IRIN News reports today that progress at the Juba peace talks depends on skillful mediation, but also pencils and helicopter flights. "Like everything in Sudan, it's a logistics operation - everything is expensive," said an official. A low-key but hectic operation has been running since last year, booking flights, paying hotel bills, telephone bills and per diems, and shuttling VIPs to and from remote locations. In Juba, a flood of UN and other aid workers, government officials and business people has made prices rocket, spawned dozens of bars and restaurants and made the city what one donor official called a "cowboy town." In addition, a new airstrip is being levelled near Ri-Kwangba to allow the LRA delegation to meet with its leadership via helicopter. These costs may well be what it takes to reach an agreement, but there is a risk. One observer told IRIN, "We have to ensure we don't make it a business - and they sit there for the next three years." Read more at IRIN News.

Uganda's government urged donors and human rights groups on Wednesday to accept traditional justice systems as an alternative to jail sentences for dealing with LRA war crimes. The LRA has said they will not sign any deal unless the International Criminal Court (ICC) drops indictments against their four LRA top commanders. That has prompted officials to suggest traditional reconciliation rituals as an alternative. The head of the government peace team, Internal Affairs Minister Ruhakana Rugunda, said yesterday he wanted critics to take the proposal more seriously. "Our traditions have sustained our societies for centuries. Instead of abandoning (them) ... and jumping into Western solutions, Uganda (may) decide to stick with our traditions," he said. "They have resolved conflicts in the past." Read more at Reuters AlertNet.

Historic peace talks to end the 21-year war in northern Uganda are expected to resume today when then the parties meet in Juba. The Ugandan government, prior to the resumption, has dropped an earlier demand that peace negotiations be given a time-frame. The lead government negotiator Ruhakana Rugunda said yesterday that peace in northern Uganda is more important than the calendar days. When the talks resume today, the parties will move to agenda item #3, "accountability and reconciliation": believed to be the most complicated, yet crucial topic of the negotiations. Acholi traditional chief Rwot David Acana II will present a paper on Mato Oput, a traditional Acholi justice system. Acana will be joined by several experts on international law and justice. Read more at The Monitor.

The Monitor has published an editorial supporting President Museveni's warning to the LRA last weekend. They write, "All people of goodwill have against their moral conscience chosen peace and sacrificed justice in the name of ending the northern Uganda conflict. They have backed the talks because they see them as the most credible means to ending two decades of devastating turmoil in the political north of this country, Uganda. Let the LRA not misinterpret this magnanimity to be a sign of weakness. To do that would be to delude themselves that Ugandans, and the indeed the international community, have forgotten about the horrendous crimes against humanity and war crimes that the rebels have committed at various times of their atrocious war...The rebels must understand that they are doing nobody a favour by fooling around instead of genuinely pursuing the peace."

President Museveni has said LRA leaders should comply with the ongoing Juba peace process or perish. "If Kony does not take chance of the peace talks, he will perish like the [biblical] pharaoh," Museveni said. He was addressing Christians at the consecration of Bishop Joseph Abura at St. Phillip's Cathedral in Moroto town this weekend. Museveni compared the rebel commanders to the Egyptian Pharaoh whose forces drowned in the Red Sea for refusing to heed advice against subjecting the Israelites to extended suffering. The President's remarks were a direct response to threats by the LRA to resume war. Read more at The Monitor.

The Ugandan government confirmed it will resume peace talks with the LRA this Thursday (May 31) despite threats by the LRA deputy commander to resume war if ICC indictments are not lifted. "As far as we know, talks are resuming this Thursday in Juba," said government chief negotiator Ruhakana Rugunda. He said during the two-week-postponement, the LRA have been in a workshop on Mato Oput, a traditional Acholi justice system being consider to replace ICC trials. Read more at The Monitor.

The LRA deputy commander Vincent Otti has vowed to continue fighting if the International Criminal Court (ICC) does not withdraw its indictments against rebel leadership. "If they refuse, then the war will continue. I am prepared to do anything - even war. I am ready for war. If they don’t drop the indictments, you will see that we have enough to capture power," Otti said on Sky News. Sky News correspondent Stuart Ramsay spent three days in the LRA camp in Garamba National Park. He reported seeing about 100 LRA soldiers, some of them boys of about 14 or 15 years old. Most were wearing dreadlocks, green combat fatigues and t-shirts emblazoned with pictures of rap stars like 50 Cent. Otti’s utterances have drawn a sharp reaction from the Ugandan government. "We shall not allow the LRA to return to northern Uganda and reverse the current reconstruction and resettlement," vowed army spokesman Major Felix Kulayigye. Read more at The New Vision.

There are new hopes for the Juba peace process as the Ugandan government and LRA have agreed to resume negotiations on May 31. When the parties resume, they will address agenda item #3, reconciliation and accountability. The outstanding indictments for four top LRA leaders remains an obstacle. "[LRA leaders] are of the opinion that the indictments should be withdrawn before we can reach a conclusive peace agreement. However, we told them that we cannot withdraw the case unless we have signed an agreement with them," Internal Affairs Minister Dr. Rugunda has said. However, in a recent interview, LRA deputy leader Vincent Otti threatened a return to war unless the ICC warrants are withdrawn. Read more at the Institute for War & Peace Reporting.

