was born in Uganda and nowadays she is living in Denmark. At the age of eight years she gets into a recruitment - camp of the Ugandan Resistance Army NRA (National Resistance Army) which is led by YOWERE MUSEVENI, today's president.

There she was given a new name:

She was called "China" by her instructor as she is slant-eyed. And she was given a gun.

Taking part in her first encounter she is confronted with the cruel reality of war completely unprepared. Deeper and deeper the young girl tangles into the spiral of violence. Nonetheless the straight structured NRA is a substitute family for this uprooted girl.

After MUSEVENI's victory 1986 China Keitetsi firstly becomes bodyguard of a high ranked functionary, later on she changes to the Military Police.

The three only pictures of China's military past
click for full view

There she gets into desperate straits due to wrong accusations and flees - 19 years of age by now - to South Africa. With help of the United Nations she arrives in Denmark in 1999. Today she lives there or in the country of her parents, Rwanda .

In the aim to overcome her experiences China Keitetsi brought her story to paper and her history turned into a book. The best - selling novel, German title: "They took my mother and gave me a firearm" (the English title: Fighting for my life") is an unique evidence and an insistent appeal to ostracize the deployment of child - soldiers.

China with Harry Belafonte on the Occasion of the Launch of the
2005 Consolidated Appeals Process (CAP), in the rooms of the lower house of the German parliament (German Bundestag), Berlin, 01.12.2004
click for full view

There are at least 250 000 children world-wide involved in battle encounters, 120.000 in Africa only. China Keitetsi is the first child - soldier to have published her life - story. By her courage to break silence China makes herself lawyer of all children traumatic and deprived of their rights.

Help which China Keitetsi has personally experienced has become her own life's work. China Keitetsi gives lectures on the problematic nature of children - soldiers in all of Europe , USA, Canada and Japan, she spoke to the United Nations, the UNESCO, to the German Parliament.

In her matter of concern China Keitetsi is supported by many organisations such as UNICEF, amnesty international, terre des hommes, Oxfam, Coalition to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers, IANSA.

China Keitetsi is ambassador of Missio Munich - action "Volltreffer" ("bull's eye") at the occasion of the foot-ball world championship 2006: Goals will be shot, not human - being.

In 2004 China Keitetsi with the charitable status of an organization founds „Hilfe für ehemalige Kindersoldaten und afrikanische Kriegsopfer e. V." "Help for former child - soldiers and African war victims e.V.". With the donations she first of all intends to build up a centre for the "reintegration of former child - soldiers" in Rwanda.
www.defoexchild.de

2005 China Keitetsi was two times invited by the University of Connecticut , USA , UNESCO "Chair & Institute of Comparative Human Rights", for lectures. Her award for this was a "Certificate of Appreciation for dedication and commitment to translating the ideals of human rights into practical reality: AMBASSADOR FOR HUMAN RIGHTS ".