UPDF exact revenge.......
On the evening of 24 February 2005, a UPDF lorrry entered an LRA ambush at Latanya in Lagoro subcounty, Chua county in Kitgum district. When news reached civilians that UPDF losses numbered upto 30 soldiers, people feared the worst. For it has become common practise, in the 19 years that the UPDF have been in Northern Uganda that whenever the UPDF suffer any losses, it comes after the civilian population, seeking revenge. It was against this backdrop that the two camps situated near Latanya - Kitgum Matidi and Lagoro, waited for the UPDF backlash fearing the worst.
The UPDF entered Kitgum Matidi camp at about 8pm. Any male person whether young or old that the UPDF came across were simply grabbed and taken to the compound of what used to be Kitgum M atidi primary school. Many dozen civilians were taken. It was at the "primary school" that work/the torture began. The civilians received relentless beatings right through the night. It is unclear how many may have lost the battle for life. But in the morning of 25 February 2005, St. Joseph's hospital Kitgum received many civilians with head injuries. For example Mr. Olanya was admitted requiring 15 stitches to his head wound. He spent the whole of February and March 2005 at St. Joseph's hospital.
At Lagoro camp, the people knowing what the UPDF would do, went to bed early. By 7pm, there was no sign of human activity at Lagoro camp. But even this did not deter the UPDF. The UPDF went from hut to hut plucking out civilians. Many were taken away by the UPDF and until today have never been seen nor heard from again (presumed to have been killed by the UPDF). Two of those presumed dead are James Nyeko and John Okech. Mrs Nyeko was tortured and raped whilst h er husband was being taken away by the UPDF. The following day, she was taken to the nearby Kitgum Matidi dispensary, but the nurses there could not safe her baby (she had a miscarriage).
Lagungu-gungu in Rackoko...
On 18 February 2005, a group of 14 year old girls set off from Rac-koko in Aruu county to go and harvest grass to thatch their parents' huts. They left the camp for Bolo village, all in Pader district. Some of the girls were identified as Sunday Amony, Lawino, Ayugi and Maria.
It was as they left that they noticed they were being followed by a group of UPDF soldiers (the girls counted 13 government soldiers). Whilst the UPDF have got a sinister reputation, the girls hopped for the best and that �God willing� nothing terrible wo uld happen to them. When they reached the village and started cutting the grass they went for, the same group of UPDF soldiers emerged from nowhere. As a pretext, one of the UPDF soldiers started making claims that Sunday Amony was infact his ex-wife who ran away from him whilst he was at Pajule. This prompted the girls to explain to the soldiers that their friend at 14, was a year 2 secondary pupil at Rac-Koko secondary. The rest of the UPDF soldiers then came and grabbed Amony and carried her to a last remaining hut, in an abandoned home. Soon afterwards, the girls could hear Amony's scream. The rest of the UPDF soldiers then came for the remaining girls.
Maria decided not to wait for what was coming. She ran as fast as she could but the 3 UPDF soldiers who were giving her chase caught up with. The UPDF then beat Maria until blood was oozing from her head. Maria was brought back and raped with the rest of her friends.
After the UPDF had finished with the girls, they warned them that should the girls report what had happenned to them to people in the camp, they (the UPDF) would come back and kill all of them, including members of their family. Despite the threats, the girls reported the incident to people at the camp and the matter was taken to the UPDF authorities. But as as ever, nothing was done to the UPDF rapists.
Aringa massacre, the true story...
In April 2005, it was reported in the Ugandan media that the UPDF shot and killed 5 Acholi women who had gone fishing. The report further said the UPDF mistakenly took the 5 women for LRA rebels. This, like much of the stories coming out of Northern Uganda through official channels was nothing but a distortion of what actually took place (suc h lies are often propagated by the UPDF to keep whoever wants to know in the dark about what REALLY is happening in Northern Uganda). Here is the truth of what happenned.
On 22 April 2005, about 20 civilians left Mucwini camp to go fishing in Aringa river (about 1.5 kms away). The civilan party included both women, men and the youth. The civilians travelled in groups. When the first group finished fishing, they then left Aringa heading back for the camp. This group included mainly women and the youth. As the civilian party travelled towards the camp, they came across soldiers of the UPDF. The UPDF did not bother with them (they were not stopped nor were they asked any questions). When the second group of civilians came across the same group of UPDF soldiers who numbered about 15, they were all ordered to stop and sit down. It was at this point that the UPDF started demanding to see the civilians ID. The civilians explained everything to the UPDF (i.e. tha t they were from Mucwini camp, which was only 15 minute walk away and that if they UPDF did not believe them, they could go and meet the camp leader).
