Thursday, December 30, 2010

Yellow fever outbreak along Sudan-Uganda border

Yellow fever is an acute viral hemorrhagic disease transmitted by infected mosquitoes and can cause severe illness and death.

Yellow Fever Outbreak Along Sudan-Uganda Border
Source: SRS - Sudan Radio Service - www.sudanradio.org
Date: Thursday, 30 December 2010. Full copy:
30 December 2010 – (Juba) - There is an outbreak of Yellow Fever at the southern Sudan–Uganda border areas which has hampered the transport system between the two regions.

The number of people who are affected is not yet known.

The Minister of Health in the Government of Southern Sudan Luka Monoja speaking to SRS in Juba on Thursday said the ministry is preparing to handle the outbreak.

[Luka Monoja]: “We are organizing to take immediate measures. You know Yellow Fever is a very serious disease, but it has got specific steps. We will prevent anybody who doesn’t have a yellow card. But we should be able to vaccinate there at the border. You will not come until your card is ten-days old. Now a technical team from my ministry is meeting with WHO. We have about five or eight border points leading to Uganda, they should be staffed with competent health care personnel to assist. It is possible this disease started some days ago. We are going to make a public awareness for people at risk like travelers and so on, to get vaccinated so that when they travel they have no problem”.

Yellow fever is an acute viral hemorrhagic disease transmitted by infected mosquitoes and can cause severe illness and death.
- - -

Further Reading

According to Bupa's website, the following information was published in February 2009 by, quote "Bupa's Health Information Team and is based on reputable sources of medical evidence. It has been reviewed by appropriate medical or clinical professionals. The content is intended only for general information and does not replace the need for personal advice from a qualified health professional".

Symptoms of yellow fever

You usually get symptoms three to six days after you have been bitten by an infected mosquito. This is known as the incubation period. The symptoms usually come on suddenly and can include:

high fever (39 to 40 °C)
shivers
headaches
nausea and/or vomiting
loss of appetite
muscle pain and aches
bloodshot eyes
flushing of your face
These symptoms usually last for three to four days and represent the acute phase of the virus. Most people begin to recover after this phase and their symptoms gradually disappear.

However, within 24 hours of seeming to recover, 15 to 25 percent of people enter a toxic phase of the disease. Symptoms during this phase are far more serious and may be life-threatening, including:

fever
jaundice (yellowing of your skin and the whites of your eyes) - this is where the disease gets its name
kidney failure, which may result in you no longer being able to pass urine
stomach pain with vomiting
blood in your vomit or stools
bleeding from your mouth, nose or eyes
Up to half of people who enter the toxic phase of the disease die within 10 to 14 days. Major organ failure, shock, delirium and coma usually occur before death. The rest of the people who enter this phase usually make a full recovery.

Treatment for yellow fever

There is no specific treatment for yellow fever, other than preventive measures.

Some of your symptoms may be relieved through bed rest and taking rehydration salts and paracetamol. Always read the patient information leaflet that comes with your medicine.

Intensive hospital care may help people who enter the toxic phase of the disease. However, this type of hospital care is often not available in poorer countries where the virus is widespread.

People who recover from the disease will be immune to the virus for the rest of their life.

Prevention of yellow fever

Prevention is vital in protecting yourself and stopping the spread of yellow fever. Current preventive measures include immunisation and protecting yourself from mosquito bites.

Click here for more information at www.bupa.co.uk

Friday, December 10, 2010

FXB Uganda: Beads from Beneficiaries - Necklaces that Change Lives

Extracts from What W.E. Can Do at www.fxb4empowerment.org


Beads from Beneficiaries is an opportunity for supporters to celebrate this holiday season by sending a heartfelt gift with the power to lift a family out of poverty – and it’s wrapping up next Friday, December 17th. Those who make a $10 donation to FXB in honor of their friends and family, will be sent a card informing their honoree of their gift! As a special touch, for individuals who donate $40 we will send a handmade, gift-wrapped beaded necklace made by a woman enrolled in FXB's program in Uganda along with the card.

Each beautiful beaded necklace represents an environmentally and socially responsible solution to overcoming the affects of poverty and AIDS. The women in FXB’s programs often have no means of earning an income prior to joining the FXB-Village program. Many are widows and mothers struggling to support the children in their care. FXB provides these women with the tools they need to become self-sufficient, including skills training and supplies to start a new trade.

