This brother also tells of a different kind of problem that arose:

“Soldiers came to our home in the evening. They asked me several questions, and I told them that I was one of Jehovah’s Witnesses. They wanted to take my daughters for the night. On their own initiative, my daughters refused and said they would not go. The men threatened to kill them, but still the girls resisted. They had in mind the words of Jesus at Matthew 10:28 and Revelation 2:10, which we had earlier discussed in our family study. Finally, the men decided to leave them alone.

“The girls of the world who consented to go with the soldiers were sexually abused. We are grateful to Jehovah for the way he continues to care for us in these perilous times.”

Sad to say, not all our young sisters escaped so easily. Michael Chikara, a traveling overseer, tells of what one young sister went through. First, she was hit on the chin. Then “while she was recovering from this wound a group of men overpowered her and raped her, with the result that she now has a child.”

Brother Chikara also tells of an experience related to him by a 17-year-old sister. This is her sad story: “I was forcibly taken by soldiers and beaten on four different occasions, twice by soldiers on one side and twice by those on the other side.

“The first time I was beaten I was uncertain if I would even live. While I was recovering from this beating, soldiers of the other side came to the area, collecting all the young girls and forcing them to attend their meetings.

“On this occasion one man demanded that I spread a blanket for him on the ground and insisted that I sleep with him. I ran away, crying, followed by this man. Another one joined him in trying to force me to commit an immoral act. I was struck down with the butt of a gun, but as I fell I cried out loud so that eventually they left me. I then mingled with a big crowd of people who were present and was later helped home in the dark without the knowledge of those who had accosted me.

“A few months later another band of soldiers came to our area and took me, along with nine other girls, claiming that we had been serving as girl friends for those on the opposing side. Of course, in my case this was not true. All of us were beaten until we were not able to move for weeks. All together, I was beaten four times.”

This fine young sister continues to remain spiritually strong even though she is the only one in her family who is in the truth.

A BRAVE LITTLE WITNESS

One thrilling case was that of Catherine Mbona, a 14-year-old sister in the Eastern Districts, who was abducted. Her parents (her father, Michael, has been a pioneer for many years) wondered if they would ever see her again. Imagine their joy and relief when, a few days later, she was returned to their village, unharmed.

“What did they do to you?” they asked Catherine. “Nothing,” she said.

“What were you doing, then, all the time you were away?”

“I was speaking to them about Jehovah. I was witnessing.”

A few days later the leader of the soldier band appeared in the village and sought out the girl’s parents. The parents were quite apprehensive as to the reason for this visit. However, this man had made a special journey to the village to commend the parents on how well they had brought up their daughter.