The Survey of War-Affected Youth (SWAY) has released a major research paper, The State of Female Youth in Northern Uganda. Building on interviews with hundreds of female youth in northern Uganda, the report contributes greatly to understanding how war has affected female youth in northern Uganda, using these findings to provide concrete recommendations on how the Ugandan government and humanitarian organizations can generate better services for them.

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A report released this week by the Ugandan government highlights how extreme poverty in northern Uganda’s IDP camps forces young girls and women to sell themselves for sex or enter into forced marriages. Ronald Kalyango, a lead researcher of the report, said, "The situation is terrible in these areas. Children as young as 11 years offer sex for a coin of 200 shillings (less than $0.10).” One girl interviewed for the report spoke of the need to sell her body despite the dangers of acquiring HIV, saying, "I prefer death by HIV/Aids than hunger. Through sex, I can at least get 500-2000 shillings. With this I can buy basic commodities like salt, soap, clothes and sanitary pads." Read more at The Monitor.

Members of the Northern Uganda Women’s Parliamentary Association have held a series of consultations with northern Ugandan women to gather their views on justice and reconciliation, the third agenda item of the ongoing Juba peace talks. The women, many of them victims of LRA violence, highlighted gender-specific concerns that have often been brushed over in the ongoing justice and reconciliation debates taking place in northern Uganda and the international community. The women stressed that those who testify about war crimes need legal protection to prevent retaliation and intimidation from their accusers. They also emphasized the need for women lawyers to represent women who suffered sexual violence, as many said they would feel uncomfortable confiding in male lawyers. The women also called for victims of violence to be compensated and for children abducted by the LRA to be forgiven for crime they had committed. Read more at ReliefWeb.

More than 30 victims of the LRA met with MPs in Soroti on last Thursday to recommend how best to bring justice to the female casualties of the conflict. The Northern Uganda Women’s Forum organized the meeting, as well as simultaneous gatherings in Gulu and Lira, to debate the merits of different legal systems in prosecuting LRA suspects and how to incorporate women’s issues into the ongoing Juba peace talks. Thursday’s meetings were an attempt to make the eventual peace agreement in Juba more likely to stick, said MP Alice Alaso. One participant, Apiny Rose, argued that the cycle of violence is too strong, and even if peace comes, nothing can restore what was taken from her. "When you are raped you still feel isolated, even after you are counseled," she said. "Being isolated from others doesn’t just wash away. It stays with you." Read more at The Monitor.

A special feature in today's New Vision recounts the story of Rebecca, a northern Ugandan girl who was abducted by the LRA and forced to endure compulsory labor, rape and forced pregnancy before she was able to escape. Read more of her powerful testimony at The New Vision.

An op/ed available at AllAfrica.com highlights the urgent need to address gendered issues in resettlement and post-conflict development planning in northern Uganda. Prevalent social disruption and human rights abuses in IDP camps have had an especially brutal effect on women, causing elevated levels of sexual and gender based violence (rape, defilement, physical beating, etc), girl dropouts from school, adolescent and unwanted pregnancy, and HIV/AIDS. And in a post-conflict northern Uganda, women's equitable access to land, international aid, and political power will be crucial to the development of a sustainable peace in the region.

As severe as the regional humanitarian crisis is for all northern Ugandans, it is women and children who are most affected by displacement. Women and children make up 80% of the populations in IDP camps and have access to only a limited range of livelihood options. Women have the highest rates of HIV/AIDS infection in northern Uganda, and are consistently vulnerable to sexual violence. The breakdown in extended family networks has caused a sharp increase in the number of child-headed homes. Moreover, the women most marginalized by poverty are often less likely to have access to humanitarian food aid. Read more at AllAfrica.com.