William Bionx Akena, Uganda-CAN correspondent in Gulu, reports -

Over 6,000 children from the various night commuter centers in Gulu district participated in the long awaited Gulu Walk. The chief walker was the chairman LC5 Gulu district local council, retired colonel Walter Ochora Odoch. He was accompanied by the chairman of Acholi Religious Leaders' Peace Initiative, His Worship John Baptist Odama, the Archbishop of the Gulu archdiocese. Other prominent participants included John Prendergast, a Senior Adviser of the International Crisis Group, and author Christopher Hitchens.

The 5km walk that started from Gulu district council hall continued through the streets within Gulu municipality, and ended up at Kaunder Grounds in Gulu town. Micheal Otim of the NGO forum, the coordinator of the walk, said last night that different members of the NGOs operating in Gulu spent the night with the night commuters at different commuting centers.

On behalf of the night commuting children, Flora Abola, 13 years old, thanked all the NGO's and partners who have endeavoured in helping them. She asked all concerned parties to end the war, since children and mothers have borne the much of its consequences. "How long then are the children as the future generation of this region going to be killed? I appeal to the international communty to come and help the plight of children," she said.

William Bionx Akena, Uganda-CAN correspondent in Gulu, reports -

Ten rebels of the Lord's Resistance Army were killed in a fierce battle with the Ugandan military at the border of the Democratic Republic of Congo and Sudan. Recent reports have emerged that rebels near the border have been crossing back and forth, and Uganda's foreign minister has formally requested that the Ugandan military be allowed into the Congo to carry out joint operations with Congolese and UN troops in the area against the LRA.

Captain Paddy Ankunda, a defense and army affairs officer, says the battle took place at Lasu village in southern Sudan,18 kilometers north of Uganda. Captain Ankunda says the rebels killed were part of the group that attacked Ugandan soldiers in southern Sudan over the weekend.

Rosebell Kagumire, Uganda-CAN guest news correspondent in Kampala, reports-

Besides decades of violence, northern Uganda continues to suffer from high rates of chronic poverty. A recently released report by Chronic Poverty Research Centre Uganda shows that two in every five households in northern Uganda are chronically poor and that thirty seven percent of Uganda's chronic poor live in northern Uganda.

Chronic poverty is a state in which people own nothing and persistently lack basic necessities such as food, shelter, clothing, bedding and healthcare. It is often a cyclic affliction, effecting successive generation of the same family.

“Poverty in Uganda continues to be geographically concentrated with the north and east having the largest proportions of poor. About 37 percent of the poor live in northern region" read the report in part. The report also says that despite government efforts, the number of Ugandans living below poverty line- on less than a dollar per day -has increased from 34 percent in 2001 to about 39 in 2005.

It’s estimated that about 7.1 million Ugandans live in chronic poverty and one third of chronically poor households are in northern Uganda. According to the report national poverty levels are estimated at about 39 percent while those in northern Uganda stand at 66 percent. Districts with the highest number of the chronic poor are Kotido, Kitgum, Moyo and Apac.

Most Ugandans in the north have blamed the situation on the 19-year-old war in the area.

Because of the LRA insurgency and the prevalence of IDP camps, most government policies like the Poverty Eradication Action Plan and Poverty Alleviation Fund have not benefited the people in the north. Initiatives to help the chronic poor in the region such as the Northern Uganda Social Action Fund (NUSAF) have been politicised and have achieved little.

While micro finance institutions have helped many in other parts of the country, the chronic poor in the north cannot access these loan schemes because they lack securities and assets.

Women, people with disabilities and the elderly continue to constitute the largest percent of the chronic poor in Uganda.

Peter Quaranto and Michael Poffenberger, Uganda-CAN director and advocacy coordinator, report from New York City -

The people of northern Uganda have new reason to hope not only because Betty Bigombe, the chief peace mediator will continue her efforts to broker a peace process, but also because of the launch of a new international campaign yesterday, titled Act for Stolen Children in Northern Uganda.

Yesterday at the United Nations building in New York, the Act for Stolen Children mass media campaign brought together government leaders, UN bodies, NGOs, Ugandans and other supporters in New York to released a signed declaration in support of a peaceful resolution to the conflict. The advent of the campaign signifies unprecedented collaboration between grassroots, non-governmental and governmental organizations working for peace in northern Uganda.

Betty Bigombe, the most anticipated speaker of the day, proclaimed that even with the release of ICC indictments for five LRA commanders, she will continue her work to broker a peace process in northern Uganda. "I am looking at the possibility of repackaging the peace process," Bigombe said. "I am in the process of analyzing and understanding what is doable and what is not doable, what pull factors can be used to bring out those not indicted." Bigombe expressed fear that the death or arrest of LRA leader Joseph Kony may not mean the end of the war.

