Coping as an ex-combatant : stragegies of interaction and re-integration

Abstract

This thesis deals with observing how returnee ex-combatants re-integrate and live again in their societies and communities after being accepted by their community members. The reintegration of ex-combatants has been a major subject in the current development of post war Sierra Leone. It is in fact, one of the major challenges confronting the country. This thesis will, for the most part, be focussing on what happens to an ex-combatant after undergoing a traditional reconciliation ceremony and has returned to live with his family and community members. Using one ex-combatant as my main informant, I sought to find out what happens to an ex-combatant after he/she has been allowed to go back and start living among his people again.