Tag Archives: Memorialization

Coming Soon: Northern Uganda TJ Monitoring Survey

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It is almost four years now that northern Uganda has experienced relative peace following the relocation of the LRA to DRC and CAR. The majority of the population that had hitherto been displaced into IDP camps have now returned to their homesteads and resumed life in the post-conflict phase. Apart from land conflicts which are still rampant, many people seem to have moved on with their lives despite the past violence and a large number of atrocities that were committed during the conflict. There have been few reports of revenge attacks by victims against ”alleged perpetrators.”

So is this an indicator that northern Uganda is quickly putting the past behind and moving forward? Maybe yes, maybe no.

To find out, the JRP Community Documentation department intends to carry out a northern Uganda transitional justice monitoring process.

The objective of the Transitional Justice Monitoring Survey is to track the progress of justice and reconciliation in northern Uganda. The first phase of the project will be focused on Gulu district. The results of this survey will be used in our advocacy efforts and policy recommendations to further the interests of the communities and victims of the conflict.

Using a quantitative survey, we will interview 598 households across all 23 sub-counties and 120 parishes in the district. Questions focus on issues such as missing persons, community dispute resolution, traditional justice, memorialization, reparations, security, and formerly-abducted persons.

In the coming weeks, we will release the findings of the pilot conducted in Gulu district, and in the coming months, results from other districts and sub-regions. Stay tuned!

Barlonyo vigil

Barlonyo Prayers & Victim Exchange 20-22Feb2012

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From February 20-22, 2012, JRP organized an exchange between victims’ groups from across the greater north. More than 35 representatives from West Nile, Acholi, Lango and Teso attended the Barlonyo memorial prayers and candlelight vigil and a 1-day exchange meeting to share experiences and develop a way forward for victim-led advocacy in northern Uganda.

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Lukodi Massacre Report Launch, 25 May 2011

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On Wednesday, 25th May 2011, a week after the annual Lukodi massacre memorial day, JRP held a community launch at Lukodi Market,  Lukodi village, Bungatira sub-county, Gulu district, for its latest report, The Lukodi Massacre: 19th May 2004.

The report reconstructs a narrative of the Lukodi massacre and the major events that unfolded on May 19, 2004. It came about as a response to community leaders in Lukodi asking for the documentation of their conflict experiences for purpose of acknowledgement and preserving memory. The report contains key recommendations to the Government of Uganda and other stakeholders, in line with the people of Lukodi — calling for reparations, the sharing of findings of the official investigation carried out after the massacre, and support for community initiatives, including a truth-telling process in which the community, the Government and LRA take part.

To read the full report, click here.

Victims of the conflict in West Nile with JRP after a workshop in October 2010

Memorial Services in Lukodi and Arua

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Victims of the conflict in West Nile with JRP after a workshop in October 2010

This week victims from conflict in northern Uganda will be remembering the past and honoring the dead through annual memorial services.

On Thursday, May 19, the community in Lukodi will host memorial prayers at the sub-county headquarters. On Friday, May 20, Arua will host the 1st Annual Memorial Service for victims of conflict in West Nile, organized by the West Nile Kony Rebel War Victims Association.

For more information on both events, contact Sylvia Opinia at +256 471 433008.

Update 21 May 2011: The memorial prayers in West Nile were cancelled by the office of the District Police Commander (DPC) in Arua for security reasons the night before the event, as it allegedly coincided with on-going countrywide demonstrations over rising costs of food and fuel (‘Walk-to-Work’). Another date for this event has yet to be decided and communicated by the district.

The memorial monument stone in Lukodi remembers those who died in the massacre

The Lukodi Massacre: 19th May 2004, FNXIII

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The memorial monument stone in Lukodi remembers those who died in the massacre
The memorial monument stone in Lukodi remembers those who died in the massacre

On the 19th of May 2004, the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) raided the village of Lukodi, and carried out a massacre that led to the death of over sixty people. Lukodi village is located seventeen kilometers north of Gulu town, in Gulu district. It is one of the many villages in northern Uganda that suffered from persistent LRA attacks, leading to the death of several people. Northern Uganda has been under conflict for over twenty years, as a result of a civil war waged mainly between the rebels of the LRA and the Government of Uganda (GoU). The impacts of the conflict have been devastating, characterized by the displacement of over 1.8 million people into IDP camps, loss of lives, and abduction of over 38,000 children by the LRA to serve as child soldiers and sex slaves.1 Lukodi, like many other villages in northern Uganda, was severely affected by the conflict, leading to the displacement of the inhabitants of the village who were forced to seek refuge in the congested camp of Coope2 for three years. The people of Lukodi were able to begin returning to their homes as a result of the relative peace which ensued in northern Uganda after the conclusion of the Juba peace talks in November 2008.

