31,000 Sudanese refugees in Uganda displaced by rebels

KAMPALA, May 11, 2004 (Xinhua) — More than 31,000 Sudanese refugees have been displaced from their settlement camps in northern Uganda by suspected rebels of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) in the last three months, the New Vision newspaper reported Tuesday.

It quoted the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees ( UNHCR) as saying recently that 28,000 displaced refugees are in Adjumani district, 2,500 are in Moyo district and 1,000 in Arua district. Another 500 have reportedly crossed back into the Sudan.

“The migration of refugees 30 km north to other Sudanese settlements along the east shore of the Nile River, straining UNHCR’s sanitation provisions and community services, such as schools and clinics, put their farming at risk since this is the start of the planting season,” said the UNHCR.

The LRA rebels, based in southern Sudan, have been fighting 18- year-old war to topple the Ugandan government.