Millions of civilians were displaced during more than two decades of civil war in Sudan. Now, three years after the North and South signed a peace accord, many are returning home, including tens of thousands of Southern Sudanese who had been living as refugees in Uganda.
[See film transcript and video links]
But while the returnees are hopeful that by going home they will be able to rebuild their lives, they also fear that true peace has yet to be restored in their places of origin.
One of the greatest sources of fear is the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), a northern Ugandan rebel group active since 1986. During Sudan’s civil war the LRA was used as a proxy force by the north against rebels in southern Sudan, where the LRA maintained bases.
Peace talks between the LRA and the Ugandan government came unstuck at the eleventh hour earlier this year when the rebel group’s leader, Joseph Kony, failed to appear for the signing ceremony.
Rather than working towards peace, the LRA, whose leaders are wanted by the International Criminal Court to face war crimes charges, seems to be preparing for more conflict. It has been blamed for abducting hundreds of people - one of the group’s hallmarks - in the Central African Republic, presumably to bolster its ranks.
LRA attacks
In early June 2008 the LRA reportedly attacked Southern Sudanese forces in Nabanga, near the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo, killing 23 people.
“Here people are still scared of the LRA,” said Flora, a South Sudenese speaking after an earlier attack on her village that was blamed on the LRA.
“People don’t go beyond those hills over there, no more than five kilometres from the village. Beyond those hills people are afraid of meeting the rebels.”
Such incidents will be of serious concern for Mark Otti and his family, who are among around 100,000 Southern Sudanese who have returned home from a refugee life in Uganda over the last couple of years.
Those helped to return by the UN Refugee Agency receive a “repatriation package” consisting of blankets, sleeping mats, plastic sheets, mosquito nets, water buckets, kitchen sets, jerry cans, soap, seeds and tools. While such goods will help the Ottis rebuild their lives, they can do nothing to quell their fear of the LRA, a fear born out of the rebel group’s repeated attacks on refugee camps inside Uganda.
Employment challenge
Even leaving aside the threat posed by the LRA, a hard homecoming awaits Mark, his wife Nancy and their children, who have never even visited their parents’ country of birth.
Both Mark and Nancy are trained professionals; he is a nurse, she a teacher. But while their skills will be sorely needed in war-devastated South Sudan, the chances of their getting paid employment in these fields are slim.
Nancy is well aware of this, but nevertheless remains undaunted.
“I am seeing that here in Sudan things are OK; those who have already returned seem happy and well. My plan was to work as a teacher, as I trained in Uganda, so I hope to get a job. If not, I will just have to pick up the hoe and develop my land,” she said.
Despite a last-minute scare during their journey from Uganda, Mark is also determined to make a go of things once he and his family finally arrive home.
“I am excited to see my people around and to see my village. I have to at least make some huts for my family, then I can stay with them and push life.”
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[See film transcript and video links]
But while the returnees are hopeful that by going home they will be able to rebuild their lives, they also fear that true peace has yet to be restored in their places of origin.
One of the greatest sources of fear is the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), a northern Ugandan rebel group active since 1986. During Sudan’s civil war the LRA was used as a proxy force by the north against rebels in southern Sudan, where the LRA maintained bases.
Peace talks between the LRA and the Ugandan government came unstuck at the eleventh hour earlier this year when the rebel group’s leader, Joseph Kony, failed to appear for the signing ceremony.
Rather than working towards peace, the LRA, whose leaders are wanted by the International Criminal Court to face war crimes charges, seems to be preparing for more conflict. It has been blamed for abducting hundreds of people - one of the group’s hallmarks - in the Central African Republic, presumably to bolster its ranks.
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In early June 2008 the LRA reportedly attacked Southern Sudanese forces in Nabanga, near the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo, killing 23 people.
“Here people are still scared of the LRA,” said Flora, a South Sudenese speaking after an earlier attack on her village that was blamed on the LRA.
“People don’t go beyond those hills over there, no more than five kilometres from the village. Beyond those hills people are afraid of meeting the rebels.”
Such incidents will be of serious concern for Mark Otti and his family, who are among around 100,000 Southern Sudanese who have returned home from a refugee life in Uganda over the last couple of years.
Those helped to return by the UN Refugee Agency receive a “repatriation package” consisting of blankets, sleeping mats, plastic sheets, mosquito nets, water buckets, kitchen sets, jerry cans, soap, seeds and tools. While such goods will help the Ottis rebuild their lives, they can do nothing to quell their fear of the LRA, a fear born out of the rebel group’s repeated attacks on refugee camps inside Uganda.
 Photo: Neil Thomas/IRIN  |
| "There is nothing like home" says the banner on this truck returning Southern Sudanese from Uganda |
Even leaving aside the threat posed by the LRA, a hard homecoming awaits Mark, his wife Nancy and their children, who have never even visited their parents’ country of birth.
Both Mark and Nancy are trained professionals; he is a nurse, she a teacher. But while their skills will be sorely needed in war-devastated South Sudan, the chances of their getting paid employment in these fields are slim.
Nancy is well aware of this, but nevertheless remains undaunted.
“I am seeing that here in Sudan things are OK; those who have already returned seem happy and well. My plan was to work as a teacher, as I trained in Uganda, so I hope to get a job. If not, I will just have to pick up the hoe and develop my land,” she said.
Despite a last-minute scare during their journey from Uganda, Mark is also determined to make a go of things once he and his family finally arrive home.
“I am excited to see my people around and to see my village. I have to at least make some huts for my family, then I can stay with them and push life.”
dg/cb
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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