Peace talks: LRA must first release abducted children
Mar 26, 2007
IN the United States, there have been many people sharing many different stories about the conflict in northern Uganda. One of the biggest concerns is the plight of the children facing atrocities, abductions and other problems. Here in the US, these children are called the “Invisible Children of N
By Sam Childers
IN the United States, there have been many people sharing many different stories about the conflict in northern Uganda. One of the biggest concerns is the plight of the children facing atrocities, abductions and other problems. Here in the US, these children are called the “Invisible Children of Northern Uganda.â€
They call them invisible children because no one will examine the suffering they face everyday. The LRA is responsible for spreading terror throughout northern Uganda, which has now encompassed Southern Sudan like cancer. Over the last several years I have personally witnessed the horror the LRA has afflicted on the people and children during this war.
For eight months or more there have been peace talks between the government of Uganda and the LRA, but with no success. I feel the Uganda government has been forced into these talks. I have sat down and spoken with President Museveni and I know that he is a man of truth and honour, who desires prosperity for the people of Uganda. He has continued the legacy of the former President of South Sudan, John Garang.
The LRA has been fighting this war for many years with no agenda other than the destruction of innocent men, women and children. Not only do they say they want peace, but they also want to be compensated for the war they began with evil intentions. It is hard to believe they would have the nerve to ask for compensation when we know they deserve nothing. I believe they should be given one chance, and that is to surrender.
The LRA leader, Joseph Kony, and others like him, need to pay for the crimes which they have committed against the innocent. I know that justice will prevail for these children. I spoke with some of the children who stay at our orphanage in South Sudan and I asked them that: “If Joseph Kony received compensation, what would you like back?†One little guy replied, “I want back my parents, who the LRA killed, and my eye that they shot out.â€
Another woman said, “they cut my ears, lips, and so much more that I could never ask for those precious things back, not even the children they killed right before my eyes...†She went on to say, “but if God was to grant me anything it would be my children. I will have to carry these scars, inside and out, for the rest of my life.â€
I would like to ask the LRA this question: if we were to give you land, animals, and finances to start over, what will you give back to these children whom you have terrorised for so long? We must stop this nonsense. They want us to believe these children were just in the way of the war, but that is not so; they were never in the way, the LRA is.
The LRA have attacked unarmed villages, and left them with no men or soldiers to defend them. The LRA needs to pay for every arm, lip and ear they cut off, and every scar they have left on a child’s face.
In South Sudan we have built an orphanage that is a safe haven for these children, yet we have to protect it with guards from the SPLA in fear that the LRA will return to afflict more terror and death upon these children. As the new President of South Sudan, Salva Kiir, said, “the LRA must leave now or face the consequences.†These children may be safe but you can still hear their cries at night. The memories still linger in their thoughts and dreams.
After speaking with trained counsellors concerning the trauma these children have faced, they all agreed that we must let them be children again. We must give back the life that the LRA has stolen from them.
For months I was seeking God’s direction as to how we could begin to bring healing to these children. God spoke to me to build a playground on the orphanage for the children to play. Now all you hear is laughter from them each day. It is a sign that they are on their way to healing and being children again.
The children of northern Uganda and South Sudan can be rescued, and the tragedies of this war can be put behind them when we begin to bring hope to a child with no future. We must let them know that they are not forgotten and abandoned, and as a son or daughter of God they are not invisible. They are children with a future and a destiny. Until then, they will keep asking in their minds: ‘what if the LRA return for me?’
We must come together as countries and nations around the world and stop these men. Only then can these children be reassured that their future is prosperous. Many people around the world have seen and heard of their holocaust but have done nothing; we shut it out of our minds and forget it.
There should be no negotiations with the LRA until the children they have abducted are released and the men kept in their evil stronghold are given the chance to be free. Many criticise the International Criminal Court (ICC), by saying they have no business being involved, but they are the only ones willing to hold the LRA accountable for what they have done. I commend them and their involvement and hope to see them bring justice to a place justice seemingly forgot.
The ICC is standing up for the innocent. Until we press on and press through with prayers and hope for justice we have no room for talk of peace. I have given up my life to see that justice be brought forth for these forgotten children.
