The Monitor reported yesterday that new revelations suggest some Ugandan army commanders could have sold arms at one time to the LRA. Sources close to the committee investigating the presence of ghost-soldiers on the army payroll said that some UPDF commanders of the 4th and 5th Divisions may have "sold their souls" in return for Kony's dollars. This underlines the importance, after a final agreement is hopefully signed, of setting the historical record straight and dealing the underlying issues that fueled the war over 22 years.

The Uganda Human Rights Commission today ordered the Ugandan government to pay Osneri Odoki over $4,600 in compensation for torture he suffered at the hands of Ugandan soldiers in 1999. Odoki, now 74 years old, told a tribunal that on October 8, 1999, two UPDF soldiers arrested him from his garden at Anaka IDP camp in Gulu district and took him to a local military barracks. He said they accused him of supplying food to LRA rebels and subjected him to cruel and inhuman treatment on the way to and inside the barracks. Read more about this case at The New Vision, and read more about human rights and justice in northern Uganda here.

This weekend UPDF officer Lt. Deo Asiimwe wrote in The New Vision about the improved security in northern Uganda in 2007 and outlined the Ugandan military’s priorities in 2008 in the region. He highlighted ensuring border security with Sudan, curtailing cattle rustling in Karamoja, eliminating unexploded mines and stemming the illegal arms trade as key UPDF challenges.

We hope the UPDF is able to achieve these goals - and we’d like to add a few of our own.
- Refrain from rhetoric or troop deployments that undermine the Juba peace talks,
- Ensure the security and freedom of movement of IDPs,
- Investigate, punish and (most of all) prevent sexual- and gender-based violence and other human rights violations committed by UPDF personnel against civilians,
- Agree to be held accountable for crimes and human rights violations committed in the north during the past two decades,
- Ensure that disarmament operations in Karamoja do not violate human rights or rule of law.

The Ugandan military announced yesterday that it is sending a formal complaint to Human Rights Watch over its recent report detailing UPDF abuses in Uganda’s northeastern Karamoja region. The HRW report, released last week, documents human rights abuses committed by the Ugandan military during efforts to forcibly disarm civilians in Karamoja, while recognizing a reduction in such incidents in recent months. Ugandan Defence Minister Dr. Crispus Kiyonga called the report “abusive and provocative” and accused HRW of “intentionally presented inaccuracies.” A recent UN human rights agency report on Karamoja documented continued violations of human rights in the region, but noted significant progress by the UPDF to curb abuses. Read more at The New Vision.

A report released this week by Human Rights Watch calls for the Ugandan government to curb human rights abuses committed during its disarmament operations in volatile Karamoja. It documents alleged unlawful killings, torture and ill-treatment, arbitrary detention, and theft and destruction of property committed during military operations to confiscate illegal weapons since May 2006. The HRW report, similar to a recent UN human rights report on Karamoja, also recognizes steps taken by the Ugandan military in recent months to investigate abuses, strengthen human rights guidelines and training and engage with Karamajong civil society. In addition to continuing to improve the disarmament operations, the report calls for a more comprehensive strategy for improving security in long-marginalized Karamoja that includes increased humanitarian and development aid and reinforced police and judicial institutions.

The war in northern Uganda has dragged on largely because some government soldiers are profiteering from the war, former mediator Betty Bigombe has said. In her upcoming book, "Turning War into Peace: An Insider's Story," Bigombe says that her resolve to initiate peace talks was strengthened by reports she received about the conduct of some unscrupulous NRA (now UPDF) officers who had exploited the war for their own monetary benefit. Bigombe alleges that some senior officers were involved in the illicit sale of fuel that was meant to facilitate army operations in the war zone. Bigombe further describes her frustration by the lack of political will for dialogue by the government. "When underlying causes of conflict remain un-addressed, there is a reasonable likelihood that conflict will flare up again. A political statement gives the opportunity to address underlying causes of the violent conflict," Bigombe writes. Read more at The Monitor.

An update report by the UN human rights agency on Uganda’s northeastern Karamoja region highlights efforts by the Ugandan military to improve its human rights record there. In reports released in November 2006 and April 2007 UN human rights chief Louise Arbour brought attention to pervasive violence in the area and human rights abuses committed by the Ugandan military’s forcible disarmament programme in Karamoja. However, the report also noted continued human rights abuses committed by both the military and illegally armed civilians, as well as an increase in cattle rustling. Instability and cattle rustling in Karamoja has also spilled over into northern Uganda, causing displacement and slowing recovery efforts there.

The report recommends a strengthened civilian judicial structure, further efforts to end impunity within military ranks, deployment of human rights monitors and an increase in development aid in Karamoja to build on security gains and address root causes of violence.