This report reconstructs a narrative of the Lukodi massacre and the major events that unfolded on that fateful day of 19th May 2004. The documentation centered on learning the experiences of this community prior to and during the massacre, the impact the massacre had on the population and the transitional justice challenges they continue to face today. It tells the story of a people that suffered from a horrible attack on their village in 2004, and were subsequently displaced for almost three years. It further looks at the current reintegration challenges faced by the people of Lukodi, now that the people are returning from displacement and trying to rebuild their lives, but in the process have to struggle with daunting resettlement challenges, in addition to complex questions on how to approach issues of reconciliation between victims and alleged perpetrators within the community. Many war affected communities in northern Uganda are faced with a similar scenario as they struggle to pick up the pieces of their lives in the wake of the conflict, characterized by difficulty to cope with their trauma, and challenges in the pursuit of their justice and reconciliation needs, specifically the need for accountability and reparations.

This report also briefly reflects on the visit and investigation carried out by the International Criminal Court (ICC) in Lukodi. As revealed by respondents, the Office of the Chief Prosecutor and the Ugandan Police visited Lukodi several times in the wake of the massacre, with the aim of gathering evidence for the case against the LRA. The report shows that, however well intended this intervention may have been, it has failed to serve the justice needs of the people in Lukodi. Rather than providing them with a solution, the ICC intervention has left the victims with more questions than answers regarding how to approach the question of accountability for perpetrators. Giving the victims a voice, this report therefore makes suggestions to the policy makers, practitioners and other stakeholders on how to address accountability issues using more appropriate means.

The report finally concludes with recommendations to the Government of Uganda and other stakeholders, in line with views and opinions gathered from the people of Lukodi. The people of Lukodi call for reparations, sharing of the findings of the official investigations carried out after the massacre, support for community reconciliation initiatives and a truth-telling process in which the community, the LRA and the Government of Uganda will take part. These views are shared by many war affected people all over northern Uganda, and therefore require the attention of the stakeholders in question.

To access the report, click here.

“LRA survivors want marshal plan for region,” Daily Monitor, 28 April 2011

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“LRA survivors want marshal plan for region,” Daily Monitor, 28 April 2011

http://www.monitor.co.ug/News/National/-/688334/1152202/-/c262ngz/-/index.html

By James Eriku


Amuru

April 20 is usually an important day in the lives of former displaced persons living in Atiak Sub-county in Amuru district. And for the Acholi sub-region, the day was set apart to commemorate the gruesome massacre of over 200 civilians by the Lords Resistance Army rebels in 1996, although other similar cases were committed in Lokodi, Lukome, Mucwini and Barlonyo.

The Rev. Johnson Gakumba, the chairman of the Acholi Religious Leaders Peace Initiative and the bishop of the Northern Uganda Diocese, while presiding over the occasion last Wednesday, prayed that such atrocities are not repeated in the region.

 

Meaningful reparation
The bishop also urged the government to develop meaningful reparation programmes for those who died during the war, adding that the government should also initiate other efforts to improve the lives of survivors. He said reparation could be such an important component of the Juba peace talks, in particularly agenda three, where reconciliation and accountability issues sound pertinent.

Mr Jacob Nokrach, a survivor and the chairman of the Atiak Massacre Survivors Association, said government has abandoned them to NGOs. Justice and reconciliation project, an NGO in the region, is currently supporting the survivors with counselling and guidance. “Many people can now talk freely about the incident more than 10 years ago, which is a positive gesture towards the rehabilitation efforts in the region,” Mr Nokrach said.

Improving livelihood
Mr Nokrach said the commemoration of the day is important to the lives of the survivors and relatives of those who were killed in the attack. The survivors’ chairman said a Marshal Plan should be drawn by the government as the Acholi people emerged from the rubbles of the camps, saying a reparation of Shs5 million per survivor and those killed would go a long way in improving the livelihoods of the affected people.

Ms Irene Oyet, another survivor from Ayugi village, sarcastically said the only thing the attack left her with were the mutilated bodies of her siblings on their compound three hours after the rebels had left. Ms Pasca Aromorach, 18, said she grew up as an orphan after her parents were killed in the attack. She said she was left to raise seven of her siblings amid biting poverty.

“Acholi urged to shun rebellion,” New Vision, 24 April 2011

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“Acholi urged to shun rebellion,” New Vision, 24 April 2011

http://www.newvision.co.ug/D/8/16/753041/mukura

By C. Lubangakene and Justin Moro

THE 1995 massacre by the Lords Resistance Army (LRA) rebels in Atiak and others in Acholi sub-region should be an eye opener to the Acholi not to rebel against government.

The remarks were made on Wednesday by the Rwot of Atiak, Santo Apire, during the 16th annual memorial prayer for over 250 people killed by the LRA in Atiak.

Apire advised the Acholi to shun any rebellion against the Government.
“ What the LRA did should teach us that rebellion is bad,” Apire said.

He urged the Amuru district authorities to solve the boundary dispute between the district and Adjumani.

Apire said such disputes breed fertile grounds for insecurity in the region.
The Bishop of northern Uganda diocese, Rt. Rev. Johnson Gakumba, who led the mass, said it was unfortunate that Kony was still committing atrocities in Congo and the Central African Republic.

Gakumba, who is also the chairman of the Acholi Religious Leaders Peace Initiative called upon the Government to renew peace talks in order to end suffering in the Great Lakes region.
He said military options rarely end guerilla wars.

