What can we do about Uganda and the LRA?
Many of the millions of people who watched the Kony 2012 video were
touched by the Ugandan children it portrayed and the need for an end to
the wars and violence involving the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA). But
what are the most effective – and least potentially damaging – ways we
can respond?
The Kony 2012 video has been widely criticized by many Ugandans, who
fear more military intervention and believe the video misrepresents
them, their situation, and their pressing needs (see:
http://ugandaspeaks.com/). Africa experts also have criticized it for
being overly simplistic, out‐of‐date, and too narrow in focusing on
capturing Joseph Kony of the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA). It also has
been criticized for contributing to stereotypes of Africans as needy and
unable to solve their problems and of Africa as a continent in perpetual
conflict. Invisible Children, which produced the video, has been
scrutinized as well; much of its budget goes to the U.S. "awareness"
campaign – for showing the video across the country and product
merchandising. And Invisible Children is only one of many organizations
with projects in Uganda and surrounding countries, and it has obtained
more funding than most.
1. LearnaboutUganda&CentralAfrica
Before advocating that the U.S. government adopt a particular policy or
deciding to donate to an organization, it is important to learn more
from a variety of sources, especially people from the countries involved.
Consult resources produced by many individuals and organizations about
both Uganda and Central Africa listed on the Association of Concerned
Africa Scholars (ACAS) website: (http://bit.ly/GVGURP)
Here are some issues to learn more about.
• What are the conditions in northern Uganda today, and what support are
its people seeking from us? Children are no longer in danger of being
abducted in northern Uganda, and the LRA has not operated there since
2006. Today, northern Ugandans are focused on post‐conflict
reconstruction, renewing farming, and health issues such as nodding
disease that emerged during the war in the resettlement camps where the
Ugandan government forced them to live. And, as people have returned to
their land from the camps, their rights to land ownership have been
challenged in some areas.
• Where is this conflict and the violence now?
The LRA is no longer in Uganda, and its forces have been reduced to only
a few hundred, but their brutal attacks have continued in Democratic
Republic of the Congo (DRC), Central African Republic (CAR), and South
Sudan.
• Why does this part of Africa seem so conflicted?
There are powerful competing international, national, and local
interests that seek advantage and that are prepared to initiate and
support violence. Multiple militias and armies have disrupted the CAR,
DRC, and South Sudan for many years. And national governments often have
not given priority to ending the violence and protecting their
populations. (Resources for learning more about this conflict are on the
ACAS website.)
Association of Concerned Africa Scholars
http://concernedafricascholars.org/
2. WhatshouldweurgetheU.S. government to do?
The Kony 2012 video calls for an expanded military effort to capture LRA
leader Joseph Kony, arrest him by the end of 2012, and bring him before
the International Criminal Court (ICC). But increased cooperation
between U.S. Army Special Forces, Ugandan, and other armies in the
region to find and arrest Kony is highly likely to have dangerous
consequences for civilians. Often in the past, they have been caught in
the crossfire or become targets of retaliatory attacks by the LRA. Most
people want to end the violence, find justice for the victims, and
reintegrate the LRA soldiers into society. But how can that best be
achieved, and are foreigners far from the region in the best position to
know how to make this happen? An end to these wars needs to be
negotiated by the local people directly affected by the conflict –
recall the long negotiations of South Africans for ending that conflict
and for seeking justice through their Truth and Reconciliation Commission.
Here are some policy recommendations from ACAS.
® To cooperate closely with the African Union (AU) and United Nations
(UN) for a negotiated settlement and give them the financial and
logistical support needed to support negotia‐ tions and to increase
security for civilians of the affected regions without further
escalating violence.
® To actively seek an effective United Nations Arms Trade Treaty (ATT)
<http://www.un.org/disarmament/convarms/A rmsTradeTreaty> to end trade
in weapons, munitions, and other military and policing equipment that
often inflict misery and carnage on civilians, especially in Africa.
® To take a strong stand against child soldiers by fully enforcing
without exceptions the U.S. Child Soldier Prevention Act, unanimously
passed by Congress in 2009, to prohibit military assistance to
governments not taking action to demobilize child soldiers.
<www.amnestyusa.org/our‐ work/issues/children‐s‐rights/child‐soldiers>.
Amnesty International has campaigns on both child soldiers and small
arms. Use of child soldiers and raping of women and girls are common
horrors of war, not just by the LRA – and not only in Africa.
3. Do you want to donate for urgent
human needs in Uganda and this
region of Africa?
Research what organizations are doing, how they work with the people who
are affected, and how much of their donations go to activities on the
ground. Many people urge providing support to locally‐based organizations.
As a start, two international agencies have focused on the child
soldiers and displaced people in Central African Republic, Congo, South
Sudan, and Uganda. They are very short of funds to care for and
rehabilitate the injured. These are:
UN High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) ‐ Addressing urgent needs of
children, women, and men affected by insecurity and chronic conflict in
the four countries. <http://donate.unhcr.org/>
UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) – Working with former child soldiers,
refugees, rape and abuse victims, and displaced by the LRA, other
militias, and national armies. <http://www.unicef.org/>
Urge President Obama and the Congress:
® To focus primarily on negotiated, not military, solutions. In March
2012 the peace‐ building organization Conciliation Resources reported
from its study of the impact of the LRA on local communities in the DRC,
CAR, and South Sudan: "Those who bear the brunt of the LRA's violent
retaliations are ... all too aware of the risks of a renewed military
strategy... An overwhelming majority of those consulted expressed a
desire for a solution based on protection and political engagement."
[http://ow.ly/9QfpO]
Similarly, in June 2009, Ugandan Acholi Religious Leaders Initiative
(ARLPI) said, "The military option has been explored numerous times in
the past... Military strategies launched against the LRA have time and
again led to severe reprisal attacks on the innocent civilian
community... [We] advocate for dialogue and other non‐violent strategies
to be employed so that long term sustainable peace may be realized. Let
us learn from the past experiences where we have seen that violence only
breeds more violence." [http://ow.ly/9Qg4S]
--
kenneth w. harrow
distinguished professor of english
michigan state university
department of english
east lansing, mi 48824-1036
ph. 517 803 8839
harrow@msu.edu
--
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