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Viewing cable 09KAMPALA363, NORTHERN UGANDA NOTES (MARCH 1-31, 2009)

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Reference ID Created Released Classification Origin
09KAMPALA363 2009-04-08 04:59 2011-08-24 16:30 UNCLASSIFIED Embassy Kampala
VZCZCXRO2128
RR RUEHGI RUEHRN RUEHROV
DE RUEHKM #0363/01 0980459
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 080459Z APR 09
FM AMEMBASSY KAMPALA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 1306
INFO RUEHKH/AMEMBASSY KHARTOUM 0792
RUCNIAD/IGAD COLLECTIVE
RUEHXR/RWANDA COLLECTIVE
RUEHGI/AMEMBASSY BANGUI 0053
RUEHTO/AMEMBASSY MAPUTO 0531
RUEHSA/AMEMBASSY PRETORIA 3546
RHMFIUU/CJTF HOA
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 KAMPALA 000363 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT PASS TO USAID AND OFDA 
 
E.O. 12958:  N/A 
TAGS: PHUM PREF ASEC EAID UG SU CG
SUBJECT:  NORTHERN UGANDA NOTES (MARCH 1-31, 2009) 
 
REF: A. KAMPALA 241 B. KAMPLA 281 
 
KAMPALA 00000363  001.2 OF 003 
 
 
1.  Summary:  The following Northern Uganda Notes provide 
information on the situation on the ground and USG activities aimed 
at meeting Mission objectives in northern Uganda.  These objectives 
include promoting regional stability through peace and security, 
good governance, access to social services, economic growth, and 
humanitarian assistance.  Post appreciates feedback from consumers 
on the utility of this product and any gaps in information that need 
to be filled.  End Summary. 
 
-- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 
PEACE AND RECONCILIATION PROCESSES 
-- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 
 
2.  (SBU) On March 4, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni and 
Congolese President Joseph Kabila met on the Uganda-Democratic 
Republic of Congo (DRC) border to discuss bilateral political, 
economic, and military issues (Ref A).  The two presidents also 
discussed the continuation of joint military operations against the 
Lord's Resistance Army (LRA).  Ugandan officials told the media and 
diplomatic corps in a briefing on March 24 that Operation Lightning 
Thunder (OLT) had moved from Phase I to Phase II.  The Ugandan 
Peoples Defense Forces (UPDF) handed over its headquarters and 
command of the operation to the Congolese military on March 15.  The 
two presidents agreed to continue the operation under Congolese 
command, with Ugandan intelligence and reconnaissance assistance and 
UN Mission in Congo (MONUC) support. 
 
3.  (U) Ugandan Foreign Minister Sam Kutesa told Kampala-based 
diplomats on March 24 that there will be no new talks with the LRA 
and that Kony must sign the already negotiated Final Peace Agreement 
(FPA).  UPDF's Chief of Defense Forces, General Aronda, reported 
that OLT had succeeded in consolidating regional unity and that Kony 
is not safe in the region.  Aronda reported that the assault against 
Kony had resulted in the death of 98 LRA rebels up to that point. 
The rebels had killed 12 UPDF soldiers and wounded 19 others.  The 
army rescued a total of 380 captives. 
 
4.  (SBU) UN Special Envoy for LRA-Affected Areas Joachim Chissano 
briefed donors on March 16 after he met with President Museveni in 
Kampala (Ref B).  Chissano said that he maintained contact with LRA 
spokesman David Matsanga. Kony reportedly wants a cease-fire, a 
military force consisting of 200 soldiers from South Africa, Kenya, 
Tanzania, and Mozambique to protect his assembly at Rikwangba, and a 
stakeholders' conference.  Chissano insists that Kony should call 
him (Chissano) directly and maintain regular contact if he wants to 
be taken seriously.  To date, Kony has not called Chissano. 
 
5.  (SBU) USG Activities: Northern Uganda Transition Initiative 
(NUTI) provided support for the latest Invisible Children community 
advocacy campaign entitled "Rescue Our Children."  The first events 
kicked off in Gulu March 27 and 28 and were attended by thousands of 
northern Ugandans.  P/E Chief and Northern Uganda Advisor 
represented the U.S. Mission at various activities including a peace 
march, symbolic destruction of displaced persons huts to celebrate 
the return home, along with traditional songs and dances.  Some 
10,000 Gulu residents and guests from other districts watched 
Invisible Children's latest documentary, "The Rescue of Joseph 
Kony's Child Soldiers," which details various failed peace processes 
and the failure of Kony to sign the FPA.  It also highlights the 
continued abduction of children in DRC, Sudan, and Central African 
Republic.  Invisible Children will hold a worldwide campaign day on 
April 25 in Washington, D.C., Mexico City, London, Paris, and Sydney 
to push for the release of the remaining LRA abductees. 
 