Olara Otunnu, former UN Under-Secretary General for Children and Armed Conflict, has written an open letter to the LRA in tomorrow's Monitor. He writes, "I reject the notion that: If you condemn LRA atrocities, this means that you are pro-Museveni; and if you expose Museveni’s crimes, then you must be an LRA supporter! This is a moral trap. It is a contrived dichotomy, a false choice, which has comforted a deep culture of silence and impunity." Otunnu continues, "First, the most urgent issue, barring none, is ending the genocide. This must begin with the immediate dismantling (not decongesting) of all concentration camps. This requires an organised programme of return to wii obur (long- abandoned homesteads), provision of resettlement supplies, international monitoring team, and adequate security arrangements. With the cessation of hostilities and the withdrawal of LRA from Ugandan territory, following the government’s own logic, there is no longer any pretext for holding people in concentration camps. Why then is the dismantling of the camps not front-and-centre of the Juba talks?" Read the full letter at The Monitor.

The UN has promised to clear hotel bills incurred by the LRA delegates in Juba. "There was a delay in paying some bills, due to minor disagreements of a technical nature regarding some of the charges," the UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs announced. "These are now being addressed with a view to reaching a prompt solution." The management of Juba Bridge Hotel, where the delegates are residing, had denied food to the LRA team because of non-payment of close to $100,000. Meanwhile, the Ugandan government said it expects talks to resume this weekend with agenda item three. Read more at The Monitor.

Uganda's Chief Justice Benjamin Odoki said yesterday that traditional justice mechanisms, namely Mato Oput, are the best option for resolving the 21-year war in northern Uganda. "Peace is vital for development. The judiciary promotes peace, but as the custodian of the judiciary, I still believe in traditional justices like the mato oput and the local council systems," he said. This is timely as the parties in the Juba negotiations move toward the contentious issue of accountability, especially for LRA rebel leadership. "It is through such systems of solving problems that the community understands each other," he said. Read more at The New Vision.

This week, the parties in Juba are expected to resume negotiations on the third agenda item: reconciliation and accountability. This agenda item has been considered by some the "make-or-break" point for the peace talks. The LRA leadership has conditioned any peace agreement on the suspension of International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrants. Yet, the Ugandan government has said it will only engage such an option once an agreement has been signed. Civil society leaders have been exploring "third way" approaches that advance accountability without hindering peace. Read more at The Daily Monitor.

LRA leader Joseph Kony has reportedly promised to respect the latest agreement signed by the LRA and Ugandan government delegations to the peace talks in Juba, South Sudan. The two sides signed the agreement, "Comprehensive Solutions to the Northern Uganda conflict," earlier this month in the hope that it will help rejuvenate the peace process. “They (Kony and Otti) are totally committed and supportive of the agreement we signed in Juba in an attempt to bring peace to the people of Uganda. Their message is that they will keep their part of the bargain and called on the government to keep theirs,” said LRA delegate Godfrey Ayoo, who met with Kony last week. Read more at The Monitor.

Citing over $100,000 in unpaid bills, the management of the Juba Bridge Hotel has threatened to evict the LRA delegation and support staff from the hotel. LRA delegates to the peace talks in Juba, South Sudan confirmed the eviction threat and called on the UN and international community to address the issue. According to previous agreements to facilitate the participation of the LRA in the peace talks, the UN humanitarian affairs office is tasked with paying for the accommodation of LRA delegates, support staff and cessation of hostilities monitoring team members in Juba. The UN launched the Juba Initiative Fund last year to help pay such costs, but the LRA has expressed discontent in the past with the disbursement of the funds. Read more at The Monitor.

UN human rights chief Louise Arbour said today that any peace deal between the LRA and Ugandan government should not include amnesty for LRA leaders indicted by the International Criminal Court (ICC). "Discussions concerning those persons should be focusing on the terms and circumstances of their surrender so they can go and address the charges against them before the ICC," she said. Read more at Reuters AlertNet.

In other ICC news, a dispute has arisen within the court regarding its treatment of witnesses who might testify in the event the indicted LRA leaders are tried at the world court. Some northern Ugandans have undergone an application process to become witnesses, and the dispute centers on how much legal advice and representation ICC officials can give the witnesses while their application is pending. Read more at The Monitor.

The resumption of peace talks between the Government of Uganda and LRA, scheduled to resume today in Juba, has been postponed until at least next week. The delay is due to a disagreement between the two parties over Agenda Item Three, which deals with issues of accountability and reconciliation. Both the Government and LRA have submitted their positions on these issues to mediators, who are currently analyzing the proposals and attempting to reconcile discrepancies between the two. According to a spokesman for the Ugandan government delegation, the disagreement has arisen over the Government's request that the LRA admit to committing atrocities in northern Uganda and the looming issue of the International Criminal Court. “If the ICC is still standing as it is currently, the problems will still be there for the peace process,” said Justin Labeja, an LRA delegate. Read more at IRIN.

