VZCZCXYZ0000
RR RUEHWEB

DE RUEHKM #1488/01 2161230
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 041230Z AUG 06
FM AMEMBASSY KAMPALA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 7376
INFO RUEHXR/RWANDA COLLECTIVE
RUEHKH/AMEMBASSY KHARTOUM 0465

UNCLAS KAMPALA 001488 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR AF, AF/E, DRL, INR, PRM, SPG 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PHUM PREL PGOV EAID UG SU
SUBJECT: NORTHERN UGANDA: LOCAL VIEWS ON PEACE, 
RECONCILIATION, AND JUSTICE 
 
REF: KAMPALA 1475 
 
¶1.  (SBU)  Summary:  Government officials, international 
organizations, human rights groups, and local residents in 
Gulu expressed cautious optimism about the prospects for 
resolution to the war in Northern Uganda.  Most reservations 
are associated with the mental stability of Lord's Resistance 
Army (LRA) leader Joseph Kony.  Despite these misgivings, the 
improved security situation is enabling internally-displaced 
persons to work their farms by day and discussions about 
reconciliation are beginning.  Most Gulu interlocutors argue 
that peace and reconciliation must come before dealing with 
justice issues for LRA criminals and want Acholi customs to 
be respected when determining Kony's fate.  Other challenges 
that lie ahead are the management of potential conflict over 
land as people return to their farms, compensation for all 
war-affected northern Ugandans for their losses, coordination 
of donor activity, and issues of maintenance of security as 
the Uganda military is spread thin and incoming police forces 
are ill-equipped.  End Summary. 
 
¶2.  (SBU)   Poloffs traveled with a USAID delegation to Gulu, 
capital of one of three Acholi districts in northern Uganda 
from July 31 to August 3 to meet with local officials, 
international organizations, military officers, and local 
residents.  Gulu officials and religious and traditional 
leaders are fully engaged in the negotiations with the LRA. 
 
- - - - - - - - - 
GUARDED OPTIMISM 
- - - - - - - - - 
 
¶3.  (SBU)  Gulu local government's vice-chairman Kitara McMot 
said that he, like most area residents, is hopeful that a 
peace deal will come out of current discussions with LRA 
leader Joseph Kony.  McMot noted that much of the local 
optimism is based on the relatively calm security situation 
over the past few months and Kony's retreat to DROC.  McMot 
confirmed that the numbers of internally-displaced persons 
returning to farm their land by day in increasing as outlined 
in reftel.  However, he described a clear division of opinion 
on the peace process between those Acholi who had been 
abducted (less optimistic) and those who had not (more 
optimistic). Ex-LRA combatants, who live and move around 
freely in Gulu, told McMot that Kony will be hard to pin 
down.  They say that Kony uses unclear language when giving 
orders so he can deny that he directed atrocities and he will 
likely do the same with various envoys.  There also is the 
fear among them that Kony might be persuaded to come back to 
Uganda only to be killed at a later date to prevent him from 
falling into the hands of the International Criminal Court 
(ICC) and testifying against the Government of Uganda. 
 
¶4.   (SBU)  Echoing McMot, James Oyem, Gulu's Deputy RDC 
responsible for security, expressed hope that peace may be 
near, but said his expectations are tempered by Kony's 
personal instability.  Oyem described Kony "as very tricky" 
and as a person who will "cry when being squeezed and then 
regroup when the pressure is lifted".  Oyem's boss Walter 
Ochara is part of the delegation of traditional and local 
leaders that have met with Kony in Garamba.  Kony reportedly 
has doubts about whether or not he will be sent to the ICC 
and questions the capacity of area residents to truly forgive 
him.  Oyem also stated that the LRA negotiators at Juba are 
not talking in Kony's interest and are using terms that Kony 
does not understand, which could become problematic in 
finalizing a possible deal.  For its part, Oyem said that the 
Ugandan Government is trying to dispel Kony's doubts through 
the visits of local, traditional, and religious leaders to 
Kony at Garamba National Park. 
 
¶5.  (SBU)  UNHCR and WFP officials confirmed to poloffs that 
the improving security situation is also encouraging IDPs and 
others to begin returning to their land.  Over the past few 
months, there have been no major security incidents.  UNHCR 
estimates a 50 percent reduction in hostilities during this 
period.  The small groups of LRA that are operating mainly 
raid fields at night for food.  These groups at times have 
abducted some locals to carry the food back to their hiding 
places, but immediately release them.  Overall abductions, 
however, are down substantially.  WFP and local officials say 
that voluntary movement of IDPs to "land access camps" or 
"decongestion sites" is growing.  There are 18 camps which 
host between 800 and 4,000 people.  Residents are confident 
enough to return to their land by day to areas where there is 
a UPDF presence, but sleep in the intermediary camps at night 
for protection. 
 
