Uganda: Continuing Impunity

For background on the conflict in Uganda and the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA), click here.

After two years of torturous negotiations, the current situation of peace talks in Uganda currently is in a very delicate phase. With the conflict between the Ugandan government and the LRA going on for over 22 years, a ceasefire was signed on Feb. 2008 with the intention of finally bringing an end to the atrocities that have been haunting civilians for decades. Unfortunately, Joseph Kony, the fugitive leader of the LRA, continues to derail the peace process by failing to show up to sign the peace agreement, as he continues to hide in camps within the Democratic Republic of Congo. Despite international pressure from the United States urging Kony to sign the agreement on April 21st, no progress has been made to bring Kony to the table.

Meanwhile, the ceasefire has been unsuccessful in putting an end to LRA activities. The LRA have abducted over 350 people in the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Sudan over the past few weeks -- most of the abductees being women and children who will most likely become sex slaves and child soldiers. Amnesty International has been active in attempting to get the UN to assist regional governments to find the abducted. Over the years, as many as 60,000 children have been abducted. Reportedly abducted children (ages 11 - 15) make up reportedly 85 - 90% of LRA soldiers. Stories of the "invisible children" have been spurring many to take action around the world. Additionally, over a million people are still displaced as a result of the conflict.

The government of Uganda, a signatory of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, referred this crisis to the court in 2003. In 2005, the Court issued arrest warrants for Joseph Kony, Vincent Otti, Okot Odhiambo, Dominic Ongwen, and Raska Lukwiya. Three years later, shockingly only 2 of these 5 wanted men are currently still alive -- Lukwiya was killed by Ugandan forces in 2006; Vincent Otti was executed by Kony with great mystery at his home in 2007; and recent, internal LRA bouts have resulted in the death of Odhiambo just a few weeks ago.

As the target sources for key judicial investigations are quickly disappearing, it is imperative that the international community strive to put more teeth into enforcing ICC warrants. (This is not a Uganda-specific problem and applies for arrest warrants in Sudan, the Central African Republic, and other conflict-ridden countries.) However, it is also important to note that the timing of the arrest may significantly affect the currently, frozen peace negotiations between Ugandan government and the LRA. The delicacy of these issues continue to rack the nerves of international mediators.