Situation in Uganda 'grave'
2006-01-13 14:12
Kampala - The top United Nations human rights official said on Thursday the situation in war-ravaged northern Uganda was "extremely grave" with atrocities and abuses committed by the notorious rebel Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) and the Ugandan military.
UN high commissioner for human rights Louise Arbour said: "The situation in northern Uganda remains extremely grave and this gravity raises serious concerns."
She said: "People are deprived of social, material and human rights needs", adding that abuses of civilians by the LRA were of "great magnitude", but compounded by violations by the Ugandan People's Defence Forces (UPDF), which Arbour said amounted to a "breach of trust".
Arbour said: "Even though these violations may be of a smaller magnitude, violations by the UPDF contain an element of breach of trust, where the person that is supposed to defend you instead offends you."
Ugandan military officials had in the past denied charges of serious abuses by its troops, but had acknowledged minor violations and said that offenders were prosecuted.
Harassment, abuse
Arbour travelled to northern Uganda to get a first-hand glimpse of the devastation wrought by nearly 20 years of war in the region, which the United Nations said was one of the world's worst humanitarian crises.
Tens of thousands of people had been killed, thousands brutally attacked and some 1.6 million people, about 80% of the population, had been driven from their homes in fear of the LRA, which was known for its brutal treatment of civilians.
Many of the displaced lived in squalid camps, prone to disease, harassment and abuse from their would-be protectors.
Arbour said: "There is violation of human dignity in the camps. People complained about lack of access, violations of their rights, denials of health and economic rights."
She said: "The most severe violation is the total incapacitation of the people to participate in decisions concerning their future.
"They express their needs in the very short term and the deprivation of hope is very serious."