VZCZCXRO6508
RR RUEHGI RUEHRN RUEHROV
DE RUEHKM #0842/01 1360501
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 160501Z MAY 07
FM AMEMBASSY KAMPALA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 8746
INFO RUCNIAD/IGAD COLLECTIVE
RUEHXR/RWANDA COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KAMPALA 000842 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PHUM PREL PGOV UG SU
SUBJECT: NORTHERN POLITICIANS SHARE THEIR PERSPECTIVES ON 
PEACE AND JUSTICE WITH DAS JAMES SWAN 
 
¶1.  (SBU) Summary:  Africa Bureau Deputy Assistant Secretary 
James Swan discussed the prospects for peace, the commitment 
of the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) and Government of Uganda 
to a negotiated settlement, justice and accountability 
mechanisms, and potential pressure on the LRA would be useful 
in moving the process forward on May 8 with northern 
parliamentarians.  Members of parliament from non-Acholi 
districts felt excluded from humanitarian assistance efforts. 
 Another MP raised the issue of the LRA's designation of as a 
terrorist organization as blocking negotiations.  Debate also 
occurred about the impact of the release of women and 
children would have on the LRA's willingness to negotiate. 
Several of the parliamentarians view the International 
Criminal Court indictments as an impediment to the process. 
Some of the MPs that have attended sessions at Juba expressed 
disappointment at the obstructionist behavior of the LRA 
delegates at Juba.  Finally, one MP stated that additional 
pressure on the LRA could be counterproductive.  End Summary. 
 
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OPPOSITION LEADER LATIGO 
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¶2.  (SBU) DAS Swan, Ambassador Browning, P/E Chief, and USAID 
Democracy and Governance Deputy Team Leader met with the 
Leader of Opposition, Morris Latigo on May 8 on a range of 
issues.  Latigo is from Pader District in northern Uganda. 
Opposition MPs represent all of the northern districts, a 
political reality that contributes to the feeling of northern 
marginalization.  According to Latigo, if the LRA 
negotiations fail, it would be difficult for northerners to 
go back to the previous situation of camp living.  Latigo 
said because most northerners are moving out of the camps, 
that they would support a more robust military security 
cordon should the LRA re-enter Uganda.  Latigo stated that 
LRA leaders have accepted that they would have to face some 
consequences for their actions. 
 
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OTHER PARLIAMENTARY VOICES 
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¶3.  (SBU) During a separate meeting on May 8 with twelve 
parliamentarians from the LRA-affected districts in northern 
Uganda, DAS Swan discussed the prospects for peace, the 
commitment of the LRA to a negotiated settlement, justice and 
accountability mechanisms, and what pressure on the LRA, if 
any, would be helpful to move the process forward. 
 
¶4.  (SBU) Several non-Acholi parliamentarians expressed a 
feeling of exclusion from the benefits of humanitarian 
assistance.  They stressed that the LRA-affected "north" goes 
beyond the Acholi region, where relief and development 
efforts appear to be focused.  One MP voiced concerns over 
alleged donor promises to internally-displaced persons that 
were not being kept, specifically the resettlement kits that 
internally-displaced persons (IDPs) felt were promised. 
Ambassador Browning assured the parliamentarians that U.S. 
Government funding is spread throughout the districts. 
 
¶5.  (SBU) Reagan Okumu, member of Parliament from Gulu 
District, requested more U.S. involvement in the Juba peace 
process.  He stated that the GOU's emphasis on the LRA as a 
terrorist organization was overshadowing a resolution and 
threatening the peace negotiations.  The LRA needed to be 
de-linked from the war on terror and from Uganda's past 
relationships in eastern Congo.  He acknowledged that the GOU 
has a greater role to play in a resolution to the issue 
because of the LRA's implications within the region.  Another 
MP asked what were the implications of the LRA being on a 
U.S. terrorist list.  Ambassador Browning and Swan assured 
the parliamentarians that the LRA's presence on the terrorist 
designation list was not an impediment to the negotiations. 
Swan emphasized the importance that the U.S. placed on the 
African mediation efforts to end the conflict. 
 
¶6.  (SBU) Okello Okello from Kitgum District noted that the 
security situation had improved to the point where 
northerners could travel at night for the first time in 
twenty years.  Okello attended the resumption of the talks 
and was disappointed by the obstructionist behavior of the 
LRA delegates.  Okello stressed that if there was no good 
faith on the part of the delegations, Juba would not bring 
anything to northern Uganda.  Many of the members of 
parliament believe that the ICC remains a roadblock to the 
process because the LRA leaders will not sign a final 
agreement as long as the charges remain. 
 
¶7.  (SBU) Betty Amongi, from Apac District and an observer in 
some of the Juba negotiating sessions, stated that she 
 
KAMPALA 00000842  002 OF 002 
 
 
believes that Kony had "become willing" to go to a Ugandan 
prison rather than The Hague.  She advocated that the GOU 
develop a combination of relevant local mechanisms (Acholi, 
Lango, Teso, and West Nile) and a national legal process for 
presentation to the LRA leaders and to the ICC.  She also 
pointed out that the donor-funded Juba Initiative Fund does 
not provide for the presence of leaders from the LRA-affected 
communities. 
 
¶8.  (SBU) Jimmy Akena, the son of former President Milton 
Obote from Lira District, played an important role in keeping 
the LRA at the negotiating table in October and November of 
2006, according to government negotiators.  Akena expressed 
concern that additional pressure on the LRA in the form of 
military threats or increased Congolese involvement could 
cause the process to lose momentum.  He said that the current 
security situation gave the IDPs "breathing space" to regain 
their lives. 
 
¶9.  (SBU) Beatrice Atim, from Kitgum District, and other 
female parliamentarians want more pressure on the LRA to 
release children and increased involvement by women in the 
peace process.  However, this proposition elicited some 
dissent from the other parliamentarians present.  Atim added 
that the LRA viewed as "unnecessary" the demand to release 
the children, some of whom they claimed were not abductees 
but LRA family members.  Akena stated that the release of the 
captives would make the LRA leaders feel more vulnerable to 
attack and therefore less secure, which could prolong the 
negotiations. 
 
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COMMENT 
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¶10.  (SBU) The parliamentarians appreciated the opportunity 
to share their views with high-level U.S. officials. 
Northern parliamentarians are frustrated that they are not 
playing a larger role at the negotiations as the elected 
representatives of the people of the north.  The MPs are 
particularly disillusioned with the LRA delegates at Juba and 
have told them that they do not represent the interests of 
northern Ugandans.  The Government of Uganda recognizes that 
these parliamentarians are a strong counterbalance to the LRA 
delegates and has made space on its team for two 
representatives of northern constituencies, parliamentarians, 
local elected leaders, and religious and traditional leaders. 
 The filling of the slots is on a rotational basis. 
CHRITTON