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IRIN is pleased to announce the launch in Kampala of a booklet and accompanyingaudio CD entitled “Today you will understand” based on the moving, personal stories of women and girls affected by the war in northern Uganda between government forces and the rebel Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA).
Download the PDF Version of 'Today you will Understand'
“Today you will understand” is a unique collection of 16 true stories related viaradio interviews conducted jointly by IRIN’s radio project in northern Uganda and members of FEMRITE, the Uganda Women Writers’ Association.
The women and girls tell of being raped, shot, disabled, displaced, abused and enslaved,of witnessing their loved ones being killed in front of them, and being burdened with the responsibility of raising their children alone in abject poverty.
Rose describes being gang-raped by LRA rebels when she was pregnant and later giving birth alone under a tree. She tied the baby’s umbilical cord using a thread from her hair braids. “My heart got hardened on realizing that it was a boy. I wanted to throw it away. But God touched my heart and I decided to just carry it since the child was innocent. You cannot run away from what is yours.”
Transcribed from the audio testimonies, the women’s voices in this booklet come through with the starkness and intimacy they carried in the original radio interviews.
FEMRITE coordinator Hilda Twongyeirwe, said: “Sharing and publishing these stories is one way of raising awareness about the atrocities of war and making the world reflect more closely on what happens in armed conflict.”
IRIN Radio’s work in Uganda has been funded by the German government. In a foreword to “Today you will understand,” Germany’s ambassador to Kampala, Reinhard Buchholz,writes: “Broadcasting people’s war experiences is one of the best ways to bring attention to the conflict. It shows us how difficult life is without peace and it makes the victims feel that they are not alone in their worries. The project strengthens solidarity among the Ugandan people and helps spread knowledge about the conflict in northern Uganda. I particularly appreciate that it expresses the engagement ofUgandans from Kampala with Ugandans in the North.”
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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