The UPDF's reaction to the civilians' explanation was to unleash bouts of beatings. It was whilst the civilians who numbered about a dozen were being beaten that another (unrelated civilian) emerged out of the bush carrying a piece of stick. This latest civilian had been hunting wild beast (for food). The UPDF did not waste time with him by asking for his identitification. He was shot on the spot. Having shot the first civilian the UPDF then turned its attention to the other people it was holding. The UPDF started shooting them. At this point some of the men got up and started running for their lives. The UPDF rained fire on them too. Those who were seated, including 4 women were shot by the UPDF whilst they sat down. When the UPDF had finished, 10 people had been killed. The eleventh person who narrated to people in the camp what actually happened, died the following day from gunshot wounds.
Whilst this was a massacre the UPDF could not deny, it nevertheless came out with one of its template responses i.e. that it mistook the civilians for the LRA (usually it claims that the massacres were carried out by the LRA). Whether it assumed the civilians (who incidentally were carrying fish back to the camp) were LRA rebels of not, the fact remains that the civilians were murdered whilst in UPDF custody.
UPDF abduct, murder, children in Adilang....
On 9 April 2005, 4 girls set off from Adilang camp to go and collect firewood from their abandoned homesteads. The girls who were in their mid-teens were identified as Joska Akello, Paska Achola, Mary Akidi an d Pamela Aryemo. When the girls got to their former homestead, they separated with each going to collect firewood in a different direction. The only survivor amongst them, Akello narrates that as she had finished gathering her firewood, she waited in vain for her friends. It was after a long wait that she dicided to rush back to the camp and seek help from other people. At the camp, when she explained how her friends had mysteriously vanished, news spread fast and people went to meet the UPDF commander. The UPDF agreed for the civilians to go out and look for their missing friends.
Not long after the civilians had left the camp, they came across the UPDF. The UPDF ordered the civilians to stop. They then demanded from the civilians where they were going. When the civilians explained, the UPDF bagan chasing them to go back to the camp. The UPDF said it was already too late (which was strange as the time was only 12.45pm). When the civilians showed reluctance , the UPDF then started hitting them. Akidi's mother was hit on the head with the metal back of a UPDF gun. She had a swollen head from beatings received from the UPDF.
On the morning of 10 April 2005 and with no news of the girls, even a larger number of civilians decided to leave the camp to go looking for the girls. This time the civilians did not meet with the UPDF. On reaching the suspected area, the civilians ventured into an abandoned homestead. At the entrance, they found Akidi's blouse drenched in blood. A few steps away they found her underwear. When the civilians entered a hut, they found Akidi's body - with her skirt placed upon her face. Akidi had been raped and strangled until she died. Outside the hut, there were footmarks of soldiers all over the compound (in Uganda, soldiers wear distinct footwear/shoes - which is unique and available only to them). There were also empty cans of "Tyson waragi" and cigarete filters all over the compound. The bodies of Aryemo and Achola were not found for another week (having badly decomposed). Their remains were found far away from where Akidi was killed. They too had been murdered in the most vicious way.
When the above murders were reported to the UPDF, they blamed the LRA. But as everyone knows in Northern Uganda, the LRA do not drink, let alone drink "Tyson waragi". The above murders were the actions of non other than the UPDF.
And the killings continue....
In April 2005, a local newspaper reported thus;
"GULU district councillors have accused UPDF soldiers of killing civilians in displaced people's camps and in the villages.
The LC5 councillor for Lalogi sub-county, Ben Acellam, said the UPDF shot dead three women in the sub-county, adding that two of them had children, one aged seven months and another aged two.
He said the UPDF 4th division commander, Col. Nathan Mugisha, had promised to take action against the killers but so far nothing seemed to have been done.
"UPDF soldiers are arresting and killing civilians in the villages on the allegations that they are rebel collaborators," he said during a meeting at Gulu district council hall on Tuesday".
