Leaving My homeland A Refugee’s Journey from South Sudan Ellen Rodger Crabtree Publishing Company www crabtreebooks com
Leaving South Sudan South Sudan is a new country in East Africa The people of South Sudan have lived through many conflicts and wars South Sudan became independent from the country of Sudan in 2011 after civil wars in the country More than 1 5 million people died in the wars Four million people fled their homes Today South Sudan is living through a civil war that began in 2013 UN Rights of the Child Every child has rights Rights are privileges and freedoms that are protected by law Refugees have the right to special protection and help The United Nations UN Convention on the Rights of the Child is a document that lists the rights that all children should have Think about these rights as you read this book Many South Sudanese children have been forced to live in refugee camps Juba is the capital of South Sudan It is situated on the Nile River 4
Sudan South Sudan’s flag Central African Republic Sudan lies to the north of South Sudan The country is also bordered by Ethiopia the Central African Republic the Democratic Republic of the Congo DRC Uganda and Kenya Ethiopia South Sudan Juba Uganda Kenya Democratic Republic of the Congo South Sudan is a violent place to live People have left their homes to save their lives They escaped to areas of the country that are safer These people are called internally displaced persons IDPs Many have also traveled to neighboring countries They are refugees Refugees are people who flee their homeland because of conflict They are different from immigrants Immigrants choose to leave to seek better opportunities in a different country 5
