Arresting LRA leader requires global action: HRW

March 10, 2012 (JUBA) — Human Rights Watch (HRW), a US-based body has called for concerted international response to assist regional countries in efforts to arrest Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) leader Joseph Kony and his commanders wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC).

Human rights activist reportedly told HRW that Kony and two LRA leaders wanted by ICC are presently in the Central African Republic, trying to keep a low profile.

The LRA leader has, in a rather unusual move, reportedly banned raids to steal crops from villagers to avoid drawing attention to his location leaving his fighters desperately low on food. These accounts, HRW says, could not be independently verified.

“No one ever expected Kony’s arrest would be easy,” said Anneke van Woudenberg, a senior Africa researcher at HRW, adding that, “It’s critical that governments in the region and beyond redouble their efforts to protect civilians from the LRA and quickly arrest Kony.”

According to HRW, enhanced communication and early warning systems, deployment of capable forces with adequate logistical and intelligence support as well as proper demobilization efforts are essential for effective actions to end the conflict that has lasted over two decades.

Last month, a Washington DC-based research and advocacy organization said the US government must, despite the political pressures of an election year, continue to prioritize efforts to help combat the LRA.

Resolve, in its advocacy, specifically urged the Barrack Obama adminstration to actively work with central African governments to arrest the LRA leader and put an end once and for all to the group’s atrocities in the region.

In 2010, the US government released the first-ever White House strategy to address the LRA issue, and later deployed 100 combat troops to offer advise to governments in countries like Uganda and other regions affected by the insurgency.

Advocacy groups in the US have claimed their lobbying was behind the decision. A recent video, Kony 2012, has raised the profile of the LRA in an attempt to stop the conflict. It has been watched over 70 million times but has drawn some criticism for not being a viable way to end the rebellion.

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KONY 2012