| let those with wisdom comprehend! | |
Uganda rebels demand huge cuts in the army
| |
| JUBA, Sudan: Ugandas rebel Lords Resistance Army yesterday demanded huge cuts in the government military and 40%
representation in the reduced force at peace talks in southern Sudan. The position, presented at halting negotiations aimed at ending northern Ugandas brutal, nearly two-decade war, was immediately rejected by Kampala, which called the demand "ridiculous" and tantamount to disbanding the army. But LRA officials insisted that a sharp reduction in the Ugandan Peoples Defence Forces (UPDF) was the only way to achieve lasting stability and called for foreign peacekeepers to be deployed to ensure the draw-down is implemented. At the venue for the talks in the southern Sudanese town of Juba, they said they wanted the UPDF cut from 100,000 troops to 20,000, 12,000 of which would be drawn from the current army and the other 8,000 from the ranks of the LRA. "The rest of the soldiers must be demobilised and a new system set up to cater for them, for those
with disabilities, and for those who want to start businesses and so on," said LRA spokesman Obonyo Olweny. The rebels also want a full list of government weapons stockpiles, the withdrawal of UPDF forces from contested areas in northern Uganda and foreign peacekeepers from as-yet undetermined contributor nations, he said. Kampalas delegation at the halting talks being hosted and mediated by the government of autonomous southern Sudan and the regions capital of Juba, flatly dismissed the demands and rejected the rebels estimate of the size of the army. Ugandan officials say their army was reduced by half from 100,000 to 50,000 in 1991 and 1992 following donor demands that the force be streamlined. "What the LRA is asking for is for the UPDF to be basically disbanded," said Paddy Ankunda, a spokesman for Kampalas team. "This is really
ridiculous. "The UPDF was set up according to the constitution, so what they seem to be telling us is for us to throw out the constitution," he said, adding that the government would not give the rebels any description of its weapon supplies. "We will not tell them what weapons we have because we are the government and they are the rebel force," Ankunda said. The on-again, off-again talks, which began last month, broke yesterday after the LRA presented its positions on disarmament, the effect of which on the negotiations was not immediately clear. Earlier, the LRA called for South Africa to play an unofficial role in peace talks after Kampala rejected an appeal for formal South African mediation in the negotiations. LRA delegation chief Martin Ojul said the rebels now wanted members of South Africas Truth and
Reconciliation Commission to participate to strengthen the peace process by providing all sides with "technical know-how." "Having them coming here would benefit the mediation and after a negotiated settlement it would help to implement real truth and reconciliation in Uganda," he said. In response, Ankunda repeated Kampalas stance that outside participants were not needed in the talks and that Uganda was "quite happy" with the work of lead mediator Riek Machar, the vice president of southern Sudan. In an unrelated move, the rebels pledged yesterday to protect rare wildlife, including what are believed to be the worlds last four northern white rhinos in the wild, at a remote park they occupy in eastern Congo. In an apparent bid to burnish their brutal reputation, the LRA vowed to assist efforts to conserve endangered species in the Democratic
Republic of Congos Garamba National Park, where rebel leaders are holed up. Under an unusual agreement inked on the sidelines of peace talks, the LRA promised to protect the rhinos as well an estimated 40 rare pygmy giraffes and an unknown number of threatened okapis. "The statistics we were shown were devastating and shocked us, and so we have given a tacit commitment that we will do whatever possible to live in harmony with the animals," said Martin Ojul, head of the LRA delegation to the talks. "We will act as their curators and do everything possible to see that they are not harmed for posterity," he said. In addition to protecting the wildlife, the agreement includes assurances from LRA supremo Joseph Kony, who has been hiding in Garamba just over the DRCs eastern border with Sudan for months, that his fighters would not attack game
wardens. "We wish to assure the rangers in Garamba Park that, provided they properly identify themselves and not attack us, we undertake to fully co-operate with them," says the pact that was signed by Ojul on Sunday with Konys authority. Since setting up shop in Garamba, the rebels have been accused of killing wildlife there for food as well as attacking DR Congolese troops and UN peacekeepers sent to dislodge them. AFP | |
Get your email and more, right on the new Yahoo.com
_______________________________________________ Ugandanet mailing list [email protected] http://kym.net/mailman/listinfo/ugandanet % UGANDANET is generously hosted by INFOCOM http://www.infocom.co.ug/
The above comments and data are owned by whoever posted them (including attachments if any). The List's Host is not responsible for them in any way. ---------------------------------------