She called on the campaign to build and strengthen advocacy so "the eyes and mind of the international community are on northern Uganda." She remarked, "When I see what the world is doing for Darfur, I become so envious."

The cry from the others speakers of the day was for international action to protect civilians and bolster the mediation efforts of Bigombe. John Prendergast, special advisor to the President of the International Crisis Group, remarked, "Now is the time to press forward with a comprehensive peace proposal that would end the war once and for all."

Carol Bellamy, former head of UNICEF, remarked particularly on the plight of children in this war. "During my ten year at UNICEF, few things moved me as seeing the child 'night commuters' of northern Uganda."

Olara Otunnu, former U.N. special representative for Children and Armed Conflict, went a step further and declared that "genocide is unfolding in northern Uganda." He said, "Children, as a matter of policy, are condemned to a life of darkness." He called upon the United Nations to increase engagement and the take the lead to stop this "genocide," while also calling upon the whole international community to uphold its "responsibility to protect."

The "responsibility to protect" was highlighted by others, particularly Canadian Ambassador to the UN, Allan Rock, who declared that the United Nations Security Council should add this "neglected humanitarian crisis" to its agenda. Ambassador Rock declared that the failure to protect civilians by the Ugandan government demanded action by the international community.

And that is where the Act for Stolen Children campaign comes in - coalescing international civil society to advocate and demand international action to end this longstanding conflict and humanitarian crisis. The next step for the campaign will come this weekend with the GuluWalks set to happen in more than 40 cities around the world.

The Uganda Conflict Action Network is a supporter of the Act for Stolen Children Campaign and partner of international GuluWalk.

William Bionx Akena, Uganda-CAN news correspondent in Gulu town, reports -

The Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) rebels ambushed a pick-up truck Monday afternoon along Patongo Adilang Road in Pader District. The 5th Division Public Relations Officer Lietenant Kiconco Tabaro confirmed the ambush to Uganda-CAN and said four people had been killed.

William Bionx Akena, Uganda-CAN news correspondent in Gulu town, reports -

Over 2000 former rebels have reported back home in Pader district over a period of two years. Resident District Commissioner for Pader, Sylverster Opira, revealed this to Uganda-CAN in an interview last Friday. He said many of the returnees have been reintegrated into their families' homes. He appealed to those still in the "bush" to come back home and benefit from the amnesty offered by the government under the Amnesty Act of 2000.

Uganda-CAN calls on the Government of Uganda to continue its commitment to publicizing and fulfilling the Amnesty Law of 2000 as the primary means to disarm and reintegrate the thousands of children abducted and forced to fight by the Lord's Resistance Army.

William Bionx Akena, Uganda-CAN news correspondent from Gulu town, reports -

The death of the former Ugandan president Dr. Apollo Milton Obote one week ago shocked the masses in Gulu district. The president who led Uganda to its independence on the 9th of October 1962 was seen as a hero to many elders in Gulu.

William Bionx Akena, Uganda-CAN news correspondent in Gulu town, reports -

The Archbishop of Northern Uganda Diocese, John Baptist Odama, has called for an end to the bloodshed in northern Uganda. The bishop was recently speaking to Uganda-CAN from Gulu town during the closing of a workshop for peace led by the Acholi Religious Leaders Peace Initiative.

Bishop Odama said that if the rebels have now crossed over to neighboring Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and have requested asylum, they should be granted their wish to bring an end to the war. He said that recent developments have shown that the Ugandan government must seek means other than the military to end this war.

He expressed worry that these LRA rebels would start fresh fighting in DRC if they are not given their wish for asylum. He further remarked that religious leaders in the region feel deeply touched by the loss of lives because they feel every human being is precious.

The bishop said people must listen to each other for peace to be achieved. He related the situation to the longstanding war between north and south in Sudan, which was ended by peaceful negotiations.

William Bionx Akena, Uganda-CAN news correspondent in Gulu town, reports -

Gulu District local government has embarked on a massive campagin to sensitize the local councillors against recruiting young children to joining the army ranks.

The sensitization campaign has attracted several legal practitioners advocating for the rights of children.

The district labor officer Mr. John Bosco told Uganda-CAN that a lot of children have joined the forces because of lack of work and education. The forces give them jobs.

Uganda-CAN talked to one man from Atiak sub-country about the campaign. He remarked that they initially never understood the rights of children and normally recruited children because of the massive unemployment.