Permanent Ceasefire In Uganda

by hilzoy

Remember these kids?

They are the Night Commuters of northern Uganda:

"Each night before the sun sets, thousands of children march in grim procession along dusty roads that take them from their rural villages to larger towns. The children are afraid to sleep in their beds, terrified that they will be abducted by a madman who will force them into a marauding guerrilla army that hunts down their friends, families, and loved ones.
The fleeing children sleep in churches, empty schools, makeshift shelters, and alleyways. And every morning at sunrise, the children walk home, free for another day."

And they are among the reasons why this is such wonderful news:

"With whoops and backslaps, Uganda's government and Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) rebels signed a ceasefire on Saturday, a big step towards a final peace settlement to one of Africa's longest-running wars.

"It is the laying down of arms. It is the end of the war," U.N. envoy Joaquim Chissano said after the parties signed the "permanent ceasefire" agreement during their fast-progressing talks in southern Sudan's capital Juba.

With only a demobilization deal left to be agreed on, negotiators and mediators like Chissano are predicting a final accord will be reached next week to end one of the world's most macabre and least-understood conflicts.

After a tortuous process since talks began in mid-2006, the speed of progress in recent days has taken observers by surprise, particularly after the LRA delegation walked out at one point this week in a row over cabinet jobs and cash.

The LRA revolt against President Yoweri Museveni since 1986 has devastated north Uganda, killed tens of thousands of people, uprooted nearly 2 million, and become infamous for the brutal methods of the rebels including mutilating victims. (...)

The news from Juba will be music to the ears of the long-suffering Acholi population of north Uganda, who have borne the brunt of the conflict. They have suffered not only from rebel attacks and forced recruitment of children, but also from rape and other abuses by Uganda's military at refugee camps."

An estimated 66,000 children have been abducted by the LRA. Thousands more -- at times, tens of thousands -- walked for miles every night to avoid being kidnapped. This has been an unspeakable war (I wrote about it at greater length here), and if it is in fact over, we should all rejoice. There are very few bits of unequivocal good news in the world, but this is surely one of them.

Comments

[Gary Farber]

[...] The fate of the LRA's self-styled mystic leader Joseph Kony remains uncertain. He is wanted by the International Criminal Court in The Hague, but earlier in the week both sides agreed serious crimes during the war would be dealt with locally.

Analysts believe that satisfied Kony he would not be prosecuted abroad, and enabled the progress of recent days.

So, what, he's going to retire to his gardening?

[S.G.E.W.]

Every time I get my hopes up about an African nation (e.g., the D.R.C., Kenya, Tanzania, Somalia (Somalia!!), Rwanda, etc. etc. etc.) my optimism is inevitably crushed. I desperately hope that the L.R.A.'s cease-fire will hold, but it is hard not to take every new declaration of peace in Africa without a large helping of salt.

Thank you, though, for helping to spread this (tentatively hopeful?) news. The blackout of African human rights reportage in U.S. media (with the occasional exception of Darfur) is a goddamn travesty.

BTW: any chance of an semi-exhaustive report on Somalia (the top humanitarian disaster in the world, according to UNICEF)? Nobody knows about the disastrous conditions there (not to mention the White House's complicity in the situation), and any exposure it can get can only help. Thanks!

[Anarch]

I desperately hope that the L.R.A.'s cease-fire will hold, but it is hard not to take every new declaration of peace in Africa without a large helping of salt.

Then take at least a temporary declaration of peace with a shot of tequila. In a good way.

[Batocchio]

Thanks, I needed that.

[felix culpa]

Seconding Batacchia. Happy tears and soft sobs. Bring on the peace.