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| Fred in the programs |
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| Fred |
Fred Natovu
Fred is a
small boy. He says his age is ten but he looks to be maybe seven at the most.
What he lacks in size he makes up with spiritedness. He seems to hold his own
fairly well with the other boys at program although he is definitely smaller
then them all. This is part of his story.
My mother's
name is Coleen. I have never known my father. I came to the streets
of Kampala sometime in April and I have been living on them for a month now. I
ran away from home because of my mother. She used to beat me and sometimes deny
me food. When I left my home in Waskiso and started traveling to Kampala I
was helped by a man. He was on a boda boda and he let me ride with
him to Kampala. My plan was to visit my uncle. He lives in Kampala. The
problem was that when I got to his house it was locked and no one was there.
The neighbours told me that my uncle was in prison but they didn't tell me why.
I didn't know anyone in Kampala other than my uncle. I came to the streets
because I have nowhere else to go. I do not want to go home. Life on the
streets is not good. It is hard to get things to eat. I don't have clothes like
I did at home. I sleep on the ground with other boys and sometimes we get
chased away from where we are sleeping at night. When this happens we
have to walk in the dark to find another place to sleep.
Please pray
for me. I want to go back to school. I also want to have a safe place where I
can live and be happy.
Before he
came to the streets Fred reached primary 3 in school. When he grows up he
dreams to become a teacher. He explained that teachers teach people new things
and help them become what they dream of through education.
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| Henry |
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Kiyemba
Henry
Henry says
he is 12 years old. He has started coming to program in this last month. He cut
his foot and heard about the clinic through a friend. Since getting treatment
there he has been coming often to the street programs. He is a friendly
and engaging boy with a quick smile. This is part of his story.
I have no
interest in remembering my parents names. They are both living. My father
is living with my step mother. My mother lives in Kampala. I was living with my
father and stepmother. We used to live in an area of Kampala called Karerwe. My
father decided to move from the city to the village. The village we moved to
was called Kiti. When we moved there I lived with my family for three months
but all this time I did not go to school. In the morning I would do my chores
but then after that I would have nothing to do. I was bored so I would walk
around and often go to visit my aunt who lived not too far away. When I came
back home I often found I had missed meal time. My family never kept any food
for me. I would ask why they didn't leave anything for me but they would
never reply to me. Instead they would tell me to get water. Sometimes I had to
fetch water three times a day. often my family only ate one time a day so
it was not a good situation for me. I was hungry so I would looked
for jackfruit in the bushes. My father and my stepmother
sometimes threatened to send me to Kampiringisa because I was stubborn.
One day I was out with some friends. I stayed out too late and when I came back
I found that my house was locked and my family was all asleep. I was afraid to
wake them up since I knew they would be very upset with me. So instead I made a
makeshift bed using a sack and string. I hung it in a big
tree near our house. In the morning my father was very angry with me. He
beat me with a stick that also had wire on it. He also hit my foot very
hard. My foot was hurting me a lot and it took some time to heal. I waited
some time after this at my home but things were not getting any
better. I decided to come back to Kampala. My mother lives in Kampala,
although I do not often see her. When I came to her house she was angry at me
for coming to her and told me that I needed to go back to my father. She
refused to let me stay with her. I did not want to go back to my father's house
so I stayed on the streets. I found a plastic container and started fetching
water to make some money. Slowly I learned more things about street life and
how to survive. I met a boy named Big who brought me to Kivulu. I
did not like Kivulu though so I did not stay there. I have been on
the streets of three years now. Right now I sleep in Wandegerya
in front of a restaurant called Chicken Tonight.
Please Pray
for me. I have an injured foot right now. I would like prayer for healing. I
would also like prayer for an opportunity to go back to school.
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