The Government of Uganda on Tuesday expressed continued disappointment and frustration at the LRA's refusal to release the women and children in its captivity. "We keep reminding the LRA about the request over the issue and on numerous occasions we tell them face-to-face to release the children and women they hold hostage. The answer we get is that the women and girls are their wives and children," said Okello Oryem, deputy head of the government delegation to peace talks. UNICEF currently estimates that up to 3,000 women and children are being held hostage by the LRA in Southern Sudan and the DRC. Read more at Reuters AlertNet.

At the request of Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni and Salva Kiir, President of South Sudan, the UPDF and SPLA have mapped out two routes for the LRA to use to travel to the Ri-Kwangba assembly area in Sudan, near the Congolese border. Once these routes have been communicated to the LRA, its fighters will have seven days to assemble in Ri-Kwangba.

As part of the recently renewed Cessation of Hostilities agreement, the parties settled that the LRA fighters would assemble in one area instead of two areas in southern Sudan and these routes were constructed to facilitate this agreement. Henry Okello Oryem, the deputy head of the government negotiating team, today outlined the routes and assured reporters that they were "carefully selected to pass through locations where there would be the least disruption of human activity." He also said that monitoring teams would be placed at key points along the routes and that any LRA activity outside of Ri-Kwangba after the seven days expire would be considered a violation of the ceasefire and would be dealt with by the UPDF and SPLA. Read more at the New Vision.

Deputy LRA Commander Vincent Otti has condemned the attack on civilians last week in northern Uganda, which left seven people dead. Otti called into Gulu-based Mega FM to denounce the violence, though he was unable to confirm whether or not LRA rebels were actually involved in the attack. "I can neither confirm nor deny that the killings were done by my people," he said. Otti said that he has be in contact with all of his commanders on the ground in order to determine who was involved in orchestrating the attacks. The violence occurred last week in Amuru district, when three trucks carrying civilians from South Sudan to Uganda were attacked and burned. The Government of Uganda has blamed the violence on the LRA. Read more at The Monitor.

The LRA delegates at the Juba peace talks have been given presidential guards as part of the new security arrangement to boost their confidence and protection. The security detail has been greatly increased following complaints by the delegates that they are under threat. Sudanese People’s Liberation Army (SPLA) soldiers have been deployed at the Juba Bridge Hotel where the LRA delegates reside, while others travel with the delegates whenever they are going for meetings. Read more at The Monitor.

The Dutch minister for development cooperation, Albert Gerard Koenders, has urged the Government and LRA to speed up the peace talks so that the displaced persons return home quickly. He made the call during a meeting with the Acholi Paramount Chief, Rwot David Onen Acana II, on Saturday. Koenders was on a two-day visit to assess his country’s project support to Uganda and acquaint himself with Uganda’s development programmes. Read more at The New Vision.

Several members of the LRA delegation in Juba will tomorrow meet LRA leader Joseph Kony, along the Sudan-Congo border. The eight-member team, led by its chairman Martin Ojul, aims to furnish Kony with the details of the second agreement on 'comprehensive solutions to the northern conflict,' which was finalized Wednesday night. More importantly, the meeting will discuss agenda item three, which focuses on reconciliation and accountability. Read more at The Monitor.

The Ugandan government and LRA have signed another landmark agreement, this one on "Comprehensive Solutions to the Northern Uganda conflict." Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Henry Oryem Okello signed on behalf of the government while Martin Ojul, the LRA's peace delegation chairman, signed for the rebels. By press time, the final copy of the agreement had not been accessed, but according to a draft copy, the government agreed to provide protection to the LRA leaders, combatants and personnel during the transition from conflict to peace, once a final agreement has been signed. "This is a major breakthrough to both delegations," LRA's David Nyekorach Matsanga said.

"The parties agree that members of the LRA who are willing and qualify shall be integrated into the national armed forces and other security agencies in accordance with subsequent agreements between the parties" the draft copy indicates. On land, the parties agreed that fair and equitable compensation shall be payable in case of expropriation of land. It further states that land owners whose land has been used for settlement of IDPs or establishment of barracks and detaches, will be entitled to repossess their land or to receive fair and just compensation. On the system of governance, the parties agreed that government shall, through the Equal Opportunities Commission, review and assess the nature and extent of any regional or ethnic imbalances and disparities in participation in central government institutions and shall take all necessary steps to remedy any anomalies. Read more at The Monitor.

The LRA has denied claims by the Ugandan military that it was responsible for killing seven people in an ambush in the north of the country on Monday evening. Justin Labeja, a member of the LRA delegation to the peace talks in Juba, said the army's accusation was "unfair." He said, "It is always fashionable for the Ugandan military to blame any attack on the LRA." Read more at IRIN News.