6.  (SBU) The development of Uganda's legal framework to try war 
crimes is in its final stages.  The USAID-funded Public 
International Law Group (PILPG) has been working with the Ministry 
of Justice and parliamentarians to finalize the International War 
Crimes Bill, which will criminalize war crimes and domesticate the 
International Criminal Court statute.  Progress continues on 
formalizing traditional forms of justice and establishing a Truth 
and Reconciliation Commission. 
 
7.  (U) On March 19, Ambassador Browning presented Sister Veronica 
Oyela with a "Woman of Courage Award" certificate for her 
contributions to the promotion of the prosperity of women, including 
child mothers returning from the conflict in northern Uganda; 
especially survivors of the LRA insurgency. 
 
- - - - - - - - 
SECURITY UPDATE 
- - - - - - - - 
 
KAMPALA 00000363  002.2 OF 003 
 
 
 
8.  (U) On March 3, the Ugandan military forces killed one LRA 
fighter and captured Colonel Thomas Kwoyelo during an ambush at Ukwa 
in DRC.  Kwoyelo, who was injured during the fire exchange, was 
treated and repatriated to Uganda on March 5.  Kwoyelo is a senior 
LRA commander and he is alleged to have killed 11 Ugandan students 
on March 28, 2001.  On March 5, the joint military forces captured 
five LRA rebels and rescued two Ugandan women.  On March 9, the 
joint military forces killed another senior LRA Commander, 
Lieutenant Colonel Okello Yape, and captured 16 fighters south west 
of Ri-Kwangba, near the DRC border and southern Sudan. 
 
9.  (U) On March 9, the allied military forces rescued Catherine 
Ajok, a former student of St. Mary's Aboke Secondary School and 18 
Congolese captives.  On March 12 Ajok returned home along with her 
one year old baby after 13 years in LRA captivity.  Ajok and her 
parents met President Museveni on March 14.  Ajok was abducted along 
with over 100 other girls in October 1996.  She was one of thirty 
that were not released after initial pleas from local residents. 
The fate of one "Aboke girl," Miriam Akello, remains unknown. 
 
10.  (U) An additional 3,000 Congolese soldiers and over 100 UN 
peacekeepers will be deployed in the Garamba National Park to pursue 
the LRA rebels.  UPDF spokesperson, Major Felix Kulayigye said the 
troops will fill the gap left after Ugandan troops withdrew on March 
15. 
 
11.  (U) Caritas Uganda, a Catholic charity organization, has again 
denied involvement in the supply of equipment to the LRA rebels. 
The organization was responding to media reports, where it was 
listed among organizations accused of supplying communication 
equipment to the LRA. 
 
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 
HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE AND ECONOMIC RECOVERY 
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 
 
12.  (U) On March 13, the Prime Minister of Uganda, Apollo Nsibambi, 
announced that the Government had secured $243 million to kick start 
reconstruction programs for the rehabilitation of northern Uganda. 
While chairing a consultative meeting attended by donors and 
legislators from the north, Nsibambi said the funds will finance the 
first year of the Peace, Recovery, and Development Plan (PRDP), 
which will be implemented beginning in July.  Meanwhile, northern 
parliamentarians threatened to petition court to stop the government 
from including eastern districts in the PRDP.  The legislators argue 
that PRDP should cater only to the 29 districts that were affected 
by the LRA insurgency, and not to the 40 proposed by the government. 
 
 
13.  (U) The latest Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) return 
figures from UN Office for the Coordinator for Humanitarian Affairs 
(UNOCHA) for LRA-affected districts remain strong.  Amuru District 
remains the weakest in terms of return figures.  Most experts agree 
this is due to the poor level of health and education services 
available at the sub-county and parish levels in the newly-created 
rural district.  Local and national government officials, who 
consult regularly with USAID in Gulu, also believe that provision of 
services "closer to home" is a key to ensuring continued returns in 
the region.  Many families in Acholiland have their feet in three 
places: a hut in the original (mother) camp, some form of shelter or 
hut in transit sites (satellite camps), and a shelter in their 
village of origin where they are working the land.  This was 
confirmed during a recent site visit by a Food for Peace team that 
saw people building at home, but clearly still living in the transit 
camp eight kilometers away.  The story is different in other 
LRA-affected areas, including Lango and Pader Districts, where the 
returns are complete and camps have been dismantled.  There, it is 
clear that formerly displaced persons have settled permanently in 
their home areas. 
 
