ugnet_: Ugandans Seek Massacre 'revenge' - BBC

[Omar Kezimbira]

Last Updated: Wednesday, 25 February, 2004, 11:03 GMT E-mail this to a friend Printable version

Ugandans seek massacre 'revenge'

The rebels say they are fighting for the rights of the Acholi people Marchers in northern Uganda, protesting against a massacre, have attacked the homes of the ethnic group they blame for the atrocity. At least one man - believed to be an ethnic Acholi - has been stoned to death by the mob in the town of Lira. Rebels of the largely Acholi Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) are accused of killing some 200 people in a refugee camp north of Lira at the weekend. Uganda's army says that since then it has killed 21 of those responsible. About 10,000 people took to the streets of Lira on Wednesday to express their anger at the killings. Q&A: Why haven't the rebels been defeated? In pictures: Barlonya massacre The BBC's Andrew Harding, who is on the march, says a section of the crowd broke away and formed what could only be described as a lynch mob. They began burning homes and threatening the lives of Acholis. Our correspondent reports that he has had to intervene on two occasions to prevent women from being murdered by a gang of men armed with clubs. The police and military have been deployed and have fired gunshots into the air in an attempt to disperse the demonstration. 'Huts torched' Some 4,000 people were living in the Barlonya refugee camp where the massacre took place. The refugee camp near Lira was destroyed They had fled their homes because of fighting elsewhere in northern Uganda. Local MP Charles Angiro said that as the camp was surrounded by rebels, many refugees ran to their grass huts and were burned alive when the insurgents torched them. But a rebel spokesman said civilians were caught in the crossfire as rebels defended themselves against a government attack. A United Nations relief team is due in Lira to decide whether it is safe for aid workers to travel there, and to assess the needs of several thousand people driven out of the camp. Apology Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni has set up camp near Lira, saying he is determined to wipe out the rebels - something he has repeatedly promised to do in the past. Mr Museveni has also issued an apology for what he said were mistakes by the government and army which led to the killings. Museveni apologised to the massacre survivors He said the self-defence militia guarding the camp did not have radios, so it could not alert the army about the attack. He has however disputed the eyewitness reports that 200 civilians died in the massacre, putting the figure at 80. Mr Museveni told the BBC that neighbouring Sudan was supporting and equipping the LRA. He also blamed donors for the Uganda's inability to defeat the rebels, saying they had insisted that he keep military spending down. "Maybe the mistake we made was not to tell them to go to hell," he said. Altogether, the conflict in Uganda is said to have displaced at least one million people. The LRA, led by self-proclaimed mystic Joseph Kony, are known for kidnapping young children to become fighters or sex slaves. Some northern MPs have accused the army of ignoring their plight and not wanting to end the rebellion because it gives commanders the opportunity to make money. E-mail this to a friend Printable version

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