Meanwhile an international radio station reported on the situation in Lango as follows;
"Alito, Apach district, northern Uganda, - In the latest increase of satanic ritual murders being carried out on innocent defenceless Acholi and Langi civilians; soldiers of Uganda army on Thursday night (April 28th) killed three Langi civilians in Alito, Apac distict north of Uganda. Eye witnesses from Alito reported soldiers of Uganda army from a nearby government military outpost stormed the home of their victims late in the night, brutally beat up a couple and their neighbour, and while using sharp knives inflicted deep cuts all over the bodies of their victims, and continued slashing the dead bodies almost dismembering them. An eye witness who saw the identities of the killers and witnessed the killing, confirmed it was soldiers of Uganda army from a nearby military outpost. The witness said for fear of reprisal he was too afraid to report to the Uganda army officers and local authorities. Speaking in confidence to certain persons during the funeral of the couple and their neighbour this weekend, the eye witness identified one of the government soldiers (who turned up at the funeral) as one of those soldiers who had slained the trio victims. Using its usual habitual line of lies and denials; Uganda army blamed the satanic ritual murders on `soldiers of the Lords Resistance Army.�"
UPDF rape, sodomise Padibe
On 25 March 2005, UPDF soldiers who were from Lalak hills in Padibe west sub-county invaded Padibe camp at about 7.15pm. They began arresting men first and making them sit under a big tree which often serves as a market during day time. The UPDF threatened that any one who left would be shot on sight. After the UPDF had collected most of the men, and confi dent that only women were left inside the huts, the UPDF began moving from hut to hut. Any male person who was found still inside their hut was beaten up seriously. The UPDF then demanded that if a civilian wanted their life spared, that they should surrender all the money that they had. The UPDF robbed civilians of money ranging from UG shillings 100 to UG shillings 50,000. For the women, especially any that wasn't classified as old by the UPDF, the UPDF took them to the barracks.
In all, it was estimated that the marauding UPDF soldiers went through 100 homes. By the time they had finished, the UPDF went with 29 women and 6 men to the barracks. When the civilians got the barracks (some of the civilians were identified as Santa Layet, Christine Akullu, Evaline Amwony) they we re all gang raped - including the men. For fear and the stigma that normally goes with sodomy in Northern Uganda, the men said that what the UPDF did to them was to put them in a line - whilst they (the UPDF) unrinated all over them (the truth though was that the UPDF sodomised the men). At around mid-night, the UPDF set the civilians free to go back to the camp. At the camp, the civilians found the men folk still seated underneath the big tree, even though there were no UPDF soldiers watching over them.
The next morning, the UPDF camp commandant went with the people's complaint to the barracks where the rape took place. And to make it appear like the civilians' complaint was being taken seriously, the UPDF put out a statement saying that 2 of its soldiers had been arrested. For the people of Padibe though, who saw over 50 marauding UPDF soldiers attack their camp, even if an arrest took place, detaining 2 out of 50 or more UPDF soldiers was was merely another act of the UPDF of adding insult to injury.
On the evening of 24 February 2005, a UPDF lorrry entered an LRA ambush at Latanya in Lagoro subcounty, Chua county in Kitgum district. When news reached civilians that UPDF losses numbered upto 30 soldiers, people feared the worst. For it has become common practise, in the 19 years that the UPDF have been in Northern Uganda that whenever the UPDF suffer any losses, it comes after the civilian population, seeking revenge. It was against this backdrop that the two camps situated near Latanya - Kitgum Matidi and Lagoro, waited for the UPDF backlash fearing the worst.
The UPDF entered Kitgum Matidi camp at about 8pm. Any male person whether young or old that the UPDF came across were simply grabbed and taken to the compound of what used to be Kitgum M atidi primary school. Many dozen civilians were taken. It was at the "primary school" that work/the torture began. The civilians received relentless beatings right through the night. It is unclear how many may have lost the battle for life. But in the morning of 25 February 2005, St. Joseph's hospital Kitgum received many civilians with head injuries. For example Mr. Olanya was admitted requiring 15 stitches to his head wound. He spent the whole of February and March 2005 at St. Joseph's hospital.
At Lagoro camp, the people knowing what the UPDF would do, went to bed early. By 7pm, there was no sign of human activity at Lagoro camp. But even this did not deter the UPDF. The UPDF went from hut to hut plucking out civilians. Many were taken away by the UPDF and until today have never been seen nor heard from again (presumed to have been killed by the UPDF). Two of those presumed dead are James Nyeko and John Okech. Mrs Nyeko was tortured and raped whilst h er husband was being taken away by the UPDF. The following day, she was taken to the nearby Kitgum Matidi dispensary, but the nurses there could not safe her baby (she had a miscarriage).
Lagungu-gungu in Rackoko...
On 18 February 2005, a group of 14 year old girls set off from Rac-koko in Aruu county to go and harvest grass to thatch their parents' huts. They left the camp for Bolo village, all in Pader district. Some of the girls were identified as Sunday Amony, Lawino, Ayugi and Maria.
