Uganda faces an imminent return to armed conflict unless urgent action is taken to rescue the stalled peace talks in Juba, South Sudan. Two members of the U.S. Senate have said the continuation of talks is essential.

Sen. Russ Feingold (D-Wisc.), Chairman of the Senate Subcommittee on African Affairs, said, "With the current ceasefire between the Government of Uganda and the LRA set to expire soon, the U.S. and the international community must step up our efforts to achieve a sustainable and lasting peace...As Chairman of the Senate Subcommittee on African Affairs, I will continue to push for increased humanitarian assistance, as well as diplomatic and logistical support for the talks between the Ugandan Government and the LRA, to promote progress towards sustainable peace in Uganda."

Sen. Sam Brownback (R-Kan.), a long-time advocate for increased attention to the crisis, said, "The violence must end now. With the ceasefire set to expire at the end of the month and with the peace talks stalled, we must continue to put pressure on all parties involved to remain at the table and reach a peaceful solution to the conflict."

After your letters and pressure, today's New York Times includes a letter from Patty Swahn, regional director of East Africa for the International Rescue Committee. Swahn writes, "In 'A Film Star in Kampala, Conjuring Amin’s Ghost' (front page, Feb. 18), you note that Uganda is now 'one of the safest and most stable countries in Africa.' That may be true in southern Uganda, but it is a very different reality for the Acholi people in the marginalized north...In Uganda, only half the population lives in a country where it’s secure enough to film a Hollywood picture. We should not forget the other half." Thanks to everyone who wrote letters to make sure the international press doesn't overlook northern Uganda!

The DR Congo Interior Minister General Denis Kalume said yesterday that the army will push the LRA out of the country. He said that LRA fighters were pillaging villages in northeast Congo, near the border with Uganda, Sudan and Central African Republic. Read more at MONUC.org.

In an interview, the former governor of Western Equatoria State Col. Patrick Raphael Zamoi, has urged the removal of LRA rebels from southern Sudan. He further disclosed his initial opposition to host the LRA rebels inside Sudanese territories. Zamoi called upon the LRA forces to stop terrorizing and looting innocent natives of Southern Sudan. Read the full interview at The Sudan Tribune.

For months, the UN Security Council has gone silent about the conflict in northern Uganda. Yet, this month's Council president, Slovakia's Peter Burian, yesterday indicated that he will be requesting a Council briefing on the LRA "in the near future." The next step appears to be a briefing to the Council about the LRA by the UN Secretariat. Kofi Annan's appointed envoy, Joaquim Chisano, has not publicly been heard from and may be asked to provide a briefing. Read more at Inner City Press.

GuluWalk co-founder and director Adrian Bradbury has written an Op/Ed in today's National Post. Bradbury writes, "Peace talks in northern Uganda have broken down once again. If precedent is any guide, the biggest losers in this latest development will be children." He continues, "Yet when UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon addressed their plight during a brief stopover in Uganda recently, he declared, 'We appreciate the role Uganda has played in assisting to resolve conflicts, especially in the Great Lakes region.' In addressing the local media, Ki-Moon went on to express his focus on the military and political challenges in Somalia and Sudan's Darfur region, where he demanded 'action and real progress.' Not one mention of the appalling conditions just 250 kilometres north of the capital city of Kampala." Read more at GuluWalk.

Today's New York Times includes a compelling article about Ugandans' fascination with the award-winning film "Last King of Scotland," which portrays the reign of dictator Idi Amin. Unfortunately, when speaking about the state of Uganda today, the article completely overlooks the 21-year suffering of northern Ugandans. In it, Uganda is described as "one of the safest and most stable countries in Africa." This is hardly the case. For the last 21 years, the people have been condemned to a brutal war that has left 1.7 million people displaced (80% of the region) and over 30,000 children abducted and forced into soldiering. If this leaves you outraged, consider writing a short letter to the editor to the New York Times or write an email to the article's author Jeffrey Gettleman. The neglect of the international community and media has perpetuated this conflict, and even after 21 years, that neglect will remain alive unless we speak up.

The Catholic Archbishop of Gulu in Northern Uganda John Baptist Odama has asked for quick and immediate international action to save the situation in northern Uganda after peace talks between the Ugandan government and Lord's Resistance Army have faltered. Archbishop Odama also asked the UN special envoy to northern Uganda Joaquim Chisano to find ways of restarting the talks. "The cessation of hostilities between the two groups expires on February 28 and war could break out if the peace talks would not have resumed," Archbishop Odama said. Read more at Catholic Info. Service for Africa.

