By Dr Ben O. Latigo
March 6, 2004
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In a civil society with a responsible government, the NRM Government would have accepted responsibility for the carnage exacted on the population by both the LRA rebels and elements within the Government army over the 18 years of the insurgency. There are currently over 1.2 million civilians in Uganda forced to live in internally displaced people�s camps by the UPDFdue to the LRA insurgency. In these death camps, the Uganda Government is unable to provide even the basics in terms of security, health and sanitation, education, and social services to 5 percent of its population.
This is not counting the thousands that trek in and out of towns such as Gulu to seek security in hospitals, bus stations, and shop verandas every night. In the heat of the political campaign in the United States, Senator John Edwards who is currently running second on the Democratic Party ticket to Senator John Kerry is campaigning on a one-America theme, and challenging the two-America model of the halves and have-nots that appear to be the hallmark of the current Bush Administration. A two-Uganda model could not be too far from the truth in present day Uganda. Look at plush houses in Kololo, Muyenga, Nakasero, Buziga and the plight of owners of these mansions as they weave their plush cars to their hideaways through dirt roads. Some have to buy an additional piece of land for road access since the communities are unplanned. These are the halves. Then there are the others in the IDP camps in Gulu, Kitgum Pader, Lira, and elsewhere. These have-nots are joined by thousands of orphans in the streets of Kampala and other towns who live, day-to-day, in decrepit conditions without much else to look forward to. I was in Gulu attending a peace workshop in May 2003 and a woman from Kampala who had visited an IDP for the first time the day before broke down as she made a contribution at the workshop. She revealed that she was unaware that there were people in Uganda living against their will under such conditions, and lamented how a government could accept such for its citizens. The visit to the IDP brought a two-Uganda model vividly to her. The recent attacks by the LRA rebels on IDP camps in Lira has exacted a carnage in two weeks only matched by another at Atiak in Gulu district early 1995, purportedly led by LRA�s �Brigadier� Vincent Otti in which he butchered over 300 people from his own home area. Recently, another large number of IDPs perished at Pabo IDP camp when fire broke out in the camp under suspicious circumstances, as the UPDF responded to an apparent LRA attack. The response by President Museveni to these apparent LRA attacks has, at best, been very insensitive. In the first attack at the IDP camp in Lira, he summoned newspaper editors to lecture them on the �proper� terminology to use in describing the attacks and also to describe what went wrong with communication between the local UPDF command and the Amuka militia in responding to the attack. In the second attack, President Museveni responded with yet another explanation of how the UPDF Command failed. He simply transferred the commander to the UPDF headquarters at Bombo while praising him for his previous service. The President appears to have a knack for instant solutions to these problems and a penchant for explaining things that need no explanation. One would guess that if the Acholi and Langi were not biological substances, as one NRM ideologue previously characterised northerners, he would not be able to sleep at night since an instant LRA solution has evaded him for almost 18 years. Fortunately for him, he does not have to worry about this loss of lives. Then again he might; when he is 80 and in retirement at Rwakitura, and looking back at what could have been his legacy. These actions and responses are insufficient, especially for a government that has been in power for 18 years, without opposition. In any other civil society with a government that is for the people and by the people, the least that should be expected is a resignation by the top military brass, the Minister of Defence, and the President himself. No amount of explanation is necessary at this time. Archbishop John Baptist Odama warned the people of Teso and Lango against getting embroiled in militia operations against the LRA. This is the role of the UPDF, the national army. Unfortunately, his predications have now come true. President Museveni must realise and accept that �Operation Iron Fist� has failed and that the military option against the LRA has taken the country to the brink of disaster. The ultimate solution is to accept an immediate third-party negotiation in a spirit of openness and trust. How long can Ugandans accept this carnage? Is the life and lifelong ambitions of President Museveni worth so much more than those of thousands being sacrificed in the IDP camps? Why is Parliament not outraged by these developments?
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� 2004 The Monitor Publications
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