It was as they left that they noticed they were being followed by a group of UPDF soldiers (the girls counted 13 government soldiers). Whilst the UPDF have got a sinister reputation, the girls hopped for the best and that �God willing� nothing terrible wo uld happen to them. When they reached the village and started cutting the grass they went for, the same group of UPDF soldiers emerged from nowhere. As a pretext, one of the UPDF soldiers started making claims that Sunday Amony was infact his ex-wife who ran away from him whilst he was at Pajule. This prompted the girls to explain to the soldiers that their friend at 14, was a year 2 secondary pupil at Rac-Koko secondary. The rest of the UPDF soldiers then came and grabbed Amony and carried her to a last remaining hut, in an abandoned home. Soon afterwards, the girls could hear Amony's scream. The rest of the UPDF soldiers then came for the remaining girls.
Maria decided not to wait for what was coming. She ran as fast as she could but the 3 UPDF soldiers who were giving her chase caught up with. The UPDF then beat Maria until blood was oozing from her head. Maria was brought back and raped with the rest of her friends.
After the UPDF had finished with the girls, they warned them that should the girls report what had happenned to them to people in the camp, they (the UPDF) would come back and kill all of them, including members of their family. Despite the threats, the girls reported the incident to people at the camp and the matter was taken to the UPDF authorities. But as as ever, nothing was done to the UPDF rapists.
Aringa massacre, the true story...
In April 2005, it was reported in the Ugandan media that the UPDF shot and killed 5 Acholi women who had gone fishing. The report further said the UPDF mistakenly took the 5 women for LRA rebels. This, like much of the stories coming out of Northern Uganda through official channels was nothing but a distortion of what actually took place (suc h lies are often propagated by the UPDF to keep whoever wants to know in the dark about what REALLY is happening in Northern Uganda). Here is the truth of what happenned.
On 22 April 2005, about 20 civilians left Mucwini camp to go fishing in Aringa river (about 1.5 kms away). The civilan party included both women, men and the youth. The civilians travelled in groups. When the first group finished fishing, they then left Aringa heading back for the camp. This group included mainly women and the youth. As the civilian party travelled towards the camp, they came across soldiers of the UPDF. The UPDF did not bother with them (they were not stopped nor were they asked any questions). When the second group of civilians came across the same group of UPDF soldiers who numbered about 15, they were all ordered to stop and sit down. It was at this point that the UPDF started demanding to see the civilians ID. The civilians explained everything to the UPDF (i.e. tha t they were from Mucwini camp, which was only 15 minute walk away and that if they UPDF did not believe them, they could go and meet the camp leader).
The UPDF's reaction to the civilians' explanation was to unleash bouts of beatings. It was whilst the civilians who numbered about a dozen were being beaten that another (unrelated civilian) emerged out of the bush carrying a piece of stick. This latest civilian had been hunting wild beast (for food). The UPDF did not waste time with him by asking for his identitification. He was shot on the spot. Having shot the first civilian the UPDF then turned its attention to the other people it was holding. The UPDF started shooting them. At this point some of the men got up and started running for their lives. The UPDF rained fire on them too. Those who were seated, including 4 women were shot by the UPDF whilst they sat down. When the UPDF had finished, 10 people had been killed. The eleventh person who narrated to people in the camp what actually happened, died the following day from gunshot wounds.
Whilst this was a massacre the UPDF could not deny, it nevertheless came out with one of its template responses i.e. that it mistook the civilians for the LRA (usually it claims that the massacres were carried out by the LRA). Whether it assumed the civilians (who incidentally were carrying fish back to the camp) were LRA rebels of not, the fact remains that the civilians were murdered whilst in UPDF custody.
UPDF abduct, murder, children in Adilang....
On 9 April 2005, 4 girls set off from Adilang camp to go and collect firewood from their abandoned homesteads. The girls who were in their mid-teens were identified as Joska Akello, Paska Achola, Mary Akidi an d Pamela Aryemo. When the girls got to their former homestead, they separated with each going to collect firewood in a different direction. The only survivor amongst them, Akello narrates that as she had finished gathering her firewood, she waited in vain for her friends. It was after a long wait that she dicided to rush back to the camp and seek help from other people. At the camp, when she explained how her friends had mysteriously vanished, news spread fast and people went to meet the UPDF commander. The UPDF agreed for the civilians to go out and look for their missing friends.
Not long after the civilians had left the camp, they came across the UPDF. The UPDF ordered the civilians to stop. They then demanded from the civilians where they were going. When the civilians explained, the UPDF bagan chasing them to go back to the camp. The UPDF said it was already too late (which was strange as the time was only 12.45pm). When the civilians showed reluctance , the UPDF then started hitting them. Akidi's mother was hit on the head with the metal back of a UPDF gun. She had a swollen head from beatings received from the UPDF.
