Some Key Players in the northern conflict

LORD'S RESISTANCE ARMY (LRA)

- Gen Joseph Kony, LRA commander in chief A former altar boy, Kony took over the rebellion in 1988 from his aunt Alice Lakwena, who fled to Kenya. As her former assistant, Kony led people to believe that he had emerged to continue Lakwena's war.

- Lt Gen Vincent Otti, reportedly Kony's second-in-command One of the longest-serving members of the LRA, Otti became the group’s spokesman in February 2005, following the surrender of his predecessor, Brig Sam Kolo.

- Maj Gen Okot Odhiambo, LRA army commander Odhiambo reportedly was coordinating raids on civilians in Kitgum district as recently as March 2005.

- Dr James Obita, secretary for external affairs and mobilisation Obita represented the LRA in several meetings with the Ugandan government and the Acholi community that were held in 1996-1997 to discuss the conflict.

- Richard Matsanga, a.k.a. David Nyekorach A Ugandan exile based in London, Matsanga was the LRA spokesman until 2002, when he resigned from his position to become the director of Africa Strategy, an NGO belonging to former Zambian President Kenneth Kaunda.

EX-LRA

- Brig Sam Kolo, former LRA spokesman
Kolo surrendered in February 2005 after he reportedly disobeyed a direct order from Kony to abandon peace talks and return to Sudan. Kolo gave himself up to the Uganda People's Defence Forces (UPDF) after discovering that Kony had ordered his assassination. Since then, he has been urging other LRA rebels to surrender.

- Col Onen Kamdulu, former LRA chief of operations Kamdulu gave himself up during the government's February 2005 ceasefire. A rebel attack on Olokulum camp for internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Gulu district in February was thought to be an attempt to murder Kamdulu's mother, a resident of the camp, in retaliation for his defection.

- Brig Kenneth Banya, former military adviser to Kony Banya, who had served in the army of the late Ugandan dictator Idi Amin, was trained to fly helicopters and fighter jets in the former Soviet Union. He was captured in Gulu district in July 2004. Banya is currently running a demobilisation, disarmament and reintegration farm for ex-LRA fighters in Labor, Gulu district.

GOVERNMENT OF UGANDA

- President Yoweri Museveni
Since his National Resistance Movement/Army (NRM/A) came to power through a military coup in 1986, Museveni has quelled several rebellions, but the conflict with the LRA continues. Museveni has camped in the affected areas on several occasions and changed commanders many times, but Kony still eludes him. He prefers the military option to negotiations as a means to end the war.

- The International Criminal Court (ICC) Based at The Hague in the Netherlands, the ICC has been involved in the war since 2004, when the Ugandan government referred the conflict to the court. It recently announced a readiness to issue arrest warrants for Kony and several of his top commanders.

- Amama Mbabazi, defence minister
Mbabazi is one of the longest-serving members of Museveni’s NRM. He recently said only 300 to 400 armed LRA fighters remained and that their defeat was imminent.

- Lt Gen David Tinyefuza
In 1990, Tinyefuza was minister of state for defence and the NRM/A's chief military combat strategist. He commanded Operation North, which effectively cut off northern Uganda from the rest of the country in a bid to end the insurgency once and for all. Though it failed, it severely weakened the LRA, and the following year witnessed a reduction in rebel activity. Tinyefuza was subsequently recalled.

- Lt Gen Caleb Akandwanaho, a.k.a. Salim Saleh Museveni's younger brother Saleh has been trying to stop the LRA conflict since it began. In 1988, he held peace talks with the rebels several times, leading to the surrender of the then-rebel Uganda People's Defence Army. He remains a core member of the presidential peace team.

- Lt Col Walter Ochora, Gulu district Council chairman Formerly a member of the rebel Uganda People's Democratic Army, Ochora left it to join the Uganda People's Defence Forces (UPDF). He is one of the most vocal opponents of the involvement of the ICC in the conflict.

- Lt Gen Aronda Nyakairima, Operation Iron Fist commander Nyakairima was charged with commanding Operation Iron Fist in 2002, when the Uganda army was given carte blanche by Sudan to enter the country and rout the LRA rebellion. During the operation he was promoted to army commander, a post he still holds today.

