Account for missing children in the north - SC

The Uganda government must help to account for thousands of "lost and largely forgotten" children who have been abducted by the rebel Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) during the 20-year conflict in northern Uganda, Save the Children has said. "The parents who have lost their children in this conflict have the right to know what has happened to them," said David Wright, director of Save the Children (SC) in Uganda, in a statement on Thursday. Approximately 25,000 children have been abducted during the war between the LRA and the government, according to the United Nations Children’s Fund. SC said Kampala and the international community should renew their commitment to resolving the conflict, which continues to endanger innocent children. "Every day is another day when children are at risk of abduction. Another day of lost education. Another day a child risks contracting malaria. Another day a child can be exploited. And every day, more children are born into these dire circumstances. Enough is enough," said Jasmine Whitbread, chief executive of Save the Children UK, who visited northern Uganda this week as part of a five-member SC delegation. She was joined by colleagues from Denmark, Norway, Sweden and the United States. The group also suggested the Uganda government appoint an ombudsman for children, who would act as their main defender. It also urged the UN Secretary-General to appoint a special envoy for northern Uganda. One of the visiting delegates was surprised that children’s conditions were covered more in the foreign press than in Uganda. "I will never forget the situation in the north," Mimi Jacobsen of SC Denmark told reporters in Uganda. "It is unbelievable. A lot of talented and clever children's futures are wasted."