Many of FXB’s beneficiaries choose to make necklaces by hand from recycled paper and glass beads as their income generating activity. Colorful paper is hand rolled to create festive beads, giving each necklace a unique appearance. The income these women make selling their crafts at the local markets allows them to feed their families, buy uniforms and pay school fees for their children, receive medical treatment, and open savings accounts to prepare for the future!

Your thoughtful gift this holiday season will help FXB provide a comprehensive package of support to more families so that they may escape poverty forever.

Join Our Holiday Fundraising Campaign
FXB's Beads from Beneficiaries




Photo of mothers in Uganda making necklaces by hand to earn an income. Your donation will help FXB continue to provide medical, nutritional, psychological, and educational support and other services to these women and their families so they can escape poverty.

Tuesday, December 07, 2010

KPFA Radio/Ann Garrison: "Oil, African Genocide, and the USA's LRA Excuse"

NOTE to self. Re-read the below copied report written by Ann Garrison. The report was published yesterday at her blog titled Ann Garrison. According to Ms Garrison's blogger profile, she is located in San Francisco, California, USA.

Also, copied here below is a map published Nov. 25 at this site's sister blog Congo Watch: "CAR: CPJP rebels kill 4 soldiers, hold Birao garrison town near border with Chad and Sudan".



Oil, African Genocide, and the USA's LRA Excuse
Source: Ann Garrison - anngarrison.blogspot.com
Author: Ann Garrison - KPFA Radio Weekend News, 12.04.2010
Date posted: Monday, 06 December 2010 at 10:50 AM
Copy in full:
On Wednesday, November 24th, President Obama sent his plan to mobilize Uganda's army, the Uganda People's Defense Force, to cross its northern border into the Central African Republic and Southern Sudan, to disarm the Lord's Resistance Army, a militia that has been fighting the Ugandan government for over 20 years. The White House issued a statement saying:

“The development of the strategy, relied on the significant involvement of the Department of State, the Department of Defense, the US Agency for International Development and the Intelligence Community." --White House "Strategy to Support the Disarmament of the Lord's Resistance Army," posted to the website of the Pulitzer Center

The President seemed either unaware or unconcerned about the UN Mapping Report, released on October 1st, which documents Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni's army's war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocidal massacres of civilians, Rwandan Hutu refugees and Congolese Hutus, in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

How else could he propose to mobilize the very same army to enter the Central African Republic and Southern Sudan to protect civilians and refugees, and "meet humanitarian requirements" in "affected populations," as his strategy statement said he would?

Just over a week later, on Friday, December 3rd, NBC News Dateline aired "Winds of War, George Clooney in Sudan," which warned that the Northern Sudanese Moslem regime of Omar al-Bashir might commit genocide in Christian Southern Sudan. The next day I called Black Star News Editor Milton Allimadi from the KPFA Radio studios, in Berkeley, California, to produce this segment for the KPFA Weekend News:

KPFA Weekend News Anchor/David Rosenberg:
NBC's Dateline last night aired an hour long documentary titled "Winds of War, George Clooney in Sudan." The actor warned Dateline's audience that Sudanese President Omar Al-Bashir's regime in Khartoum has already been indicted, by the International Criminal Court, for war crimes and genocide, and that he is now amassing weapons and troops to prevent Southern Sudan from forming an independent state. Critics of U.S. interventions in the region say that the U.S. is also amassing weapons and troops to move on Southern Sudan, from the Central African Republic, and from its southern border with Uganda, to secure oil. Ann Garrison is live in the studio with this report.

KPFA/Ann Garrison:
George Clooney, on Friday night's NBC Dateline, cited the opinions of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, the CIA, and President Barack Obama as evidence that everyone agrees that the U.S. must engage to stop genocide after Southern Sudan's January referendum, in which the Southern Sudanese are all but certain to vote for independence.

Actor George Clooney on NBC's Dateline:
The State Department said, the Secretary of State said it's a ticking time bomb. The CIA said this is the next genocide if we're not careful; it is the biggest risk. The President has said as much. This, everyone acknowledges that this is what is going to take place if someone doesn't moderate and mediate. And that's not just my saying it. That's everyone saying it. I'm just trying to say it as loud as possible.

