Uganda: Army and Rebels Commit Atrocities in the North

Human Rights Watch (HRW), Press Release, "Uganda: Army and Rebels Commit
Atrocities in the North; International Criminal Court Must Investigate
Abuses on Both Sides" - 20 September 2005
http://hrw.org/english/docs/2005/09/20/uganda11752.htm

"The Ugandan military and the rebel Lord's Resistance Army continue to kill,
rape and uproot civilians in northern Uganda with brazen impunity, Human
Rights Watch said in a report released today.

A brutal rebel group responsible for countless atrocities, the Lord's
Resistance Army continues to wage war against the Ugandan government, whose
undisciplined army has committed crimes against civilians, the very people
they are supposed to protect, with near-total impunity. [...]

The 76-page report, "Uprooted and Forgotten: Impunity and Human Rights
Abuses in Northern Uganda," documents how the ongoing lack of accountability
and civilian protection in the north has fueled atrocities by both sides. In
each of the displaced persons camps visited, Human Rights Watch found cases
of abuse by Ugandan government forces as well as rebel combatants.

"Uganda has asked the International Criminal Court to investigate and
prosecute abuses by the Lord's Resistance Army," said Jemera Rone, Uganda
researcher at Human Rights Watch. "But the Ugandan army itself has carried
out serious crimes that demand prosecution."

The International Criminal Court assumed jurisdiction to investigate serious
war crimes in northern Uganda last year after Ugandan President Yoweri
Museveni referred the matter to the court. So far, the court has failed to
effectively communicate its mandate to the people of northern Uganda. This
has undermined the court's credibility and impartiality in the eyes of many
there. [...]

At the same time, soldiers in Uganda's national army have raped, beaten,
arbitrarily detained and killed civilians in camps. Some beatings are
inflicted for minor infractions such as being outside the camp a few minutes
past curfew.

"The Ugandan government has failed to pursue prosecutions of military
officers before national courts that could put an end to such violations,"
said Rone. [...]

Human Rights Watch found that the 11th Battalion of the Uganda Peoples'
Defence Forces (UPDF), based in Cwero and Awach camps of Gulu district,
committed numerous deliberate killings and constant beatings of civilians
during early 2005 when it was assigned to those camps. These abuses were not
the acts of just a few undisciplined soldiers.

"Instead of holding the 11th Battalion's commanders accountable for the
atrocities committed on their watch, the Uganda army transferred the unit to
another area of the country where its soldiers and officers can continue to
commit abuses of different innocent civilians," said Rone.

The Ugandan armed forces have failed to prosecute or otherwise meaningfully
discipline soldiers and their officers responsible for abuses in the north.
No effective accountability structure exists in the camps. Reports of abuses
by government forces rarely result in any investigation or prosecution of
military personnel. While there is a military detachment in each camp, there
are few police to provide for basic law and order.

Human Rights Watch also found that local civilian officials, police and the
civilian criminal courts are not able to hold the army accountable, although
they have jurisdiction over military personnel. Ultimately, the level of
discipline, protection of civilians and accountability rests on the will and
personality of the immediate commander.

"Justice in northern Uganda requires that the International Criminal Court
thoroughly examine government forces' crimes against the civilian population
as well as those committed by the rebels," said Rone.

Human Rights Watch called for meaningful national prosecutions, which would
be a valuable supplement to the International Criminal Court's
investigation. In addition, a broader truth-telling process would give
people in northern Uganda a forum in which they could raise human rights
abuses that occurred during the entire 19 years of war. This process could
work alongside traditional remedies in which those affected wish to
participate."

2. Human Rights Watch, (HRW), Report, "Uprooted and Forgotten: Impunity and
Human Rights Abuses in Northern Uganda" - September 2005, Vol. 17, No.
12(A)
http://hrw.org/reports/2005/uganda0905/uganda0905.pdf