 10 00:00:42,633 --> 00:00:47,533 The Lord's Resistance Army, or LRA, was led by Joseph Kony, who called himself a spokesman 11 00:00:50,166 --> 00:00:52,566 for God. 12 00:00:52,566 --> 00:00:56,966 The LRA's goal was to overthrow Uganda's government, a campaign that displaced close to two million 13 00:00:58,833 --> 00:01:00,900 people. 14 00:01:00,900 --> 00:01:04,800 As many as 35,000 children were abducted, deployed as servants, sex slaves and soldiers. 15 00:01:06,866 --> 00:01:10,633 Out of a landscape that still looks full of rubble, still shattered from years of conflict, 16 00:01:12,600 --> 00:01:16,533 a monument to the lives of 28 civilians who were massacred here in 2002, 28 out of an 17 00:01:19,000 --> 00:01:22,700 estimated 100,000 civilians who lost their lives. 18 00:01:22,700 --> 00:01:26,500 RICKY RICHARD ANYWAR, Founder, Friends of Orphans: I can still remember that clearly 19 00:01:26,500 --> 00:01:28,500 the day I was abducted. 20 00:01:28,500 --> 00:01:33,266 FRED DE SAM LAZARO: Ricky Richard Anywar was 14 when he was abducted alongside his older 21 00:01:34,266 --> 00:01:36,400 brother. 22 00:01:36,400 --> 00:01:40,266 RICKY RICHARD ANYWAR: These people rounded up our family members and set them ablaze 23 00:01:43,066 --> 00:01:46,733 while we are watching. 24 00:01:46,733 --> 00:01:51,700 They close the door, and they set the fire ablaze while they were asking for mercy. 25 00:01:55,133 --> 00:01:58,200 It was the darkest moment in my life. 26 00:01:58,200 --> 00:02:03,166 FRED DE SAM LAZARO: Horrific as that sounds, it was far from the most brutal incidents. 27 00:02:05,133 --> 00:02:08,300 RICKY RICHARD ANYWAR: This is one of the saddest massacres in Northern Uganda, the way our 28 00:02:10,633 --> 00:02:12,933 people were cooked in the pot, and people... 29 00:02:12,933 --> 00:02:15,133 FRED DE SAM LAZARO: Cooked in a pot? 30 00:02:15,133 --> 00:02:17,166 RICKY RICHARD ANYWAR: Yes. 31 00:02:17,166 --> 00:02:20,833 FRED DE SAM LAZARO: Anywar was among the lucky few who managed to escape, returning to his 32 00:02:20,833 --> 00:02:22,900 native town of Pader. 33 00:02:22,900 --> 00:02:27,900 He then learned that his brother had escaped a year earlier, only to commit suicide soon 34 00:02:28,500 --> 00:02:30,666 after doing so. 35 00:02:30,666 --> 00:02:35,666 The son of a schoolteacher, Anywar and two other survivors founded the Friends of Orphans 36 00:02:39,300 --> 00:02:41,400 School in 1999. 37 00:02:41,400 --> 00:02:45,533 RICKY RICHARD ANYWAR: These are children of people who were killed during the war. 38 00:02:47,166 --> 00:02:49,733 These are very bright children. 39 00:02:49,733 --> 00:02:53,866 What they lack is the resources to educate them. 40 00:02:53,866 --> 00:02:58,833 FRED DE SAM LAZARO: Two decades on, about 300 young adults are enrolled, by now the 41 00:03:00,700 --> 00:03:03,233 children of the former child soldiers. 42 00:03:03,233 --> 00:03:07,700 They have been shunned and stigmatized socially, Anywar says, so the first task is to provide 43 00:03:09,666 --> 00:03:13,333 them with a safe space to just relax, play soccer, or play an instrument. 44 00:03:15,300 --> 00:03:18,400 RICKY RICHARD ANYWAR: We use our stories to tell these children what happened to us. 45 00:03:20,766 --> 00:03:25,766 And with that, they get connected and open to us and begin working on the journey of 46 00:03:30,200 --> 00:03:32,266 their life. 47 00:03:32,266 --> 00:03:36,200 FRED DE SAM LAZARO: Then it's on to learning skills that are, at least in theory, in demand 48 00:03:37,566 --> 00:03:42,066 in the region, sewing and tailoring, masonry and building. 49 00:03:43,466 --> 00:03:45,933 Ricky Anywar guided me through the area's towns. 50 00:03:45,933 --> 00:03:47,800 We visited a welding shop. 51 00:03:47,800 --> 00:03:50,933 MAN (through translator): The electricity is always on and off. 52 00:03:50,933 --> 00:03:55,733 FRED DE SAM LAZARO: Power cuts are frequent, including on this day. 53 00:03:55,733 --> 00:04:00,733 It seven workers are paid by the piece, so no work means no pay. 54 00:04:02,800 --> 00:04:07,800 Next up, a music recording studio, Big Sound Productions, was started in 2011 by a former 55 00:04:09,766 --> 00:04:14,333 student at Ricky Anywar school, 30-year-old Charles Anywar, who's not related. 56 00:04:17,366 --> 00:04:19,366 How is business now? 57 00:04:19,366 --> 00:04:21,600 CHARLES ANYWAR, Owner, Music Recording Studio: Business now, it is OK, but, then, I don't 58 00:04:21,600 --> 00:04:23,233 have enough machines. 