Ann Garrison:
Clooney's "everyone" did not include Ugandan American journalist Milton Allimadi, Editor of the New York City-based Black Star News. Allimadi says that if the President were really serious about stopping genocide in Africa, he would send peacekeepers into eastern Congo, where the worst African genocide is ongoing and has been for the past 16 years, with a loss of over 6 million lives.

Allimadi also said that Obama would not be martialing the Ugandan army of Yoweri Museveni in Northern Uganda, to move into the Central African Republic and Southern Sudan, enacting the LRA DIsarmament Act, after the October 1st release of the UN Mapping Report documenting the Ugandan Army's war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocidal massacres of Hutu civilians in Congo. Allimadi says the LRA is really an excuse to secure Southern Sudanese oil after Southern Sudan's January referendum on independence.

Black Star News Editor Milton Allimadi:
I don't buy this LRA business, not for one minute. The United States is not interested in going after the LRA. If the Ugandan government, which is familiar with the terrain, could not defeat the LRA in 24 years of conflict, what added dimension can the United States bring to this? We already saw one disastrous instance, in December 2008, using U.S. logistical support and intelligence, the Ugandan Army attacked the LRA camp at Garamba, in the Democratic Republic of Congo. And the consequences were just disastrous. They failed to get the key leaders of the LRA and instead provoked massacres of innocent Congolese civilians. Who knows who did the killings, whether it was the LRA or the Ugandan troops? It was a massive disaster.

Milton Allimadi:
I think this is what's really happening:

As you know, in early January, Southern Sudan, whose capitol is Juba, is going to vote on a referendum. That referendum will decide whether it becomes an independent republic, and it's a foregone conclusion that they're going to vote for independence.

Now here's the deal. Most or all of the oil wealth that is now sustaining the government of Sudan in the North happens to be located in Southern Sudan. I don't see how the government in Khartoum can survive and sustain itself without this oil wealth.

I think the U.S. has taken a keen interest in the management and control of this oil wealth. And if you look at the map very carefully, the LRA right now, is purported to be concentrated in Central African Republic, which also conveniently happens to be bordered with the Sudan. It's on the southwestern part of the Sudan's border, so they share a border. And in fact, if you're going to look at it from a military point of view, it's half the distance to march from the outpost of the border in Central African Republic to the capitol of Khartoum than it is to march from Juba, the capitol of Southern Sudan, to Khartoum.

I am convinced that the United States, with its ally, the Ugandan dictator Yoweri Museveni, are setting up a front line in Central African Republic, in order to weaken the government of the Sudan in Khartoum and make it difficult for the government of the Sudan in Khartoum to launch an attack against Southern Sudan, should they declare independence, which is a foregone conclusion. That to me is a much more credible story than this bogus story about the U.S. wanting to go after the LRA.

KPFA/Ann Garrison:
And do you think they want to do this in order to secure Southern Sudanese oil reserves?

Absolutely. Southern Sudanese oil reserves. And that is becoming a huge oil field now. Southern Sudan borders northern Uganda. And going from that region into Western Uganda, that's a vast oil field. As you know in recent years there's been massive discoveries of oil fields in that part of Uganda as well. So if you look at this as a continuous region, starting from Western Uganda sweeping into Northern Uganda, into Southern Sudan, very rich oil fields, which, considering the U.S. presence in the region right now, is much more secure than some of the oil fields in the Middle East.

KPFA/Ann Garrison:
President Obama himself, in his 2006 Senate Bill, the Obama Congo Relief, Security, and Democracy Promotion Act, said that rebel militias serve as pretexts for Uganda and Rwanda's invasions and resource plunder of neighboring Congo, but Allimadi says that Obama, the U.S. Africa Command, and federal legislators now seem to be using the pretext themselves.

For Pacifica/KPFA Radio, I'm Ann Garrison.
[End of copy]

Further Reading

From the New York Times - Sunday, 05 Dec 2010

Headlines Around the Web

What's This?
SUDAN WATCH

DECEMBER 4, 2010

Sudan: Arab or African? (The

Debate Continues)

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

DECEMBER 4, 2010

South Sudan Official: No Delay to

Jan Freedom Vote

INSIDE DATELINE

DECEMBER 3, 2010

Take action on Sudan now...