Gakumba urged the Government to compensate those affected by the war in order to improve their lives.
He said the time for war was over and urged people to embark on reconstruction.

Mathew Akiya, the Lamwo district LC5 chairman, said the district was planning to construct a memorial site at Corner Ogwec in Lokung sub-county, in remembrance of the over 450 people killed by the LRA in 1997 and over 400 others killed and buried in mass graves during the Idi Amin regime.

He castigated the elders for fuelling land disputes, saying they were being bought to do wrong things.

Betty Bigombe, the woman MP-elect for Amuru district, urged residents to forgive the LRA for what happened in Atiak and Acholi.

The 1995 Atiak massacre survivors want the Government to compensate them like it has done in other parts of the country.

“We know that the budget reading of the 2010/2011 financial year put aside sh200m for families of victims of the 1989 mukura massacre in Teso.

While we applaud your efforts to compensate victims from this incident, we also want to be compensated,” the memorandum to President Yoweri Museveni, signed by the Atiak survivors committee chairman, George William Odong, read in part.

Train tracks in Mukura near where the infamous train wagon sat

The Mukura Massacre of 1989, FN XII

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Train tracks in Mukura near where the infamous train wagon sat
Train tracks in Mukura near where the infamous train wagon sat

On July 11, 1989, the 106th battalion of the National Resistance Army (NRA)1 allegedly rounded up 300 men from Mukura and other surrounding areas and incarcerated some of them in train wagon number

C521083. These men were suspected of being rebel collaborators against the NRA regime, but there is little evidence to suggest that most of them were anything other than innocent civilians. Trapped in the crowded train wagon, trying not to trample on one another, the men struggled to breathe, and by the time they were released after more than four hours, 69 of them had suffocated to death, while 47 of them survived.

Twenty two years after the occurrence of this massacre, the Justice and Reconciliation Project (JRP) reconstructs an account of what took place, using narratives from survivors, in order to bring the concerns of victims to the attention of the Government and other stakeholders. Through our interactions with survivors of the massacre, we learnt that besides constructing a memorial mass grave in which the dead were buried, the Government also supported the construction of the Mukura Memorial Senior Secondary School and a public library in memory of those who lost their lives.

This report aims at providing a narrative of key events leading up to the massacre, based on the testimonies of survivors, and explores the major initiatives which were used by the incumbent Government to promote accountability, healing and reconciliation for the families of the Mukura victims and the survivors from the train wagon. A central finding of this report is that most of these initiatives to provide reparation—though likely well intentioned—were implemented in an untimely manner, with little involvement and consultation of the victims and in times of increased political incentive for Government. As such, the people do not attach much significance and ownership to structures such as the mass grave and Mukura Memorial Senior Secondary School. The report concludes with lessons learnt and recommendations aimed at improving the implementation of future post-conflict transitional justice (TJ) initiatives which the government may undertake in other parts of the country, such as northern Uganda which has recently emerged from conflict.

To access the report, click here.

Arua Community Dialogue, 23 March 2011

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In line with JRP’s recent report on memory and an upcoming memorial service for victims in West Nile (May 20), the JRP community mobilization department organized a community dialogue and radio talk show on March 23.

The dialogue aimed to spark debate about the role of memorials and memorialization in West Nile. It generated community ideas on the theme and explored different ways West Nile traditionally remembered events in the past, and how the upcoming memorial service could promote healing and positive remembrance in the region.

Over 100 participants attended this dialogue, held in the WENWA hall in Arua town, including members of the West Nile Kony Rebel War Victims Association (WNKRWVA), civil society organisations, the media, religious leaders and the public. The panellists included the L.C V Vice Chairman of Arua District Local Government (Mr. Sabo Kamilo), a representative of the Agofe of the Lugbara chiefdom (Mr. Godo Onzia John), the chairman of WNKRWVA (Eng. Buti Sam), and CSO representatives from JRP and the Uganda Human Rights Commission.

Following the community dialogue, an interactive radio talk show was hosted on Voice of Life radio to further the discussion on memory and memorialisation with specific reference to West Nile. The panel discussants were Sylvia Opinia (JRP), Eng. Buti Sam (Chairman, WNKRWVA), and Ambassador Joram Jomabuti Ajeani (Elder). The talk show also presented an opportunity for the WNKRWVA to share plans for the upcoming memorial service.

“We Can’t Be Sure Who Killed Us” Report Launch, 4 March 2011

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On March 4, JRP and our partners at the International Center for Transitional Justice (ICTJ) launched a new joint report titled, We Can’t Be Sure Who Killed Us: Memory and Memorialization in Post-Conflict Northern Uganda.

The event, held at Gulu’s Churchill Courts Hotel, was attended by more than 60 members of civil society and representatives from massacre survivor associations in West Nile, Teso, Acholi and Lango.

The report examines the role memorials have played in Uganda’s transitional justice (TJ) process. Addressed to community members, conflict survivors, policymakers, and donors, it reviews existing memorials and offers recommendations to those seeking to initiate new memorial activities. It is based on research conducted in the Acholi and Lango sub-regions, yet reveals post-war insights into memory and memorialization relevant to the greater North and any society in transition.

To view this report, click here.