On the morning of 10 April 2005 and with no news of the girls, even a larger number of civilians decided to leave the camp to go looking for the girls. This time the civilians did not meet with the UPDF. On reaching the suspected area, the civilians ventured into an abandoned homestead. At the entrance, they found Akidi's blouse drenched in blood. A few steps away they found her underwear. When the civilians entered a hut, they found Akidi's body - with her skirt placed upon her face. Akidi had been raped and strangled until she died. Outside the hut, there were footmarks of soldiers all over the compound (in Uganda, soldiers wear distinct footwear/shoes - which is unique and available only to them). There were also empty cans of "Tyson waragi" and cigarete filters all over the compound. The bodies of Aryemo and Achola were not found for another week (having badly decomposed). Their remains were found far away from where Akidi was killed. They too had been murdered in the most vicious way.
When the above murders were reported to the UPDF, they blamed the LRA. But as everyone knows in Northern Uganda, the LRA do not drink, let alone drink "Tyson waragi". The above murders were the actions of non other than the UPDF.
And the killings continue....
In April 2005, a local newspaper reported thus;
"GULU district councillors have accused UPDF soldiers of killing civilians in displaced people's camps and in the villages.
The LC5 councillor for Lalogi sub-county, Ben Acellam, said the UPDF shot dead three women in the sub-county, adding that two of them had children, one aged seven months and another aged two.
He said the UPDF 4th division commander, Col. Nathan Mugisha, had promised to take action against the killers but so far nothing seemed to have been done.
"UPDF soldiers are arresting and killing civilians in the villages on the allegations that they are rebel collaborators," he said during a meeting at Gulu district council hall on Tuesday".
Meanwhile an international radio station reported on the situation in Lango as follows;
"Alito, Apach district, northern Uganda, - In the latest increase of satanic ritual murders being carried out on innocent defenceless Acholi and Langi civilians; soldiers of Uganda army on Thursday night (April 28th) killed three Langi civilians in Alito, Apac distict north of Uganda. Eye witnesses from Alito reported soldiers of Uganda army from a nearby government military outpost stormed the home of their victims late in the night, brutally beat up a couple and their neighbour, and while using sharp knives inflicted deep cuts all over the bodies of their victims, and continued slashing the dead bodies almost dismembering them. An eye witness who saw the identities of the killers and witnessed the killing, confirmed it was soldiers of Uganda army from a nearby military outpost. The witness said for fear of reprisal he was too afraid to report to the Uganda army officers and local authorities. Speaking in confidence to certain persons during the funeral of the couple and their neighbour this weekend, the eye witness identified one of the government soldiers (who turned up at the funeral) as one of those soldiers who had slained the trio victims. Using its usual habitual line of lies and denials; Uganda army blamed the satanic ritual murders on `soldiers of the Lords Resistance Army.�"
UPDF rape, sodomise Padibe
On 25 March 2005, UPDF soldiers who were from Lalak hills in Padibe west sub-county invaded Padibe camp at about 7.15pm. They began arresting men first and making them sit under a big tree which often serves as a market during day time. The UPDF threatened that any one who left would be shot on sight. After the UPDF had collected most of the men, and confi dent that only women were left inside the huts, the UPDF began moving from hut to hut. Any male person who was found still inside their hut was beaten up seriously. The UPDF then demanded that if a civilian wanted their life spared, that they should surrender all the money that they had. The UPDF robbed civilians of money ranging from UG shillings 100 to UG shillings 50,000. For the women, especially any that wasn't classified as old by the UPDF, the UPDF took them to the barracks.
In all, it was estimated that the marauding UPDF soldiers went through 100 homes. By the time they had finished, the UPDF went with 29 women and 6 men to the barracks. When the civilians got the barracks (some of the civilians were identified as Santa Layet, Christine Akullu, Evaline Amwony) they we re all gang raped - including the men. For fear and the stigma that normally goes with sodomy in Northern Uganda, the men said that what the UPDF did to them was to put them in a line - whilst they (the UPDF) unrinated all over them (the truth though was that the UPDF sodomised the men). At around mid-night, the UPDF set the civilians free to go back to the camp. At the camp, the civilians found the men folk still seated underneath the big tree, even though there were no UPDF soldiers watching over them.
The next morning, the UPDF camp commandant went with the people's complaint to the barracks where the rape took place. And to make it appear like the civilians' complaint was being taken seriously, the UPDF put out a statement saying that 2 of its soldiers had been arrested. For the people of Padibe though, who saw over 50 marauding UPDF soldiers attack their camp, even if an arrest took place, detaining 2 out of 50 or more UPDF soldiers was was merely another act of the UPDF of adding insult to injury.
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