ECORAZZI.COM :: CELEBRITIES CAUGHT GREEN-HANDED

DECEMBER 3, 2010

George Clooney Sudan Special

Particularly 'Revealing' Warns Ann

Curry

SPERO NEWS - RELIGIOUS NEWS

DECEMBER 2, 2010

Sudan: Signs of hope and wonder

More at Blogrunner »

Friday, December 03, 2010

Uganda extradites to Rwanda genocide suspect Jean Pierre Kwitonda alias Kapalata

Uganda extradites Genocide suspect
Source: The New Times - www.newtimes.co.rw
Author: Bosco R. Asiimwe
Date: Friday, 03 December 2010
(KIGALI) - The government of Uganda, on Wednesday, extradited to Rwanda a genocide fugitive who was arrested last month.

Jean Pierre Kwitonda alias Kapalata was arrested by the Uganda police on November 4 in Lukaya, Masaka District following a red notice issued by Interpol Rwanda.

He has since been detained at Kireka police station, a suburb of the Ugandan capital Kampala.

Kwitonda was handed over by Charles Tumwesigye, from Interpol Directorate in Kampala. Tony Kulamba, head of Interpol Rwanda received the suspect at Gatuna border post.

Kwitonda who fled the country in 1997 is charged with six counts, including Genocide, complicity in genocide and conspiracy to commit genocide.

He also faces murder charges, extermination, formation, membership, leadership and association of criminal gangs whose purpose and existence was to do harm to people or their properties, according to the indictment.

The suspect had been handed a 19-year sentence in absentia by a Gacaca court in Gikondo, where he allegedly committed the crimes during 1994 genocide against the Tutsi.

“During Genocide, Kwitonda is said to have acted individually, or as a part of a joint criminal enterprise with some members of the ex-Far, Interahamwe leaders, interim government authorities that executed the genocide and other known or unknown to prepare, train, equip and organize militias under his supervision in former Gikondo Commune, then Kigali Prefecture,” a statement by Interpol partly reads.

During the Genocide, Kwitonda who was then 20, headed the Gikondo youth wing of MRND, the ruling of former President Juvénal Habyarimana which planned and executed the genocide.

A number of witnesses in the area had testified on how he championed the extermination of Tutsis in 1994.

He had been a well established businessman in Lyantonde trading centre, importing goods from Tanzania, Kenya and Sudan.

During his time in Uganda, Kwitonda married a Rwandan woman with whom they had four children.

“I officially hand over Kwitonda Jean Pierre alias Kapalata as per the table request by Rwanda,” Tumwesigye said handing the fugitive and his case file to Kulamba.

[End of copy]
  1. Related Reports
  2. Uganda extradites alleged Rwandan genocide fugitive


    African Press Agency (subscription) - 1 day ago
    Kayiranga added that Ugandan and Rwandan prosecutions have been working together on his arrest and extradition for the genocide suspect to face justice ...
  3. ICTR Prosecutor files applications for referrals


    Hague Justice Portal - 9 Nov 2010
    ... concerns have also prevented the extradition of accused Rwandan suspects to ... who was arrested in Uganda in June 2010 and faces charges of genocide, ...

Wednesday, December 01, 2010

Resolve, Uganda: US President Obama's strategy on the LRA

FOR the record, here is a copy of an email received today from Paul Ronan, Director of Advocacy, Resolve (formerly Resolve Uganda), followed by a copy of a blog post and tweet published today by Sam Bell, Executive Director of the newly merged Save Darfur Coalition / Genocide Intervention Network.
Please find attached President Obama's strategy on the Lord's Resistance Army, released on November 24th. Section 4 of the LRA Disarmament and Northern Uganda Recovery Act, which passed US Congress in May, mandated that President Obama develop “a strategy to guide future United States support across the region for viable multilateral efforts to mitigate and eliminate the threat to civilians and regional stability posed by the Lord’s Resistance Army.”

Below please find highlights and a brief breakdown of the strategy, including actions listed as priorities for implementation. We look forward to being in touch in the coming weeks with deeper analysis of the strategy and next steps for implementation. Two likely challenges to implementation will be securing adequate funding from Congress and the current lack of a senior LRA point person within State Department. Also attached is a press roundup of media coverage of the strategy release.

Best,

Paul

Director of Advocacy

Resolve (formerly Resolve Uganda)


Vision: “Though the challenge is complex, the vision remains simple: people in central Africa are free from the threat of LRA violence and have the freedom to pursue their livelihoods."

