3. Briefly explain Charles’ “initiation” into the Lord’s Resistance Army. Why was this for of initiation so effective in ensuring Charles did not try to escape?
Charles was captured with several other boys and a few adult men. The initiation of the boys consisted of being ordered around by the commander with a gun pointed at them. The commander ordered the boys to take a club and beat “ignorant men… who were traitors” to their death. When one of the boys hesitated, the club was snatched and used to hit the boy. This terrorizing technique worked. It was either hit and kill or be killed. Lastly they needed to lick the blood of their victims. The last threat that was given by the commander was that they could not return home because the boys were now murders and the families of the men they had just killed would try and seek revenge.
These means of initiation were unfortunately very powerful. They saw that if they didn’t obey or if they were traitors then they would be beaten in killed. If they were to run off then they would be sought out by people who wanted revenge. It was a lose-lose situation and the boys felt that their only option was to stay and follow. That is why Charles’ initiation was so effective.