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Uganda - History Of The War - Invisible Children
UGANDA TODAY
Since 2003, night commuting has all but ceased for the children of northern Uganda. A temporary truce between the Ugandan government and the LRA has held for more than a year, and as peace continues to progress, many nations, including the US, have appointed special envoys to oversee this process. This current cessation of hostilities marks the longest period of peace in the North for more than 20 years, and while the hope for peace is strong and the talks have made significant strides in reducing the conflict, a declaration for lasting peace has yet to be signed. In Gulu and the surrounding districts, issues concerning the nature of justice for victims and perpetrators for war crimes are presently being debated.
With peace now in sight, greater focus is being placed on the aftermath of the conflict. Currently the majority of northern Uganda’s population lives in IDP camps, and while the desire is for them to return home, the issues surrounding their return are complex. Some have been displaced for more than a decade, and their former ways of life are all but gone. Access to clean water, economic opportunities, health centers, and education are a pressing concern in daily life and even more so for the many who contemplate a return to resource-barren villages.
In light of the current situation and a nearing peace, Invisible Children is addressing the need for access to education and economic development through three innovative programs on the ground. To learn more about these programs and how you can contribute to lasting peace and development click here.
THE WAR IN NORTHERN UGANDA
A HISTORY OF AFRICA’S LONGEST RUNNING WAR
The war in northern Uganda has been called the most neglected humanitarian emergency in the world today. For the past 21 years, the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) and the Ugandan government have been waging a war that has left nearly two million innocent civilians caught in the middle. The Ugandan government has failed to protect its citizens from this rebel militia that has murdered mothers and buried the young, leaving an entire generation of youth that has never known peace.
The LRA rebel movement can be traced back to a woman named Alice Lakwena. In the 1980s, Lakwena believed the Holy Spirit spoke to her and ordered her to overthrow the Ugandan government for being unjust to the Acholis. Lakwena and her followers, known as the Holy Spirit Movement, gained momentum as resentment toward the government increased. When Lakwena was exiled and no clear leader of the movement was left, Joseph Kony, who claimed to be Lakwena’s cousin, took control and transformed Lakwena’s rebel army into the LRA.
Kony’s LRA did not receive the same support as the Holy Spirit Movement because of their extreme tactics. With dwindling support for their cause and heightened government offensives, the rebels resorted to abducting children and indoctrinating them into their ranks. It is estimated that more than 90% of the LRA’s troops are children.
In 1996, as a response to the LRA attacks in the villages, the Ugandan government forcibly evicted thousands from their homes and relocated them into overcrowded camps in hopes of providing protection. But over a decade later roughly 1.5 million individuals live in these camps and struggle to survive among the effects of abject poverty, rampant disease, and near-certain starvation.
In recent years more and more international attention has been focused on this crisis. In 2001, the US Patriot Act officially declared the LRA to be a terrorist organization, a huge step in drawing attention to the conflict and the atrocities committed by the LRA. In 2004, Congress passed the Northern Uganda Crisis Response Act, the first piece of American legislation to address this disaster. And in 2005, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Joseph Kony and four of his top commanders.
Pressure from the international community and a strong desire to realize peace has brought the Ugandan government and the LRA to the negotiating table on numerous occasions, though they have yet to find a peaceful resolution. The most recent talks commenced in Juba, Sudan in July 2006, and a cessation of hostility agreement was signed the following month. In July 2007, the US appointed Tim Shortley as Senior Advisor to Assistant Secretary Jendayi Frazer for Conflict Resolution with his immediate focus on northern Uganda, an action that solidified the US’s dedication to ending this conflict. For the talks to come to a peaceful resolution, five agenda items must be agreed upon between the LRA and the Ugandan government. With only two agendas remaining, these negotiations represent the best chance this war has seen for peace.
Since 2003, night commuting has all but ceased for the children of northern Uganda. A temporary truce between the Ugandan government and the LRA has held for more than a year, and as peace continues to progress, many nations, including the US, have appointed special envoys to oversee this process. This current cessation of hostilities marks the longest period of peace in the North for more than 20 years, and while the hope for peace is strong and the talks have made significant strides in reducing the conflict, a declaration for lasting peace has yet to be signed. In Gulu and the surrounding districts, issues concerning the nature of justice for victims and perpetrators for war crimes are presently being debated.
With peace now in sight, greater focus is being placed on the aftermath of the conflict. Currently the majority of northern Uganda’s population lives in IDP camps, and while the desire is for them to return home, the issues surrounding their return are complex. Some have been displaced for more than a decade, and their former ways of life are all but gone. Access to clean water, economic opportunities, health centers, and education are a pressing concern in daily life and even more so for the many who contemplate a return to resource-barren villages.
In light of the current situation and a nearing peace, Invisible Children is addressing the need for access to education and economic development through three innovative programs on the ground. To learn more about these programs and how you can contribute to lasting peace and development click here.
THE WAR IN NORTHERN UGANDA
A HISTORY OF AFRICA’S LONGEST RUNNING WAR
The war in northern Uganda has been called the most neglected humanitarian emergency in the world today. For the past 21 years, the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) and the Ugandan government have been waging a war that has left nearly two million innocent civilians caught in the middle. The Ugandan government has failed to protect its citizens from this rebel militia that has murdered mothers and buried the young, leaving an entire generation of youth that has never known peace.
The LRA rebel movement can be traced back to a woman named Alice Lakwena. In the 1980s, Lakwena believed the Holy Spirit spoke to her and ordered her to overthrow the Ugandan government for being unjust to the Acholis. Lakwena and her followers, known as the Holy Spirit Movement, gained momentum as resentment toward the government increased. When Lakwena was exiled and no clear leader of the movement was left, Joseph Kony, who claimed to be Lakwena’s cousin, took control and transformed Lakwena’s rebel army into the LRA.
Kony’s LRA did not receive the same support as the Holy Spirit Movement because of their extreme tactics. With dwindling support for their cause and heightened government offensives, the rebels resorted to abducting children and indoctrinating them into their ranks. It is estimated that more than 90% of the LRA’s troops are children.
In 1996, as a response to the LRA attacks in the villages, the Ugandan government forcibly evicted thousands from their homes and relocated them into overcrowded camps in hopes of providing protection. But over a decade later roughly 1.5 million individuals live in these camps and struggle to survive among the effects of abject poverty, rampant disease, and near-certain starvation.
In recent years more and more international attention has been focused on this crisis. In 2001, the US Patriot Act officially declared the LRA to be a terrorist organization, a huge step in drawing attention to the conflict and the atrocities committed by the LRA. In 2004, Congress passed the Northern Uganda Crisis Response Act, the first piece of American legislation to address this disaster. And in 2005, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Joseph Kony and four of his top commanders.
Pressure from the international community and a strong desire to realize peace has brought the Ugandan government and the LRA to the negotiating table on numerous occasions, though they have yet to find a peaceful resolution. The most recent talks commenced in Juba, Sudan in July 2006, and a cessation of hostility agreement was signed the following month. In July 2007, the US appointed Tim Shortley as Senior Advisor to Assistant Secretary Jendayi Frazer for Conflict Resolution with his immediate focus on northern Uganda, an action that solidified the US’s dedication to ending this conflict. For the talks to come to a peaceful resolution, five agenda items must be agreed upon between the LRA and the Ugandan government. With only two agendas remaining, these negotiations represent the best chance this war has seen for peace.
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