4 Motivational Life Lessons From A Former Child Soldier
One person can accomplish a lot regardless of the circumstances of their birth.
In 1978 aged just five years old, Aki Ra saw his parents killed by the Khmer Rouge, the army formed in Cambodia by dictator Pol Pot. Pol Pot and his Khmer Rouge led Cambodia via a rule of terror that killed nearly a quarter of Cambodia’s seven million people.
Orphaned, he was taken to a Khmer Rouge military training camp. Even though he was only five, Aki was taught to lay mines, fire guns and rocket launchers, and make simple bombs. When he turned ten, he was given a gun — an AK-47 that was almost the same size as him. He was now a full soldier for the Khmer Rouge, the same group responsible for killing his parents.
At age 14, his village was overthrown by the Vietnamese army, and he was given a choice. Fight for them or die. And so he joined the Vietnamese Army fighting against the Khmer Rouge. In 1989, Vietnam abandoned Cambodia, and Aki was forced into the Cambodian army — the third different army he had involuntarily joined. Throughout his time with these armies, Aki was forced to lay thousands of landmines in villages and surrounding areas.
In 1993, Aki decided that instead of fighting, his new trade would be demining. He would return to…
