No peace yet, northern MPS tell Bantariza
Ssemujju Ibrahim Nganda & Richard Kavuma
MPs from war ravaged Acholi districts have dismissed as untrue claims by the army that peace has returned in the sub-region and people would enjoy Christmas celebrations.“There is no peace completely when our people are suffering,” said Santa Okot Woman MP for Pader when raised yesterday.
She said hundreds of her constituents are still displaced. The MP said that about 10 of her relatives had fled Pader and have camped at her residence.
She said the Army Spokesman Maj. Shaban Bantariza might have meant his family and other soldiers and not the people of Acholi.
Army Spokesman told the weekly cabinet briefing Thursday that people in the war torn northern Uganda will have a peaceful Christmas holiday. Bantariza said that because of the prevailing peace Army Commander Maj. Gen. James Kazini would not resign. Kazini vowed to resign if he had not killed Lord Resistance Army (LRA) leader Joseph Kony by Dec. 31.
Agago MP Prof. Moris Latigo said Bantariza might have made the statement to make his boss Kazini celebrate Christmas in peace but not the people of northern Uganda
“What miracle is it going to happen between today and Christmas?” asked Latigo.
He said efforts to end the war have been made but it is misleading on the part of the army to proclaim victory.
He said even newspapers have stopped reporting on many of the incidents that show the intensity of insecurity in the region.
“To the people of Gulu this news would be a huge joke,” said Aswa County MP Ronald Reagan Okumu.
Okumu said that if there are only 500 rebels remaining and they are the ones who have made movements very difficult, there must be a big problem with UPDF.
He said the proclamation of victory is not new and that even President Yoweri Museveni has always done it.
He said it is unfortunate for Bantariza to claim victory and return of peace, when hundreds of students are trapped in Lira and Gulu.
He said UPDF has won some battles but not the war. H! e said p eople lived in relative peace between September last year and March this year compared to today.
Kitgum Woman MP Jane Akwero Odong who returned from home just two days ago, said that what is pertaining is just calmness and not peace.
She said if Bantariza’s claim is true, they would be happy to join in celebrations.
Youth MP for Northern Uganda Dan Fred Kidega said the remarks by Bantariza are unfortunate. He said the absence of war doesn’t mean peace.
Kidega said the attainment of peace means much more than the end of the war. He said peace entails reconstruction of the region. He said today children are no longer respecting their parents because of absence of adequate education.
He said that while he appreciates efforts of UPDF, it is erroneous to claim victory yet.
Bantariza himself said when raised yesterday that although the war against LRA rebels was virtually over, it was not yet safe for people to leave the protected camps.
The army recently ordered all people inn the war torn Northern Uganda to vacate their villages and move into protected villages. The measure was meant to allow UPDF to finish off the rebels from their hideouts with civilians safe in the camps.
“The war is over, yes,” Bantariza said on phone. “But there are still skirmishes with the bandits.”
Pressed further on the need for the protected villages, Bantariza said, “War is a strategic issue [and] that is over. But then there is murder; that one is a tactical issue.”
He said it takes only two rifles for the remnants of the LRA (Lord’s Resistance Army) to kill 100 people going about their normal life in a village.
Bantariza declared on Thursday that the army had basically won the war against the LRA, which is led by Joseph Kony.
December 21, 2002 03:39:52
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