Oleke C, Blystad A, Rekdal O B, Moland K M
Ministry of Health, P.O Box 7272, Kampala, Uganda.
SAHARA J. 2007 May;4(1):532-43. doi: 10.1080/17290376.2007.9724815.
Uganda is estimated to have around two million orphans constituting approximately 19% of all the children in the country. This paper presents findings from a study on the experiences of orphan care among Langi people of Amach sub-county in Lira District, northern Uganda, and discusses their policy implications. The study utilised the following methods in data collection: eight months of ethnographic fieldwork; 21 in-depth interviews with community leaders; 45 with heads of households caring for orphans; 35 with orphans; and five focus group discussions. The findings revealed that the Langi people have an inherently problematic orphan concept, which contribute toward discriminatory attitudes and practices against orphans. The clan based decision-making to care for orphans, the category of kin a particular orphan ends up living with, the sex and age of the orphan, as well as the cessation of the 'widow-inheritance' custom emerged as prominent factors which impact on orphan care. Thus there is the need to draw upon such local knowledge in policy making and intervention planning for orphans. The paper concludes with a discussion of potential approaches to alleviating the current orphan challenges among the Langi people.
据估计，乌干达约有200万孤儿，约占该国儿童总数的19%。本文介绍了一项关于乌干达北部利拉区阿马赫次县兰吉族孤儿照料经历的研究结果，并讨论了其政策含义。该研究在数据收集过程中采用了以下方法：为期八个月的人种志田野调查；对社区领袖进行21次深度访谈；对照顾孤儿的户主进行45次访谈；对35名孤儿进行访谈；以及5次焦点小组讨论。研究结果表明，兰吉族对孤儿的概念本身就存在问题，这导致了对孤儿的歧视态度和行为。基于氏族的照顾孤儿的决策、特定孤儿最终与之生活的亲属类别、孤儿的性别和年龄，以及“寡妇继承”习俗的废止，成为影响孤儿照料的突出因素。因此，在为孤儿制定政策和干预计划时，有必要借鉴此类当地知识。本文最后讨论了缓解兰吉族目前孤儿问题的潜在方法。