- Dr Ruhakana Rugunda, internal affairs minister One of the longest-serving members of the NRM/A, Rugunda is the head of the Ugandan government's peace team, and held the first face-to-face meeting with the LRA towards the end of 2004.

- Nahman Ojwee, Kitgum district council chairman Ojwee is an ardent supporter of the intervention of the ICC in the war and a firm believer that the military option is the best way to bring about its end.

PEACE TEAMS/INDIVIDUALS

- Betty Bigombe, former minister for the pacification of the north In 1994, Bigombe presided over a peace initiative that failed when the LRA refused the government’s ultimatum to surrender in seven days or face the wrath of the army. She left Gulu in 1996 after losing parliamentary elections. Bigombe was based in Washington, D.C., as a consultant with the World Bank until 2004, when she returned to Uganda to start the current peace initiative.

- Lars Erik Skaansar, UN envoy supporting the peace process An experienced mediator, Skaansar has reportedly participated in peace efforts in Yugoslavia, the Middle East and Sierra Leone.

- Rev Sr Rachelle Fraser
The headmistress of St Mary's College, Aboke in Lira district became involved in the conflict when the LRA abducted students from her school in October 1996. Fraser followed the rebels, met Kony, and managed to convince him to release most of the abducted girls.

- Olara Otunnu, UN Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict Otunnu has had differences with the Ugandan government over the use of child soldiers in the conflict.

- Ronald Reagan Okumu, member of parliament for Aswa county A member of the presidential peace team, Okumu is an opponent of the NRM/A, which argues that the military solution cannot work in the north. He was arrested in April for his alleged role in the murder of Alfred Bongomin, the pro-NRM/A local council chairman of Pabbo IDP camp in Gulu. Okumu maintains that his arrest was an effort by the government to intimidate the opposition.

- Fr Carlos Rodriguez
A Spanish priest and prominent peace campaigner in the north, Rodriguez vehemently opposed the ICC's involvement in the Uganda conflict. In February 2004, he issued a statement about a fire in Pabbo IDP camp, claiming a UPDF soldier started it.

- Archbishop John Baptist Odama
Head of the Gulu Catholic diocese and current chairman of the Acholi Religious Leaders Peace Initiative, Odama also strongly opposes the ICC's involvement in the conflict. An immensely respected figure in the region, he has consistently called for a peaceful resolution to the war.

- Bishop emeritus Baker Ochola
A retired Anglican bishop of Kitgum district and vice-chairman of the Acholi Religious Leaders' Peace Initiative, Ochola lost his wife to the conflict.

- Acholi Religious Leaders' Peace Initiative The multi-faith peace group has pursued a peaceful resolution to the 18-year war. Members include Bishop Nelson Onono Ojweng, Anglican bishop of northern Uganda; Fr Julius Orach, head of the Orthodox church in Acholi; Sheikh Musa Khalil and Acholi Khadi Sheik Musa Khalil.

- Aboke Concerned Parents' Association (CPA) Parents of the girls who were abducted from St Mary’s College in Aboke in 1996 formed the association. The association originally set out to rescue children and bring about an end to the war, but currently functions as a reception centre preparing adult ex-rebels for reintegration into their communities.

- Gulu Save the Children Organisation (GUSCO) Formed in Gulu in 1994, GUSCO is an indigenous NGO working to rehabilitate and reintegrate children, principally former abductees.

- Arrow Boys (Teso)
There have been two groups using the name "Arrow". The first, Arrow Groups, was established in 1992, when then-minister Betty Bigombe initiated village-based, self-defence, vigilante outfits. These were comprised of an assortment of male villagers without central command who were supposed to protect their communities against rebel attacks.

The second group, Arrow Boys, was formed in mid-2003 when the LRA entered the Teso region in eastern Uganda. It was created to fight the rebels from that region.

- Amuka Militia (Lango)
When Kony attacked the Lango people in 2003, the community created a force to protect itself and fight against the LRA.

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