By Courtney Howard
Buffalo, NY – Recently on Morning Edition, NPR's Gwen Thompkins reported on the current conflict in northern Uganda. She talked of the 21 year war between the Lord's Resistance Army and the government of Uganda and heard from two former child soldiers living in the northern district of Kitgum. Both spoke of the horrors they faced while held captive by the LRA, horrors that have been repeated in the lives of over 25,000 children that have been abducted during this war. In addition to child abduction 1.4 million northern Ugandans have been herded into squalid camps by the government, where as recently as last summer nearly 1,000 people die each week from starvation, violence and disease.
This past summer the people of northern Uganda began to have hope that this nightmare might finally end. In July 2006 the LRA and the government of Uganda agreed to commence peace talks in Juba, Sudan and in August signed a landmark cessation of hostilities agreement. The ceasefire greatly improved security in the north, allowing almost 300,000 people to return to their ancestral homes and giving hope that more comprehensive resettlement might be more than just a distant dream. However, violations of the ceasefire by both sides, a critical lack of support for the talks from the US and growing mistrust between the LRA and government of Uganda have led to a three-month impasse in Juba. Many people have begun returning to the camps, fearing a renewed outbreak of violence after the ceasefire formally expired on February 28th of this year.
The expiration of the ceasefire came exactly one year after I visited three IDP camps outside of Gulu, long the epicenter of the rebellion in the north. When I returned I did a listener commentary asking the Western New York community to come out in support of the people of northern Uganda. Your response was impressive! Approximately 200 members of our community joined us for the WNY GuluWalk, which generated political momentum for peace and raised $4000 in direct relief. Mayor Byron Brown shared some time from what I am sure was a very hectic schedule to speak with the walkers prior to the event. He reminded us that the people of northern Uganda "are not our neighbors in this community, in this country, but they are our neighbors in the world." Our neighbors are still in need of our support. Earlier this month, U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon expressed his hope that the two sides would resume formal peace talks. The U.S. Senate recently passed a resolution urging both the United States and the international community to support the Juba peace talks. However, a similar resolution has stalled in the House of Representatives. I am once again asking you to speak out for the people of northern Uganda. Contact your representative and encourage them to pass House Resolution 80. Have no doubt: the US's virtual silence in Juba speaks volumes, weakening accountability and allowing both sides to play rhetorical games with the lives of millions of people. Elevated political will and logistical support from the U.S government would be a strong contributing role in restarting the talks and bringing one northern Ugandans one step closer to their dream of peace.
On one of our nights in Gulu last February, I felt a hand grab my elbow and a young boy said, "Miss, my mother and father are dead." It was the first thing he said to me. Not his name, where he lived, or the school he attended. He didn't tell me of his friends or of his favorite past-times. His introduction was to tell me of the loss of his family to this terrible war from which he fled each night. Peace means the hope for a future for him and countless other children who, just as our children do, deserve a care-free childhood filled with opportunities. Thrown off balance by his statement and was uncertain how to respond, I never learned that young boy's name. We cannot allow this present uncertainty to keep us from responding and not speak out for the continuation of this peace process.
Listener-commentator Courtney Howard is a global studies teacher in the Cuba-Rushford Central School District.