The writer is a Pastor with the
US-based World Missions Shekinah Fellowship. He runs a rehabilitation programme for war-affected children in northern Uganda and southern Sudan
IN the United States, there have been many people sharing many different stories about the conflict in northern Uganda. One of the biggest concerns is the plight of the children facing atrocities, abductions and other problems. Here in the US, these children are called the “Invisible Children of Northern Uganda.â€
They call them invisible children because no one will examine the suffering they face everyday. The LRA is responsible for spreading terror throughout northern Uganda, which has now encompassed Southern Sudan like cancer. Over the last several years I have personally witnessed the horror the LRA has afflicted on the people and children during this war.
For eight months or more there have been peace talks between the government of Uganda and the LRA, but with no success. I feel the Uganda government has been forced into these talks. I have sat down and spoken with President Museveni and I know that he is a man of truth and honour, who desires prosperity for the people of Uganda. He has continued the legacy of the former President of South Sudan, John Garang.
The LRA has been fighting this war for many years with no agenda other than the destruction of innocent men, women and children. Not only do they say they want peace, but they also want to be compensated for the war they began with evil intentions. It is hard to believe they would have the nerve to ask for compensation when we know they deserve nothing. I believe they should be given one chance, and that is to surrender.
The LRA leader, Joseph Kony, and others like him, need to pay for the crimes which they have committed against the innocent. I know that justice will prevail for these children. I spoke with some of the children who stay at our orphanage in South Sudan and I asked them that: “If Joseph Kony received compensation, what would you like back?†One little guy replied, “I want back my parents, who the LRA killed, and my eye that they shot out.â€
Another woman said, “they cut my ears, lips, and so much more that I could never ask for those precious things back, not even the children they killed right before my eyes...†She went on to say, “but if God was to grant me anything it would be my children. I will have to carry these scars, inside and out, for the rest of my life.â€
I would like to ask the LRA this question: if we were to give you land, animals, and finances to start over, what will you give back to these children whom you have terrorised for so long? We must stop this nonsense. They want us to believe these children were just in the way of the war, but that is not so; they were never in the way, the LRA is.
The LRA have attacked unarmed villages, and left them with no men or soldiers to defend them. The LRA needs to pay for every arm, lip and ear they cut off, and every scar they have left on a child’s face.
In South Sudan we have built an orphanage that is a safe haven for these children, yet we have to protect it with guards from the SPLA in fear that the LRA will return to afflict more terror and death upon these children. As the new President of South Sudan, Salva Kiir, said, “the LRA must leave now or face the consequences.†These children may be safe but you can still hear their cries at night. The memories still linger in their thoughts and dreams.
After speaking with trained counsellors concerning the trauma these children have faced, they all agreed that we must let them be children again. We must give back the life that the LRA has stolen from them.
For months I was seeking God’s direction as to how we could begin to bring healing to these children. God spoke to me to build a playground on the orphanage for the children to play. Now all you hear is laughter from them each day. It is a sign that they are on their way to healing and being children again.
The children of northern Uganda and South Sudan can be rescued, and the tragedies of this war can be put behind them when we begin to bring hope to a child with no future. We must let them know that they are not forgotten and abandoned, and as a son or daughter of God they are not invisible. They are children with a future and a destiny. Until then, they will keep asking in their minds: ‘what if the LRA return for me?’
We must come together as countries and nations around the world and stop these men. Only then can these children be reassured that their future is prosperous. Many people around the world have seen and heard of their holocaust but have done nothing; we shut it out of our minds and forget it.
There should be no negotiations with the LRA until the children they have abducted are released and the men kept in their evil stronghold are given the chance to be free. Many criticise the International Criminal Court (ICC), by saying they have no business being involved, but they are the only ones willing to hold the LRA accountable for what they have done. I commend them and their involvement and hope to see them bring justice to a place justice seemingly forgot.
The ICC is standing up for the innocent. Until we press on and press through with prayers and hope for justice we have no room for talk of peace. I have given up my life to see that justice be brought forth for these forgotten children.
The writer is a Pastor with the
US-based World Missions Shekinah Fellowship. He runs a rehabilitation programme for war-affected children in northern Uganda and southern Sudan