59 00:04:23,233 --> 00:04:27,300 I have the knowledge for the work, but I don't have good machines. 60 00:04:27,300 --> 00:04:32,300 FRED DE SAM LAZARO: Nearby 1,000 children attend this primary school in abysmal conditions, 61 00:04:34,500 --> 00:04:36,633 far worse than elsewhere in Uganda. 62 00:04:36,633 --> 00:04:40,300 Anywar's group provides basic supplies for about 100 of them. 63 00:04:40,300 --> 00:04:45,300 RICKY RICHARD ANYWAR: Most of these children, either they have worn-out uniforms, or they 64 00:04:46,033 --> 00:04:47,466 don't have footwear. 65 00:04:47,466 --> 00:04:50,833 We select the children, those who are extremely needy. 66 00:04:50,833 --> 00:04:52,966 FRED DE SAM LAZARO: Just how needy? 67 00:04:52,966 --> 00:04:55,300 I asked teacher Andrew Komakach. 68 00:04:55,300 --> 00:04:57,666 How many of these children have breakfast? 69 00:04:57,666 --> 00:05:00,166 ANDREW KOMAKACH, Teacher: None. 70 00:05:00,166 --> 00:05:01,366 None of -- none of children. 71 00:05:01,366 --> 00:05:02,800 FRED DE SAM LAZARO: How about lunch? 72 00:05:02,800 --> 00:05:04,233 ANDREW KOMAKACH: No, there's no lunch for children. 73 00:05:04,233 --> 00:05:07,166 FRED DE SAM LAZARO: You think they are learning much? 74 00:05:07,166 --> 00:05:12,066 ANDREW KOMAKACH: I don't think so, because, when you are hungry, you cannot even study 75 00:05:12,066 --> 00:05:14,566 well. 76 00:05:14,566 --> 00:05:17,333 FRED DE SAM LAZARO: One of the paradoxes about trying to bolster education in this area is 77 00:05:17,333 --> 00:05:21,766 that the best and brightest are more than likely to leave cities like Kampala. 78 00:05:21,766 --> 00:05:26,766 The Friends of Orphans organization says, over the years, that it has about 100 youth 79 00:05:27,933 --> 00:05:29,966 who have gone on to earn college degrees. 80 00:05:29,966 --> 00:05:34,433 Of those, only one has stayed in the area. 81 00:05:34,433 --> 00:05:36,166 His name is Ronald Okello. 82 00:05:36,166 --> 00:05:40,400 He was abducted by the LRA at age 11 in 2001. 83 00:05:40,400 --> 00:05:45,400 Four years later, he lost his right arm in a gun battle, was captured by the Ugandan 84 00:05:46,733 --> 00:05:49,533 military and taken to a hospital, before being released. 85 00:05:49,533 --> 00:05:53,600 Ricky Anywar found him by chance wandering on the street as he drove by. 86 00:05:53,600 --> 00:05:55,600 RICKY RICHARD ANYWAR: I had to stop. 87 00:05:55,600 --> 00:05:57,933 And I reversed back and asked him who he is. 88 00:05:57,933 --> 00:06:00,100 And he say, it is Ronald. 89 00:06:00,100 --> 00:06:03,366 RONALD OKELLO, Uganda: So, he took to Kampala, a very good school in Kampala. 90 00:06:03,366 --> 00:06:05,900 FRED DE SAM LAZARO: And then did you also go to college? 91 00:06:05,900 --> 00:06:08,033 RONALD OKELLO: Yes. 92 00:06:08,033 --> 00:06:11,900 FRED DE SAM LAZARO: He scrapes by, he says, buying used shoes and household items in Kampala 93 00:06:13,266 --> 00:06:16,233 and reselling them in local markets like this one. 94 00:06:16,233 --> 00:06:19,600 Even for a degree holder, the prospects here are bleak. 95 00:06:19,600 --> 00:06:24,600 RICKY RICHARD ANYWAR: Most of the international donors do not want to fund projects in this 96 00:06:25,733 --> 00:06:29,800 area, because they feel the war is now over. 97 00:06:31,766 --> 00:06:35,400 The international media's attention always goes to where there are fresh wars around 98 00:06:36,000 --> 00:06:38,066 the world. 99 00:06:38,066 --> 00:06:40,933 FRED DE SAM LAZARO: Some aid has slowly trickled in, like roads and power. 100 00:06:40,933 --> 00:06:42,400 It's hardly enough. 101 00:06:42,400 --> 00:06:46,933 And there's even less for social or reconciliation programs. 102 00:06:48,933 --> 00:06:52,700 Back in Lamunu, where Ricky Anywar's group has provided some assistance before, the community 103 00:06:54,666 --> 00:06:57,833 turned out to plead with him for more help, a well for water, farm animals, proper clothing 104 00:06:59,166 --> 00:07:04,166 for the traditional dance group. 105 00:07:06,166 --> 00:07:09,366 For the "PBS NewsHour," this is Fred de Sam Lazaro, reporting from Pader in Northern Uganda. 106 00:07:11,700 --> 00:07:15,266 AMNA NAWAZ: And Fred's reporting is in partnership with the Under-Told Stories Project at the 107 00:07:15,266 --> 00:07:17,400 University of St. Thomas in Minnesota.