(An update on the Northern Uganda Peace Talks)

Over the last two years, life has begun to return to normal in Northern Uganda. Large numbers of the almost 2 million internally displaced people (IDP’s) throughout the region have started to leave the appalling conditions of camp life behind and have begun to resettle back to their ancestral lands. The child “night commuters” that used to walk miles each night to the relative safety of the towns to sleep on concrete verandas out of fear of being abducted has virtually stopped and the makeshift shelters erected for them dismantled. Those once dependent on meager food rations to survive, are now tending to their own gardens in the hope that their crops will yield a plentiful harvest. People have been filled with optimism that the mediated dialogue between the Ugandan government and the rebel force called the Lords Resistance Army (LRA) known as the Juba peace talks will be fruitful and solidify an end to over 22 years of war. Recently however, new events have occurred which threaten to shatter the relative peace that northern Uganda has been experiencing.

Talks to end the conflict have been on-going since July of 2006 which put forth a framework that would both end active violence and address deeper social and political grievances. As of the end of February, all of the agenda items included in this framework had been agreed upon, with the implementation schedule and final agreement the only remaining components to be signed. However, the LRA rebel leader Joseph Kony failed to turn up for the final signing ceremony in April that would solidify the agreement, due to concerns over how he would face justice for war crimes he committed. The agreement on Accountability and Reconciliation reached in Juba last year between the two parties stipulate that the LRA leadership shall be tried in a Special Division of the High Court in Uganda and also by using Acholi traditional justice mechanisms (Mato Oput) which Kony has agreed to. What has created a great obstacle to solidifying the agreement is the International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrants that have been laid against Kony and other top commanders in the LRA. While the ICC has stated that they would consider dropping the charges if Uganda can prove that they have the means to make the arrests and bring those indicted to justice, this has proven to be difficult. As a result a stalemate has been reached.

In response to Kony’s failure to sign the final peace deal, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni has since officially declared the talks over and on June 2nd, made public their plans to re-launch a military offensive against the rebel group. Uganda’s Army and Defence Publicist Paddy Ankunda echoed his statement by saying: “the negotiations are no more, the man [Kony] doesn’t know what he wants and we have resolved to go the military way.” At the African Union (AU) summit in Egypt last week, the top U.S. diplomat for Africa warned that Kony was re-arming, and said the United Nations should boost its peacekeeping force in the DRC to contain or catch him.

Out of all the attempts to bring peace to Uganda, the Juba peace talks were thought to be the most likely to restore and sustain relative peace to the region. Knowing that a resurgence in violence will cause suffering to many innocent civilians throughout the region, those closest to the grassroots level have cried out to the government to be patient and continue mediated dialogue with the LRA.

While the Ugandan government is sounding the drums of war, the LRA has recently stated their commitment to the peace talks. Speaking from Juba, south Sudan's capital, the U.N. envoy Joachim Chissano reported on June 5th that he had spoken to Kony by satellite telephone. He stated that Kony confirmed that he is committed to signing the final peace deal and wanted another meeting with the mediation team. Previously in an interview with Radio France International, Kony stated: “I want the talks to resume in Juba. I want to go back to the negotiating table again [because] I don’t want to fight again and believe talk can end everything. There is going to be peace through negotiations. I am the one that started the peace talks, so I am not going to refuse anything that will bring peace. I am going to struggle to make sure that this war is resolved.”

Despite such remarks, due to Kony’s failure to show up to prior meetings, many are finding it difficult to trust such a statement. Others have even gone so far as to accuse Kony of taking advantage of the process to rebuild his force through abductions in the Sudan, DRC, and the Central African Republic (CAR) where it is reported that over 1000 people have been captured over the last 5 months, the youngest being 6yrs old. Regardless of whether Kony is serious or not to return to the table, the Ugandan government has made it clear that negotiations are over. In response to Kony’s statement, spokesman for the Ugandan government, Capt. Chris Magezi stated: “We only hope that he will put his pronouncement into practice. We note however, that negotiations were concluded and there will be no re-opening of the negotiations whatsoever.”

Fighting between the LRA and SPLA (South Sudan forces) has been reported in areas bordering Uganda. In response, the government of Uganda has increased its number of forces guarding the border and has assured its people that no LRA have entered the country. However, those who have been victims of LRA attacks have heard these words before and place little trust in the government’s ability to protect them by preventing the LRA from returning to the region.

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The drums of war have been beaten, and the sound has once again brought fear to those who have lived through the violence before. Despite the government urging people to stay calm and not to stop moving back to their villages, fear is prevalent. When in Kitgum (area bordering Sudan) recently, one person said: “when night comes, we enter hell.” He spoke of the attacks that used to happen at night, his escape after being abducted by the rebels, and the renewed fear he now has for his family. Another Ugandan man in his 60’s mentioned: "The last time the rebels came we ran for days and I was almost dying. Now we hear that they are coming again and we are very scared.” There are reports that people have begun to sell off their livestock in preparation for fleeing if violence breaks out once again.

Please join with me to pray for peace for northern Uganda as well as its neighboring countries. Please pray for the safety of those abducted so that one day they can return to their families and for the hearts and minds of the warring parties to be moved towards reconciliation and peace rather than violence. And most of all, please pray for the millions of innocent people who are picking up the pieces of their lives and trying to move forward despite the hardships they have endured. May the drums of war be silenced, and may the melody of peace prevail.