EU doubts military solution to Uganda civil war
KAMPALA (Reuters) - The European Union's representative in Uganda said Wednesday the bloc doubted Uganda's 17-year civil war with rebels in north would be ended by military muscle.
Last year President Yoweri Museveni deployed more than 14,000 troops backed by helicopter gunships, tanks and artillery to try to wipe out the Lord's Resistance Army, or LRA, rebels, giving a deadline of the end of February this year.
But the LRA, which is feared for abducting children to use as soldiers and sex slaves, has continued with its attacks.
"We have severe doubts about ending this war militarily," the EU's head of delegation Sigurd Illing told a news conference. "We are encouraging the government to explore peaceful means to end the war."
Led by self-proclaimed prophet Joseph Kony, the rebels say they are fighting to overthrow Museveni's government but have never spelt out detailed demands in public.
Many Ugandans say the war has already lasted too long and have called on the government to negotiate with the rebels. However, Illing acknowledged that opening dialogue with the LRA was difficult.
"I have not met anyone who has met Kony face-to-face in the last two or three years," said Illing, who heads a committee of international aid donors discussing the civil war.
Aid agencies estimate that about one million people have been displaced from northern Uganda because of rebel activity.
10/29/03 10:43 ET