Purpose: The strategy does not contain much detail about specific action steps, instead providing an "overarching, comprehensive strategy direction over several years to... increase the likelihood of success in mitigating and eliminating the threat posed by the LRA." (Upcoming Congressional decisions on levels of funding will help determine how robustly the strategy is implemented and hence specific action steps.)

Four main objectives (and summary of sub-objectives):

1. Increase protection of civilians

- Improve sharing of information for understanding threats and vulnerabilities of civilian population as a result of LRA presence, and for supporting and developing effective protection strategies and interventions.

- Promote the increase in physical security of vulnerable civilian populations through the presence and action of protection actors.

- Strengthen the understanding of the LRA threat and the will and capabilities of key actors to support efforts to protect civilians and prevent and mitigate LRA attacks.


2. Apprehend or remove from the battlefield Joseph Kony and senior LRA commanders

- Provide enhanced integrated logistical, operational, and intelligence assistance in support of regional and multilateral partners.

- Enhance and sustain diplomatic efforts to coordinate and encourage support for multilateral and regional military forces in their efforts to counter the LRA and to deny any potential support to the LRA from outside actors.


3. Promote the defection, disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration of remaining LRA fighters

- Ensure continued multilateral support to efforts to promote defections of LRA fighters and non-combatants through radio programs, leaflets, and other communication.

- Work with regional governments, MONUSCO, and other international actors to ensure necessary facilities and procedures are in place to receive defectors and transport them to desired home locations.

- Support the provision of enhanced medical, social, and economic reintegration assistance to demobilized LRA members and receiving communities.


4. Increase humanitarian access and provide continued relief to affected communities

- Humanitarian agencies provide minimum standards of life-saving support to LRA-affected populations.

- Promote increased access and infrastructure for the delivery of humanitarian services.

- Humanitarian agencies support early recovery activities, including transition support and livelihood support for LRA-affected populations.


Priority actions for immediate implementation

Increase physical access and telecommunications
- including road and airstrip rehabilitation and telecommunications expansion, with focus on LRA-affected areas of CAR and DRC

Increase mobility and access of civilian protection actors in LRA-affected areas
- mentions need to increase mobility of "humanitarian and civilian protection partners, including peacekeeping missions"

Enhance coordination of civilian actors and sharing of information across borders

Enhance the coordination and collaboration of forces in LRA-affected areas
- mentions need for coordination between national militaries and peacekeeping missions

Increase opportunities for LRA fighters and associated persons to safely defect and escape

Multilateral engagement

- The strategy mentions the October AU conference on the LRA in Bangui and "applauds AU engagement and regional leadership and coordination to address the LRA threat"

- The strategy highlights three priorities for US engagement at the UN Security Council as, 1. ensuring relevant peacekeeping missions are "resourced appropriately to fulfill their mandates," 2. encourage the UN political office for Central Africa to strengthen regional and international cooperation on the LRA, and 3. support the deployment of UN humanitarian staff to LRA-affected areas.

- The strategy also states an intention to continue engagement with the Office of the EU Special Representative, the World Bank's TDRP-led LRA working group, and the Great Lakes Contact Group.

- The strategy says "Any effective strategy cannot exclusively rely on one military force..." It also acknowledges that there is no guarantee Ugandan military operations against the LRA will continue and highlights the necessity of developing broader support and capacity among regional and international actors to address the crisis (though few specific details are provided).

Other notes of importance

- The strategy acknowledges that “there is no purely military solution to the LRA threat and impact.”

- The strategy highlights that additional support to the UPDF for LRA operations will happen in parallel with efforts to encourage professionalization of the UPDF and diplomatic efforts to encourage the Ugandan government and UPDF to respect human rights, democracy and good governance in Uganda.

- The strategy mentions that "local outreach" is an important component of pursuing the strategy's objectives, but does not provide detail on how this will be done.

- The strategy also outlines continued US efforts to promote comprehensive reconstruction, transitional justice, and reconciliation in northern Uganda (see annex 3).