¶6.  (SBU)  WFP Gulu Director Pedro Amolat explained that 
local residents are still mistrustful of LRA's future plans, 
having lived through periods of relative calm before a 
resurgence in LRA attacks.  UNHCR and WFP say that the LRA 
also may be leaving small units behind in case the talks 
fail.  The local residents may also sense this and prefer 
taking advantage of the land access camps and UPDF protection 
while they assess the prospects for a lasting solution. 
Poloffs visited a night commuter shelter in Gulu where only 
300 children--down from 3,000--are currently using the 
facility.  Catholic Relief Services, UNICEF, and Save the 
Children report that the numbers of night commuters in Kitgum 
is also decreasing and that closure and consolidation of 
facilities are underway.  Reception centers for children 
abducted by the LRA also are reporting decreases in children. 
 
 
- - - - - - - - - - - - - 
PEACE AND RECONCILIATION 
- - - - - - - - - - - - - 
 
¶7.  (SBU)  Religious officials involved in the Juba talks 
were upbeat about the prospects for both peace and 
reconciliation, but are concerned that the international 
community's push for justice "Western-style" will undermine 
local reconciliation efforts.  Just returned from Juba, 
Monsignor Obong of the Acholi Religious Leaders Peace 
Initiative believes that despite his crimes, Kony can be 
accepted back into society if he accepts responsibility for 
his crimes.  Obong described the traditional process of 
exposing the truth (crimes); acknowledgment of 
responsibility; judgment and compensation; and then granting 
of mercy by victims to establish lasting peace.  Acholi 
society has no death penalty and local residents, government 
authorities, and traditional and religious officials believe 
that the Kony's victims have no other choice but to forgive 
him through traditional rituals. 
 
¶8.  (SBU)  Poloffs heard repeatedly that peace is the highest 
priority for northern Ugandans.  Peace is needed before 
reconciliation can be carried out.  Justice issues, according 
to Obong, need to be sorted out, but should come as part of 
the Acholi society's own recovery process.  Local leaders 
fear the ICC indictments will dissuade Kony from accepting 
peace.  In Obong's opinion, the international community can 
best serve Acholiland through reconstruction and development 
efforts, which will help victims regain their livelihood more 
so than ICC indictments.  They are concerned that the 
Government of Uganda's general amnesty to the LRA also 
undermines the traditional reconciliation process because the 
perpetrators never have to admit to or accept responsibility 
for their crimes. 
 
¶9.  (SBU)  James Otto, Executive Director, Human Rights 
Focus, expressed concern that national and international 
actors will short-circuit local efforts to secure peace, 
reconciliation, and justice.  His opinion, similar to the 
religious leaders, was that international efforts to pursue 
peace and justice simultaneously have been unsuccessful and 
that it is time for northern Ugandans to secure peace first 
and then deal with the justice issues over the next year.  He 
acknowledged that the reconciliation process would not be as 
easy as some expect.  He suggested that a variation of a 
truth and reconciliation commission may be an example that 
could serve local, national, and international needs for 
justice.  Local government officials are considering 
establishing a War Information Center for northern Ugandans 
that would allow them to tell their stories for the historic 
record.  Another possibility is the naming of infrastructure 
projects such as wells, schools, roads, and clinics after 
victims. 
 
- - - - - - - - - 
COMING CHALLENGES 
- - - - - - - - - 
 
¶10. (SBU)  In addition to reconciliation and justice, Gulu 
residents are concerned about the potential conflict over 
land as IDPs return to their homes, victim compensation, 
maintaining security, and coordination among donors and the 
Government on reconstruction activities after a peace deal is 
reached.  There are concerns that some returning IDPs will 
find others on their land.  There also is concern that all 
northern Ugandans affected by the war, not just ex-LRA 
abductees and ex-LRA combatants, receive adequate 
compensation for possessions and property lost during the 
war.  There is some resentment among local populations that 
donors are "rewarding" ex-LRA with incentive packages to the 
 
detriment of others affected.  The Ugandan military is 
becoming spread thin as it tries to provide security for 
those returning to their lands.  As "decongestion" continues, 
it means more places for the UPDF to patrol.  The President 
promised 33 police officers per district in the north, but 
there is no funding for their upkeep.  Finally, local 
residents welcome increased donor activity, but fear that 
lack of coordination may result in inefficient expenditures 
and misguided priorities. 
 
- - - - 
COMMENT 
- - - - 
 
¶11.  (SBU)  Northern Ugandans desperately want an end to the 
war.  The relatively calm security situation is enabling some 
aspects of pre-war life to re-emerge, enough so to make 
residents consider their future.  As local authorities and 
religious and traditional leaders grapple with "post-war" 
scenarios for reconstruction and reconciliation, they remain 
concerned that other international and national actors 
consider their views on consolidating a durable peace when a 
deal is reached. 
 
 
BROWNING