New Data on the LRA’s Threat to Civilians: The Resolve and Invisible
Children Release LRA Crisis Tracker Midyear Security Brief
Posted by Enough Team on Jul 26, 2016
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Note: This post was written by Enough Project Intern Will Cullen.
This week, Enough Project partners The Resolve and Invisible Children
released the LRA Crisis Tracker Midyear 2016 Security Brief. The brief
analyzes the latest data on attacks, abductions, and whereabouts of
the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) gathered over the first six months of
2016. Providing up-to-date data on LRA activities and abuses gathered
from diverse sources including hand-held radio reporting from affected
communities and open-source news outlets, the crisis tracker is a
crucial tool for efforts to address the LRA’s threats and improve
security for LRA-affected civilian communities in the region.
The report indicates that although LRA leader Joseph Kony’s control
over the group’s command structure is eroding, the LRA still poses a
grave threat to civilians. In the first six months of 2016, the LRA
abducted 344 people in Central African Republic (CAR), which is more
than within the first six months of any year since 2010. In total,
between January and June 2016, the LRA abducted 498 civilians and
killed 17 during 122 attacks, nearly all occurring in eastern CAR and
northern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Two exceptions were in
Sudanese-controlled areas of the Kafia Kingi enclave, the first
credibly reported LRA attacks on civilians there since the group
established a presence in the area in 2010.
Although LRA violence in northern DRC decreased in Quarter 1 (January-
March 2016), attacks and abductions more than doubled in Quarter 2
(April- May), which the brief attributes to the influx of LRA ivory
poachers in Garamba National Park. The report indicates that the
primary motives of the attacks were to increase food reserves, collect
easily-transported valuables, and forcibly recruit children to build
up the LRA’s militia.
Although the LRA released 12 women and children near Bangadi, DRC,
they abducted 65 Central African children, 39 of whom remain in
captivity. Fifteen teenage boys defected so far in 2016. One LRA
combatant defector noted in April 2016, “The commanders of our group
received orders from Kony to abduct young boys and transfer them to
Awila’s group for training. In early 2016, we began abducting boys in
Central Africa [CAR]. When we attacked, we gathered large groups of
people. Then we would pick strong, healthy boys between the ages of
11–14 and keep them.”
For more information on the LRA Crisis Tracker and to download the
full report, visit the Crisis Tracker website, or download the LRA
Crisis Tracker APP.
Lord's Resistance Army
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