US faith leaders press Bush to support historic Uganda peace talks

August 9, 2006 (WASHINGTON D.C.) — A coalition of nineteen leaders of major religious organizations in America has sent a letter to President Bush today, urging the U.S. Government to support historic peace talks currently underway to end the twenty year war in northern Uganda. In their letter, the religious leaders call on the Bush Administration to give “serious and sustained attention” to the peace process.

“We encourage the U.S. government to use all diplomatic means available to hold accountable the parties engaged in the process,” the leaders state. “These negotiations offer a crucial opportunity to end longstanding violence and massive displacement in the region, and to prompt healing for people long suffering the trauma of conflict.”

Despite concerns that indictments released by the International Criminal Court would be circumvented by a peace deal, the religious leaders joined their counterparts in northern Uganda in calling for peace to be the immediate priority. “For the war-weary people of northern Uganda, an end to the hostilities is the beginning of justice and reconciliation.”

In March, the White House announced that ending the war in northern Uganda by the end of 2006 was a priority, though Administration officials have not sent a delegation to monitor negotiations. Many fear that U.S. ambivalence toward the talks may undermine this crucial opportunity to end one of the world’s worst humanitarian nightmares. The letter also urges the Bush Administration to make greater funds available for the safe return of displaced peoples and reconstruction of northern Uganda. Signatories include the leaders of World Vision, Church World Service, American Jewish World Service, the National Association of Evangelicals, the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America, and the Episcopal Church.

The current peace talks between the Government of Uganda and Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) are seen by many as the best opportunity in over a decade to end the war. The Government of South Sudan, by its own initiative, has agreed to both mediate and host the talks. The involvement of an influential third party mediator combined with new openness of both parties and mounting pressure to resolve the conflict has boosted prospects for success in the negotiations.

To initiate the current talks, Ugandan President Museveni offered amnesty from prosecution to LRA leaders if they accept a peace deal and cease hostilities. While advocates of the International Criminal Court have criticized the offer, most human rights advocates and religious leaders in northern Uganda have supported it (see statements of Refugee Law Project and Human Rights Focus at www.refugeelawproject.org and Uganda Joint Christian Council at www.ujcc.org). These leaders hope that once peace is reached and basic rights are restored for the people of northern Uganda, local justice processes may be set in motion.

The war in northern Uganda, one of the most gruesome in modern times, has persisted for twenty years, prompting United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator Jan Egeland to call the situation “the world’s worst neglected humanitarian crisis.” The LRA has abducted more than 30,000 children, using them as child soldiers and sexual slaves. LRA activities in the region threaten to disrupt implementation of peace agreements in both Sudan and Democratic Republic of the Congo. In response to LRA terror, the Ugandan government confined 1.5 million northern Ugandans to internally displaced persons camps. A July 2005 report by the International Rescue Committee estimated that the war and conditions in the camps cause up to one thousand deaths every week.

– Contact: Michael Poffenberger; Associate Director, Africa Faith and Justice Network
Email: [email protected] — Phone number: (202) 884-9780 / (574) 229-1301