Urgent Protection And Peace Needed For Civilians, Especially Children, in Northern Uganda

A humanitarian catastrophe is occurring in northern Uganda. As part of increased counter-terrorism efforts following the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States, Ugandan military forces have intensified their fight against the rebel group the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) in northern Uganda through Operation Iron Fist. Ironically, instead of making the region safer for civilians after 17 years of civil war, Operation Iron Fist, which was launched in March 2002, has made the situation dramatically worse. It has led to new heights of human suffering, particularly for children and adolescents, who comprise more than half the population and are principal targets of war. The United States provides military support to the Ugandan government for its war in the north, while simultaneously providing millions of dollars in humanitarian and development support to the region that cannot take hold due to the insecurity. Without urgent diplomatic action from the United States and other western governments for a peaceful solution, their investments in the region are in serious jeopardy, and civilians, especially young people, will continue to suffer horrific abuses. Ugandan Military Action Has Led to Increased Child Abductions and Child Deaths in Combat
The LRA is primarily responsible for the carnage in northern Uganda, and the Women’s Commission for Refugee Women and Children calls on the LRA to immediately end its attacks against civilians and release those it has abducted. However, the Ugandan government shares responsibility because it has not protected its own population from the attacks. UNICEF estimates more than 8,000 children have been abducted by the LRA since June 2002, the highest rate of abduction ever. During the past 17 years of conflict, more than 20,000 children have been seized by the LRA, sometimes directly under the watch of the Ugandan military. U.S. and European governments have categorized the LRA as a terrorist organization, but its ranks are filled with abducted children, forced to fight and act as human shields by rebel leaders. Thousands have managed to escape captivity, but thousands of others have been killed or remain essentially slaves, forced to become child soldiers, sexual slaves and laborers. Young fighters are rarely rescued by the Ugandan military, and instead many are killed in battle. The Sudan government has contributed to the violence by harboring the LRA and ensuring its weapons supply.

Increased Conflict Exacerbates Internal Displacement and the Humanitarian Crisis
The number of internally displaced persons (IDPs) has skyrocketed in the past year from 500,000 to more than 800,000 – about 80 percent of the Acholi region’s population – as the LRA has stepped up attacks against civilians. The World Food Program has not had enough food to meet the new demand, and due to increased insecurity, civilians have not been able to plant and harvest. Humanitarian assistance operations have simultaneously become severely curtailed by the insecurity, creating serious unmet needs in the north. Last month, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported that: “Northern Uganda is currently facing the worst humanitarian crisis the region has ever seen. Food, health care, water, sanitation and shelter are all in short supply, as almost all humanitarian organizations who were working in the area have been forced out, unable to protect their staff from LRA attacks.” The crisis threatens to undo significant investments by donor governments, NGOs and community leaders focused on creating peace, security and opportunities for development in northern Uganda.

Increased Conflict in the North Constrains the Fight against HIV/AIDS
Although Uganda has been recognized for its achievements in fighting HIV/AIDS, including with substantial support from the United States, the epidemic rages on in the north. The percentage of pregnant women with HIV has declined significantly countrywide, yet the northern district of Gulu still has the highest prevalence rate of HIV in the country. Additionally, insecure roads prevent health care workers from traveling to rural villages and IDP camps in the north to deliver critical medicine and HIV prevention counseling.

Increased Conflict Prevents Children and Adolescents in the North from Attending School
Read about Angelina Acheng Atyam, Chair of the Concerned Parents Association (CPA) and mother of six whose daughter was among 139 girls abducted from their school in northern Uganda by the LRA in October 1996.President Bush asserted in his January 2003 address to the African Growth and Opportunity Act Forum that: “Africa’s future depends … on good teachers and schools, and a chance for every child to study and learn.” Children and adolescents in northern Uganda do not have this chance. The conflict in the north has caused many schools to close out of fear of abductions by the LRA, or they have been forced to move to temporary locations and lack infrastructure. The conflict has also caused a loss of livelihood, an increase in child-headed households, and many psychosocial concerns that prohibit children from attending the few schools that still operate.

Lack of Protection Has Led to Extensive Gender-Based Violence Against Girls
Girls have been the victims of particularly egregious atrocities in the conflict. Comprising 20 to 30 percent of all abductions by the LRA, girls are often forced to become the sexual slaves and domestic servants of commanders or other fighters, and are repeatedly raped. Many bear children in the harsh conditions of the bush. With little humanitarian assistance or protection, girls who evade abduction are still at great risk for rape, sexual abuse and exploitation by Ugandan government soldiers, IDP camp and refugee settlement residents, neighbors, family members and adolescent males. These girls endure terrible psychological and physical harm, including dangerous teen pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections. Girls are abused twice: first by the perpetrator of the violence and then by the common view that they have become “defiled” and unacceptable for marriage. Girls who have not been raped live in constant fear of suffering this violence.

Protect the Population in Northern Uganda and Negotiate Peace
Since the U.S. and European governments listed the LRA as a terrorist organization in 2001, some Ugandan officials have stated that they will not negotiate with the LRA. Uganda’s President Museveni has stated a dual commitment to pursuing a peaceful end to the conflict and to the forceful obliteration of the LRA. Operation Iron Fist continues as the principal approach, and the human toll is rising. The announcement on June 29 of millions of dollars more in counter-terrorism support from the United States to Uganda threatens continued disaster. The Ugandan government and the LRA have made and broken their own unilateral cease-fire agreements, and the violence continues to soar. On June 27, the chairman of the Acholi Religious Leaders Peace Initiative (ARLPI) called on the Ugandan government to appeal to the “outside world to help end this war.”

The Women’s Commission for Refugee Women and Children recommends:
* Donor governments put the full force of their diplomacy behind bringing the government of Uganda and the LRA to a peaceful settlement to the conflict. Efforts by ARLPI and local youth, women’s and community organizations, including the Concerned Parents Association, must be supported in this process.
* The United Nations, donor governments and NGOs should publicly call for an end to Operation Iron Fist and condemn abductions and violence by the LRA. The Ugandan government and donor support for the amnesty process must be increased. Peace and reconstruction plans must specifically address the rights of children and adolescents. Donors should also support the newly established Acholi Education Initiative, which helps provide secondary education to young people in northern Uganda, ensuring they will have opportunities to constructively contribute to peace initiatives and the reconstruction of their society.
* The U.N. Security Council should mandate a mechanism to independently monitor the supply of weapons to the LRA, with regular, public reporting on outcomes.
* Donor governments should thoroughly monitor the use of their financial support to the north to ensure that it is benefiting the population. Those that support the Ugandan military, which has failed to protect civilians, should ensure this assistance is not contributing to further human rights violations against children and adolescents, including sexual violence and the exploitation of girls.
* The Ugandan government and military must take immediate steps to secure the protection of all civilians from abduction and attack and create a secure environment in which humanitarian agencies can deliver life-saving assistance. The LRA should immediately cease attacks on and abductions of civilians.
* The release of the abducted children must be a priority in all negotiations. These children must not be held hostage to lack of political will. Their release and reintegration into their communities should be an impetus for vigorous negotiations for lasting peace.