N. Uganda, Gwendiya, Gulu District. Many of the men try to evade their nightmares with alcohol and women suffer the effects. When I first accompanied one of the few local social workers to visit Patrick in his thatched house in Gulu, Uganda, he was in a drunken stupor at midday. Patrick was quick to break down in tears as he described his favorite brother that had been killed by rebels, the other who had committed suicide and the hardships he endured when he was taken into captivity. He first...
more »N. Uganda, Gwendiya, Gulu District. Many of the men try to evade their nightmares with alcohol and women suffer the effects. When I first accompanied one of the few local social workers to visit Patrick in his thatched house in Gulu, Uganda, he was in a drunken stupor at midday. Patrick was quick to break down in tears as he described his favorite brother that had been killed by rebels, the other who had committed suicide and the hardships he endured when he was taken into captivity. He first showed us photos of his brothers and then others with his wife, in the happier days before he became a broken man. He told us he needs to drink to get through his day and even more to sleep at night. Even though he still lives with his first wife he has taken a second younger wife, which is common in this area. This usually causes jealousy and tension in the house but more recently the two women have banded together. When Patrick gets drunk he threatens to kill them. The women told us they now hide the machetes in their thatched roof.
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