Children’s war games

Another noticeable change is the increased number of war games played by boy children, often complete with toy guns. In suburb after suburb I walk through, I notice little boys aiming fire and pretending to kill one another. It is most unsettling. Wherever you find military personnel, you will inevitably also find a group of generally boy children following the soldiers, trying to gain their attention. What long term impact does the sight of soldiers carrying large automatic weapons on the streets of Dili have on the future of impressionable young children?

Category: Timor-Leste (East Timor)