--
Paul Ronan
Director of Advocacy
Resolve (formerly Resolve Uganda)

m: +1 315.569.8051.
o: +1 202.596.2517.
www.theresolve.org
Copy of attachment:

Press roundup for US LRA strategy release

Uganda’s dangerous rebels: Lords of woe – Economist – November 11, 2010 HYPERLINK "http://www.economist.com/node/17472814" http://www.economist.com/node/17472814

HYPERLINK "http://www.capitalfm.co.ke/news/Africa/Uganda-welcomes-US-LRA-plan-10646.html" \t "_blank" Uganda welcomes US LRA plan - Capital FM - Nov 26, 2010 BY AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE KAMPALA, Nov 26

HYPERLINK "http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5gBDRRHXVuzY1JDiH8RjWVEpyOwjA?docId=CNG.8a715e6abb8e8888f916a64a424e6b92.1131" \t "_blank" Obama urged to press ahead with disarming Uganda rebels - AFP - Nov 25, 2010 KINSHASA

HYPERLINK "http://www.newvision.co.ug/D/8/13/739330" \t "_blank" USA to disarm Joseph Kony rebels - New Vision - Nov 25, 2010, By Barbara Among

HYPERLINK "http://www.voanews.com/english/news/africa/Obama-Presents-Plan-to-Help-Disarm-LRA-in-Uganda-110613824.html" \t "_blank" Obama Presents Plan to Help Disarm LRA in Uganda - Voice of America - Nov 25, 2010, AP

HYPERLINK "http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/nov/25/us-plan-disarm-rebels-central-africa" \t "_blank" US reveals strategy to disarm central Africa rebels - The Guardian - Nov 25, 2010

HYPERLINK "http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/world-africa-11837310" \t "_blank" Obama plan to fight Africa rebels - BBC News - Nov 25, 2010

HYPERLINK "http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-11-25/obama-administration-asks-fpr-funds-to-boost-uganda-s-fight-against-rebels.html" \t "_blank" Obama Administration Asks for Funds to Boost Uganda's Fight Against Rebels - Bloomberg - HYPERLINK "http://news.google.com/news/search?pz=1&cf=all&ned=us&hl=en&q=author:%22Michael+J.+Kavanagh%22&scoring=n" \t "_blank" Michael J. Kavanagh - Nov 25, 2010

HYPERLINK "http://www.pbs.org/newshour/rundown/2010/11/president-barack-obama-outlined-a.html" \t "_blank" President Obama Releases Plan to End Rebel Violence in Uganda - NewsHour - HYPERLINK "http://news.google.com/news/search?pz=1&cf=all&ned=us&hl=en&q=author:%22Talea+Miller%22&scoring=n" \t "_blank" Talea Miller - Nov 25, 2010

HYPERLINK "http://www.stripes.com/news/africa/obama-calls-for-four-pronged-effort-to-defeat-african-rebel-group-1.126439" \t "_blank" Obama calls for four-pronged effort to defeat African rebel group - Stars and Stripes - HYPERLINK "http://news.google.com/news/search?pz=1&cf=all&ned=us&hl=en&q=author:%22John+Vandiver%22&scoring=n" \t "_blank" John Vandiver - Nov 25, 2010

HYPERLINK "http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-11837310%20" \t "_blank" Barack Obama's Plan to Defeat Ugandan LRA Rebels - BBC, Nov 25, 2010

HYPERLINK "http://www.jeuneafrique.com/depeche_afp_20101125T185757Z20101125T185752Z_des-ong-demandent-l-application-urgente-du-plan-obama-contre-la-lra.html" \t "_blank" Des ONG demandent l'application "urgente" du plan Obama contre la LRA - AFP - Nov 25, 2010

HYPERLINK "http://www.observer.ug/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=11124&Itemid=59" \t "_blank" Kony's Plan Too Late, Says UPDF - The Observer, Written by David Tash Lumu & Agencies, Sunday, 28 November 2010 18:03

HYPERLINK "http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/africa/101127/obama-launches-plan-against-africas-lords-resistance-army" \t "_blank" Obama takes aim at Africa's Lord's Resistance Army - The Global Post, by Tristan McConnell, 29 November, 2010

Rights groups urge Obama to act against LRA - Radio Netherlands Worldwide – November 30, 2010 HYPERLINK "http://www.rnw.nl/international-justice/article/rights-groups-urge-obama-act-against-lra" http://www.rnw.nl/international-justice/article/rights-groups-urge-obama-act-against-lra

BBC Newshour radio: HYPERLINK "http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/console/p00byy0r/Newshour_24_11_2010_(2100_GMT)" \t "_blank" http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/console/p00byy0r/Newshour_24_11_2010_(2100_GMT)