14.  (SBU) USG Activities: USAID's health and education programs 
staff based in Kampala traveled to the north on March 23 for a 
week-long review of programming and field visits.  A combination of 
50 USAID and implementing partner staff members separated into seven 
groups to conduct field visits in the following districts: Gulu, 
Amuru, Kitgum, Pader, Lira, Oyam, and Dokolo. Common findings from 
the field visits included: a need for small infrastructure 
development across the districts and an agreement that the north 
lagged behind other parts of Uganda in terms of social 
infrastructure including schools, clinics, sanitary facilities at 
both schools and clinics, and water points; lack of comprehensive 
understanding among district leadership about USAID programs; the 
need for USAID to align programs with district development plans; 
 
KAMPALA 00000363  003.2 OF 003 
 
 
weak civil society development and community capacity to advocate 
for their needs or link to government; and clear need for USAID to 
have greater outreach to district governments and communities to 
enhance programming. 
 
 - - - - - - - - - - - - -- 
FROM THE MEDIA AND THE WEB 
- - - - - - - - - - - - - 
 
15.  (U) Media reports in March 2009, tackled a range of issues 
including the government troop withdrawal from the DRC after a 
three-month onslaught and the release of funds for the PRDP. 
16.  (U) "Lightning Thunder A Great Milestone" (The New Vision, 
March 17).  This editorial commented that the UPDF had started a 
week-long withdrawal from the Garamba National Park in the DRC after 
a three-month onslaught that had sent the LRA rebels into disarray. 
The article notes that the greatest achievement of the operation was 
the dismantling of LRA camps and its command structure.  The 
greatest challenge now is not only how to keep Kony away from 
Uganda's borders, but also how to ensure that he does not have the 
capacity to wreak havoc on the civilian population wherever he is. 
Therefore, while the UPDF is withdrawing, they should closely work 
with Congolese and MONUC forces to ensure that LRA top commanders 
are held to account. 
17.  (U) "Operation Lightning Thunder Weakened LRA" (Daily Monitor, 
March 18).  A Monitor journalist commented that now that the troops 
are home, it gives Ugandans the opportunity to reflect on the 
achievements and challenges of the operation with the benefit of 
hindsight.  The biggest challenge OLT faced was managing public 
expectations.  The public expected the capture or death of Joseph 
Kony, but the military public relations machine left the public to 
feed on the ominous opinions from people who could not articulate 
issues related to the operation.  He noted that there are secondary 
achievements of a strategic nature that had accrued from the 
operation such as the meeting of President Museveni and Congo's 
President Kabila in Kasese.  The summit meeting of the top political 
leadership is a worthy achievement that could be the beginning of a 
new diplomatic rapprochement. 
18.  (U) "What Is Exciting About 120 Billion Ugandan Shillings For 
North?" (Daily Monitor, March 15).  The editorial proposed that "it 
appears naive for some of the politicians from northern Uganda to 
get excited about the government announcement that it plans to 
release 120 billion Ugandan Shillings (about $58 million) for the 
much-touted PRDP for the greater north's 40 districts next financial 
year. The PRDP project was hijacked and bungled according to those 
in the know.  This poor planning resulted in mainly European Union 
donors, who should have provided 70 percent of the financing, having 
second thoughts.  The PRDP will get underway next financial year, 
the President said - and with very little money at that.  What will 
120 Billion Ugandan Shillings do for the PRDP's 40 districts that 
have the worst social infrastructure in the country?" 
19.  (U) "North Recovery Program Must Be Well Planned" (New Vision, 
March 23).  The editorial examined an emerging dispute between the 
Government and the Members of Parliament (MPs), from northern 
Uganda, over the implementation of the approximately $533 million 
PRDP project for the region.  The program will cover the northern 
region and part of the eastern region.  However, the MPs from 
northern Uganda are opposed to the inclusion in the program of the 
districts from the east.  They want the program to concentrate on 
areas that were directly affected by the Lord's Resistance Army 
insurgency. 
BROWNING