Dismantle protected camps It is still argued that the government moved people into 'protected' camps to protect them from Kony and his brutal men. Not anymore! At least the endless massacres in the camps make me think so. People in Acholi area were herded into camps so that the LRA are denied a recruitment base. They were not allowed to cultivate the land so that the rebels have nothing to eat. It was a temporary measure intended to permit crushing the rebels back in 1996.
Unfortunately, eight years on, the rebels are just going strong and the camps have become death traps. The so-called protected camp strategy has miserably failed! It is only logical that the people are sent back home and an attempt made at another approach to ending the war - dialogue. Instead of blaming all the banditry on the LRA and blocking the way for dialogue, we should accept that there are some saboteurs who may not necessarily be LRA rebels. It cannot be ruled out that many of the advocates of militarism have links with the saboteurs. Such people will eventually be exposed when a peace agreement is signed. They need to be ignored at the moment. It was childish to reject a unilateral ceasefire offer by the LRA just because it was soon followed by some killings and ambushes. Events in Iraq have forced the Americans and British to redraw their plan for that country. Why can't the government of Uganda do the same for northern Uganda, having consistently failed to end the war even with huge military spending? It is clear that Kony is a mad man using brainwashed children to commit atrocities. Insisting on the already failed military approach may be considered an act of genocide. Clement Lalobo Jinja -------------------------------------------- This service is hosted on the Infocom network http://www.infocom.co.ug