President Obama’s move on Kony encouraging (New Vision – EDITORIAL) - HYPERLINK "http://www.newvision.co.ug/D/8/14/739559" \t "_blank" http://www.newvision.co.ug/D/8/14/739559

Boys to men as Sudanese villagers take on Lord's Resistance Army (Sydney Morning Herald) HYPERLINK "http://www.smh.com.au/world/boys-to-men-as-sudanese-villagers-take-on-lords-resistance-army-20101126-18alb.html" \t "_blank" www.smh.com.au/world/boys-to-men-as-sudanese-villagers-take-on-lords-resistance-army-20101126-18alb.html

Obama calls for elimination of Uganda’s rebel group - International Business Times HYPERLINK "http://hken.ibtimes.com/articles/85736/20101125/joseph-kony-obama-uganda-lord-s-resistance-army-acholi-community-international-criminal-court-lra.htm" http://hken.ibtimes.com/articles/85736/20101125/joseph-kony-obama-uganda-lord-s-resistance-army-acholi-community-international-criminal-court-lra.htm

Obama presents Congress plans to disarm Uganda’s LRA rebels – RTT News - HYPERLINK "http://www.rttnews.com/Content/Policy.aspx?Id=1490257&SM=1" http://www.rttnews.com/Content/Policy.aspx?Id=1490257&SM=1

Obama unveils plan for LRA - Legalbrief – November 30, 2010 - HYPERLINK "http://www.legalbrief.co.za/article.php?story=201011301129442" http://www.legalbrief.co.za/article.php?story=201011301129442


- - -

Related Report

Lords Resistance Army in Darfur
Source: Save Darfur Coalition's Blog for Darfur - http://blogfordarfur.org/archives/6255
Date: Wednesday, 01 December 2010
Author: Sam Bell, Executive Director, Save Darfur Coalition / Genocide Intervention Network
Copy in full:

Yesterday the UN Group of Experts for the Democratic Republic of Congo released a report which included evidence echoing the findings of many of our partner organizations – the Lords Resistance Army (LRA), an organization on the State Department’s Terrorist Exclusion List, was recently in Darfur and may still be there. Moreover, the Group of Experts’ report has details about contacts between the LRA and the Government of Sudan:
“The Group sought to verify reports from MONUSCO and the Ugandan authorities of contacts between an LRA delegation and Sudanese armed forces officers on the Central African Republic/Sudan border in October 2010. According to two eyewitnesses interviewed by the Group, the purpose of the LRA mission was to re-establish relations with the Sudanese authorities and to request assistance, including safe passage and political asylum for Joseph Kony. This mission, led by Kony’s chief bodyguard, Otto Agweny, reached the Sudanese military base at Am Dafok (near the Central African Republic/Sudan border) on 4 October, staying in the area until 9 October. In Am Dafok the group met with Sudanese armed forces commanders, including a Lieutenant Colonel who presented himself as an intelligence officer from Khartoum and an officer who presented himself as the Sudanese armed forces commander of the western region.

The Group understands that this meeting was the result of an initiative of LRA and not the Sudanese authorities. According to the eyewitnesses, no decision was reached, but the Sudanese armed forces reportedly provided the LRA delegation with their mobile and satellite phone numbers to facilitate future contacts with Kony. The Group requested information from the Sudanese authorities on the content of this meeting, but has not received a reply to its letter of 23 July. The Group will continue to seek the assistance of Member States to investigate individuals who may be supporting LRA from other countries.”
As I wrote two weeks ago, before de-listing Sudan from the State Sponsors of Terrorism List the Obama Administration must investigate links between Khartoum and the LRA, which is even more essential in light of the evidence that the Sudanese armed forces have met with LRA officials. The LRA is responsible for terrorizing civilians throughout central Africa and in 2008 its leader Joseph Kony was listed as “a Specially Designated Global Terrorist” by an Executive Order. In addition, the International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants for Kony and several members of the LRA senior leadership for war crimes and crimes against humanity.

[Hat tip: Sam Bell's tweet posted on Twitter Wednesday, 01 December 2010. Copy in full:
new details on #LRA in #Darfur http://t.co/csvkPxF US shouldn't remove #Sudan from terror list til Kht-LRA ties investigated
about 6 hours ago via web
sam_a_bell
Sam Bell]