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CHILD SOLDIERS

ABOLITION OF SLAVERY CELEBRATIONS

STREET CHILDREN

HIV & AIDS

CHILD SOLDIERS (TOP)

"The use of children as soldiers is a crime against humanity and a sabotage of the future of humanity. I feel (everyone in their right mind would agree) that all children have a right to protection and it is, therefore, evil and unrighteous to engage them in any conflicts created by adults. This is one of the reasons why we've formed an alliance with an organization which spends all of its time educating people about human rights issues, but more essentially helping people to become aware of the horrors of child-soldiering, giving them useful resource that helps them help others get involved in the task of stopping it."

"Child-soldering leads to a generation that is robbed of its childhood, lawlessness, brokenness and a community that could never live up to its normal standards of existence for many years afterwards."  ~~~Ben Okafor

	The Coalition to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers works to prevent the recruitment and use of children as soldiers, to secure their demobilisation and to ensure their rehabilitation and reintegration into society.
	We fight for children in the UK and around the world who suffer from poverty, disease, injustice and violence, working with them to find lifelong answers to the problems they face.

ABOLITION OF SLAVERY CELEBRATIONS (TOP)

WE SHOULD ALSO SEIZE this fantastic opportunity to study, explore and grapple with slavery in our modern world. Commencing in the Spring of this year, Ben will be embarking on a tour of UK universities and colleges with his band. This tour will be in partnership with chaplaincies, human rights groups, arts and social sciences departments. In addition to performing with his band Ben will be available to participate in discussions, workshops and debates on the following subjects:

• education, poverty and health in the developing world
• community arts development
• street children, child prostitution and child labour
• human trafficking
• leadership and liberation movements

Ben's particular interest lies in the powerful use of the medium of the arts to communicate and educate. Respected and renowned among peers in his native Nigeria and beyond, Ben has a sound reputation for empowering young people to use their intellect in conjunction with their artistic skills to express their views on world issues peacefully yet effectively.

WE INVITE YOU TO JOIN us in this project by hosting an event at your Institution. Co-funding can be arranged through the Arts Council and other prospective partners.

For further details, please contact: enquiries@benokafor.com
 
Visit "The SPIRIT of the ACT" Tour HERE on MySpace.com and join its FRIENDS Network.

STREET CHILDREN (TOP)

• To be added shortly

HIV & AIDS (TOP)

Since it started in 1999. The Bethany Children’s Trust (BCT) has impacted the lives of thousands of children in crisis in many different countries, bringing them healing and restoration. Based in the UK, BCT’s vision is to see every child in the world loved, safe, nurtured and free to reach their God - given potential.

BCT believes in investing in people to make its vision a reality, and currently has a close working relationship with seven community-based projects in different African nations, that are helping to restore the lives of children at risk, such as those affected by war, HIV and AIDS, the sex trade, disability and poverty. BCT helps to strengthen the work and effectiveness of these, its Project Partners, by providing them with consultancy in project development, training, encouragement, prayer, and financial and material support. Through its input, BCT enables projects to replicate and multiply, so that the lives of more and more children can be touched and transformed.

BCT has particular expertise and experience in developing community-based responses to children affected by HIV and AIDS, and through its TEAM (Training, Equipping and Mobilising) Project, it runs tailor-made workshops in HIV awareness, care, prevention and orphan care for local churches and community groups, that enable them to more effectively reach out to children affected by HIV.

BCT networks with other Christian childcare organisations to speak out with and on behalf of children in crisis, and challenges the Church, local communities and world leaders to address their needs.

Click HERE to find out more about BCT’s amazing work. 
Website:  http://www.bethanychildrenstrust.org.uk

• "Beat the Drum" is a drama about a young African boy who has been orphaned by the AIDS plague that swept through his village. Now living with his elderly grandmother, the child decides to seek out his uncle in Johannesburg, taking along only a drum given to him by his father.