War Affected Children & Youth in Northern Uganda: Toward a Brighter Future an Assessment Report
Eric Stover, Erin Baines (Liu Faculty, UBC), Marieke Wierda
May 29, 2006
Commissioned by the MacArthur Foundation & the Government of Canada
As Uganda enters the 20th year of a bloody and intractable civil war in its northern region, the international community is taking action on behalf of the victims. Last October, the International Criminal Court issued indictments against the leaders of the Lord’s Resistance Army, the rebel group responsible for killing thousands of people and displacing almost 80 percent of the population.Uganda’s children have been especially affected by the conflict: over 20,000 have been abducted by the rebels and forced to become soldiers or sex slaves.
Although these criminals will one day face justice in The Hague, the people of northern Uganda continue to suffer as fighting persists and insecurity has forced nearly two million civilians into crowded refugee camps. The country needs comprehensive, coordinated assistance to promote justice, reconciliation, and recovery.
To help, the MacArthur Foundation and the Government of Canada commissioned a detailed assessment of relief and rebuilding efforts underway. A team of researchers from the Liu Institute for Global Issues, the Berkeley Human Rights Center, and the International Center for Transitional Justice (ICTJ) concluded that an initial program of assistance could begin to show results on the ground right away by focusing on three themes: vulnerable children, investing in youth, and supporting traditional and formal justice mechanisms.
