Acholi ordered back to 'protected camps'

The Ugandan army has ordered civilians displaced by rebel Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) attacks to return to government-protected camps within 48 hours. Maj Shaban Bantariza, the Ugandan army's spokesman, told IRIN on Friday that the civilians had been ordered to return to the camps on Thursday so that they would be protected against the LRA, as well as against any possible fall-out arising from the army's stepped-up offensive against the rebels. "IDPs [internally displaced persons] cannot settle in their villages, because the problem that displaced them has not ended," he said. According to Bantariza, some LRA elements were hiding in villages, thereby posing a grave threat to civilian populations there. Unless these civilians were secured in the camps, "the bandits will come and cause trouble to the villagers. If they report rebel presence to us, the LRA will, come back and kill them. So either way, they [villagers] cannot win," he said. The increased insecurity in northern Uganda has prompted NGOs operating in the region to demand an "immediate de-escalation" of the current conflict. They urged all parties to the conflict to seek a sustainable peace by addressing the root causes of the conflict. In a joint statement released on Friday, the NGOs expressed grave concern over the escalating humanitarian disaster due to the deteriorating security in the Acholi subregion, which comprises Gulu, Kitgum and Pader districts, but in recent weeks has spilled over into neighbouring Lira and Adjumani districts. According to the statement, the current armed conflict in the region is destroying the gains made from years of rehabilitation in the subregion, with communities previously self-sufficient now unable to cope. "The population of the subregion is deprived of a life of security and dignity," the statement said. "Since June 2002, hundreds of civilians - Ugandans and Sudanese refugees in Gulu, Kitgum, Pader, Lira and Adjumani - have been killed. Thousands have suffered displacement, injury, and loss of property. Tens of thousands of refugees and internally displaced persons have been re-displaced due to insecurity and fear," it added. Furthermore, the statement added, insecurity was preventing humanitarian access to needy populations, and prohibiting farmers from accessing their fields, thereby creating a humanitarian crisis in the region. "Insecurity has made it almost impossible for humanitarian agencies to deliver vitally needed relief supplies like food, water, sanitation, medicines, medical care, shelter and clothing," it said. "Reduced planting this season will result in little or no harvest, and consequently a dependency on outside food assistance for the coming year," it added.