Long-time experts Ron Atkinson and Sverker Finnstrom have written about the challenge of "building sustainable peace in northern Uganda" in the Horn of Africa Bulletin (No. 4, 2008) available here. They write, "It is important to note that Kony's failure to sign does not necessarily mean that LRA activities in northern Uganda will resume. Most LRA fighters are simply too far away from north-central Uganda for this to be a viable option, and unless South Sudan descends into renewed chaos and violence, the LRA will unlikely be able to re-establish bases there. At the same time, however, diplomats and others in the international community need to make every effort to get the talks back on track, as well as keep the GOU from initiating any military moves.

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TIME Magazine has published an article on "Uganda's unfinished peace." It reads, "For many, the [peace] process has descended into farce. For those clinging on to the process, Kony's next chance to come out of the bush is on May 10th, when Ugandan elders will return to Southern Sudan to supposedly discuss questions of justice. No one has any idea if he will turn up. and patience, too, is wearing thin, especially among those in the international community, which has paid over $10 million for the process."

A brief released this week by the UN children’s agency reports that funding for humanitarian work in northern Uganda and Karamoja is “critically low.” Donors have disbursed only 21% of the funds needed to fulfill the 2008 UN humanitarian appeal for Uganda, and these funds are spread unevenly over different sectors of humanitarian aid. Not one dollar has come through for UNICEF’s emergency non-food distribution, HIV/AIDS and water and sanitation projects in northern Uganda and Karamoja. The failure of international donors to respond adequately to the appeal is widening the gap between crisis and recovery. Displaced persons in Acholi, 80% of whom are women and children, are going home at slow rates in part due to a “stark lack of basic infrastructure and social services in areas of return.” Read the full brief here.

Io Schmid, former head of Oxfam's international campaign on Uganda, writes in European Voice, "The peace process may be fragile, but it remains the best bet for peace and justice. The EU should continue to support that bet." She writes further, "And there have been very worrying signs since the disappointment of 10 April: Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni has indicated he might revert to military action, and the sponsors of the peace process – most of them European – have indicated that they will not put more money into a process that may have little chance of succeeding...Soul-searching is natural after a setback, but the sponsors should not lose sight of what has been achieved during the peace process to date..."

The New Vision reports that the UN peacekeeping mission in the DR Congo (MONUC) has threatened to flush out the LRA rebels from their Garamba base in eastern DRC if they fail to sign the Final Peace Agreement. The MONUC head of regional relations unit, Gani Are, said the mission was setting up a new base in the Congolese town of Dungu. "We are deploying our soldiers in Dungu. We have a military plan for the LRA. We are waiting for the Congolese army to ask for our help and we get in," Are said.

Amnesty International today has released a statement calling on the UN and governments in Central Africa to take immediate action to secure the release of more than 350 men, women and children abducted in recent weeks. The abductions took place in the Central African Republic, DR Congo, and southern Sudan. LRA rebels operating in the region have been blamed.

The U.S. State Department, following the lead of other donor governments, has issued a press statement urging the "LRA to demonstrate its commitment to peace by signing the Final Peace Agreement." The statement reads in part: "The FPA represents an unprecedented opportunity to resolve the longstanding conflict and to enhance stability in the Great Lakes Region. We urge its signing and stand ready to support implementation...We will continue to work with these parties to support the peace process and bring an end to this conflict that has ravaged northern Uganda and southern Sudan, and threatens the DR Congo and the Central African Republic."

Periodically we point out informative or insightful blogs and websites relating to northern Uganda, many of which we list on the “blogroll” on the right side of the Uganda-CAN homepage. Today we’d like to highlight the US State Department’s northern Uganda “Virtual Presence Post,” a useful tool for gauging and analyzing the US role in northern Uganda and the Juba peace talks. Among some of its resources:

- information on US engagement in northern Uganda through its “three Ds” strategy (Defense, Development and Diplomacy),

- detailed monthly chronology of the peace process and the US government’s humanitarian and diplomatic work in northern Uganda and Juba,

- Public statements issued by the US State Department regarding the Juba peace talks,

- Information on high-level visits and Congressional delegations to northern Uganda.

General William Ward, head of the US military’s Africa Command (AFRICOM), will be in Uganda from April 9-11 to meet with UPDF officials and review the US military’s humanitarian and security assistance initiatives there. Among Gen. Ward scheduled stops is northern Uganda, where US soldiers are engaged in various humanitarian projects. AFRICOM has come under criticism in recent months for its plans to expand its role in Africa, with humanitarian groups concerned that US military involvement in humanitarian aid could undermine the neutrality of their work. Few African countries welcome the prospect of a permanent US military presence on the continent, and many leaders are worried that AFRICOM’s expanded role, combined with a decrease in US diplomatic posts in Africa, represents a militarization of US foreign policy. Read more at The Monitor.