The International Criminal Court (ICC) has so far received 49 applicants willing to testify against Joseph Kony, the indicted leader of the LRA. The applicants are all victims of the 20-year rebel insurgency that has ravaged northern Uganda. Claudia Perdomo, the ICC outreach coordinator, said that the applications are currently under scrutiny. Kony faces 33 counts of crimes against humanity and war crimes. He, however, vehemently denies the allegations. The other co-accused are Vincent Otti, second in command, Dominic Ongwen, Okot Odhiambo and Raska Lukwiya (RIP). In the face of stalled peace talks between the rebels and the Uganda government, the ICC has gone ahead to prepare guidelines for the hearing process. Read more at The Monitor.

The BBC News reports that the Ugandan Parliament has agreed to send 1500 Ugandan troops to Somalia as part of a African Union (AU) peacekeeping force to take over from Ethiopian forces currently occupying the country. According to the report, the troops have a six-month mandate to engage in peacekeeping operations, support the transitional government to stabilise the country, and help out with humanitarian aid. The cost will come out of the existing Ugandan defence budget with the AU to fund any extra costs. Read more at BBC News. This decision is controversial not only because of resistance to the peacekeepers within Somalia, but also the issue of priorities. Insecurity and displacement continue to ravage northern Uganda in one of the world's worst (and most neglected) humanitarian nightmares.

The directors of War Dance, a documentary film about an improbable dance team from an IDP camp in northern Uganda, have won the Sundance Film Festival's documentary directing award.

The Governor of Eastern Equatoria State announced yesterday that he has deployed the army to protect the population from attacks by LRA rebels. Governor Aloisio Emor Ojetuk further denounced the persistent atrocities and killing of people in the region. Governor Ojetuk said the major challenge facing SPLM in the Eastern Equatoria state is insurgency being posed by the LRA fighters, especially in Magwi and eastern Torit counties. Read more at The Sudan Tribune.

The Canadian government has pledged to contribute $2.5 million towards peace building efforts in northern Uganda. This is a fresh incentive for the parties to resume the talks already beset by a breakdown of trust. "The current peace process represents the best opportunity in two decades to build a lasting and peaceful solution to the conflict in northern Uganda," Canada's foreign affairs Peter MacKay said. "This opportunity must not be lost since a return to hostilities would be tragic for the people of Uganda and other areas affected by the hostilities, including Sudan and the DR Congo." Read more at The Monitor.

LRA leader Joseph Kony and four of his collegues who were indicted for war crimes have hired two international criminal lawyers to represent them at the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague. Kony's deputy Vincent Otti said today that the LRA had identified two lawyers who would travel to The Hague to meet the ICC team and present their case on the government's role in the 20-year war in northern Uganda. "Ever since the ICC issued the warrants on us, it is only the government that has been going to The Hague to meet the ICC to tell lies about us. We also want to meet them to present our issues against the government," Otti said. The Daily Monitor has established that one of the delegates expected to go to The Hague is Prof. Omii Olara. Read more at The Monitor.

The U.S. State Department has issued a press statement expressing concern with the delay of the Juba peace talks. The statement reads, "The United States appreciates the Government of South Sudan's efforts to mediate a peaceful resolution to the 20-year old conflict with the Lord's Resistance Army...We are concerned that demands to change the mediator and venue of the talks will only delay peace in the region and further the suffering of displaced northern Ugandans. Our priority remains peace in northern Uganda."

Sixteen diplomatic missions and the UN have called on the Ugandan government and LRA to resume the stalled peace negotiations in Juba. "We the undersigned Heads of Diplomatic Missions in Kampala wish to express our concern that the talks in Juba have not yet resumed. We call on all parties to prove their commitment to the talks and make the most of this opportunity to build a lasting and peaceful solution to the conflict," the diplomatic missions said in a statement yesterday. The signatories to the statement are Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, European Commission, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, UK and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). The UN Security Council, the African Union and the wider international community have all welcomed efforts aimed at bringing to an end one of Africa's longest conflicts, which has undermined security in the wider region. Read more at The Monitor.