Discuss the devastating effects that conflicts have on the innocent children and women in Mariutu Kamara’s ‘The President’.

Discuss the devastating effects that conflicts have on the innocent children and women in Mariutu Kamara’s ‘The President’

The optional set texts

The Short Story

Chris Wanjala: Memories We lost and Other Stories

​Discuss the devastating effects that conflicts have on the innocent children and women in Mariutu Kamara’s ‘The President’.

• Conflicts in society arise as a result of hatred and tribal animosity.  This hatred and animosity among citizens leads to unrest and violence.  Such violence and conflicts have far reaching consequences and effects on the civilians, mostly children, women and the innocent. As brought out in The President, many suffer a lot.

 

• Members of different families are separated from each other as a result of conflict.  Many people fear what is brought about by conflict and thus end up running away, and in the process they separate from each other.  For instance, Adamsay is dragged away by rebels.  Furthermore, Ibrahim and Mohamed are captured and tied and taken away.  Kamara is also separated from Marie and Alie because of conflict.

 

• There are a lot of atrocities which are meted on the people during conflict.  Women and girls end up being defiled, a case of Kamara where she is raped by Salieu at atender age.  Many people lose their limbs, for instance rebels cut off people’s hands as a way of sending to a message to the president to get out of power.  Many people are forced to live in an amputees’ camp in free town.

 

• Many lives are los.  Conflict and violence leads to the killing of many people.  The narrator says that she later learnt that as many as hundred people were killed that day.  Rebels have no regard for human life; they just kill people.

 

• In line with war, children are also recruited into war as soldiers.  Mostly this is done against their will and they end up missing on their childhood.  Kamara is tortured and eventually amputated by child soldiers who are her age mates.  She pleads with one child soldier to have mercy on her as she is his age but the child soldier hears none of that.  Victims of violence and conflicts are force to live in a camp for amputees in Freetown.  This camp is full of filthy litter and full of dirty bodies.  More so they are forced to beg on the streets to get what to eat.

 

• Children who undergo such violence like what Kamara goes through have psychological torture.  Kamara mentions that she is enrolled in high school before she is swallowed by thoughts of her past and family.

It is very clear that conflicts, which are mostly fuelled by hatred has detrimental effects on innocent children and women.  They are the ones who suffer the greatest brunt of such.  They suffer a lot, they are handicapped, displaced from their homes, are forced to live in pathetic conditions and some even lose their lives.

Any other relevant conclusion, award 2 marks
Introduction: 2 marks
Content:         12 marks
Conclusion:    2 marks
Language:      4 mark

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