24 May 2006: ISS Today: LRA Leader to Surrender or Face Regional Force

24 MAY 2006: LRA LEADER TO SURRENDER OR FACE REGIONAL FORCE
EAST AFRICAN

 

President Yoweri Museveni of Uganda has offered another chance to the leader of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), Joseph Kony, to end the war which has ravaged northern Uganda for the last 20 years.  According to a joint report published in ‘The East African’ (1) , Mr. Museveni has given the rebels up to the end of July to surrender or face a joint military action by Ugandan and SPLA Forces.  In his statement, he guaranteed the rebels’ safety if they were serious about a peaceful settlement.  Past attempts to achieve a peaceful resolution to the conflict, which has claimed thousands of lives and displaced millions, have failed.  The case is currently with the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague. 

 

Commentary

 

The offer by President Museveni to Kony to find a peaceful settlement of the two-decade conflict in the north, and in particular, his pledge to guarantee safety to the rebels, is bound to draw mixed reactions.  First, while it would be in Museveni’s interest to have a peaceful resolution to the war which has tainted his presidency, his call for amnesty will not sit well with ICC’s insistence on trying Kony and his commanders for war crimes.  By referring the case to the ICC in December 2003, Uganda committed itself to arresting the rebels – a commitment that must be honoured.  For Uganda and the ICC, the question is how to pursue peace and justice without infringing on the values each stands for.

 

Second, Kony and his army are increasingly being seen as a threat to the peace process in Sudan, Congo and Rwanda.  In an effort to find a lasting solution to conflict in the region, these countries (Uganda, Sudan, Congo, Rwanda) and the UN are in the process of signing an agreement that will make it difficult for any one of them to shelter the rebels. 

 

Mary Nyaoso