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"Hear Our Voices" - "I still dream about the rebels coming for me"

[Uganda] Lilian Oyoo, IDP woman in Kitgum district, northern Uganda, August 2006. She was abducted in 2004 but managed to escape in a shoot out between the LRA rebels and the Ugandan army. Jocelyne Sambira/IRIN
Lilian Oyoo in Kitgum District, northern Uganda. She escaped from the Lord's Resistance Army in 2006 but says, "I still dream about the rebels coming for me"
    KITGUM

    Life for Lilian Oyoo, 27, now a mother of three, has never been the same since rebels of the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) abducted her four years ago. Oyoo escaped from the LRA in 2006 when government soldiers ambushed her group. The LRA, led by Joseph Kony, has waged a civil war in northern Uganda since 1986 against the administration of President Yoweri Museveni. Those who have borne the brunt of this war are mostly civilians, including Oyoo. She told IRIN how she was abducted:

    "The rebels, many in number and in full uniform, came to our village in 2003 as we prepared to sleep in the bush; we could no longer sleep in our houses for fear of being abducted. They were all strangers, I didn't recognise anyone.

    "I was abducted at night while preparing myself for sleep. We walked for a long time with the rebels, travelling during the day and resting at night. They made us carry goats on our necks while leading two others on a leash.

    "The rebels threatened to shoot the children if anyone attempted to escape. My brother was beaten up badly because he had swollen feet and couldn't move. After a few days, the group fell into a government army ambush and I took advantage of the chaos to escape.

    "I still have nightmares about it. Sometimes, I still dream the rebels are coming to abduct me to this day."

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    This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

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