When will it be time for peace?

Things are moving very quickly these days- maybe because we have 10 days left, maybe it’s the hunger, or maybe we are just meeting a ton of people whose stories we want to get out.

I have to tell you about this boy I met.

I met him on Sunday while planting beans and sunflowers. His English is great and he has a British accent. He also speaks Arabic, Japanese and some Chinese. He astoundingly knows things about the US and Canada, (like where the planes are made?!), and has traveled extensively in this region…I found out that he was abducted in 1995 and was with the LRA for about 5 years. He has killed many, many people and has nightmares and is quite disturbed.

I tell you this to remind you all of the alarming statistic that 2 out of 10 people under the age of 26 in northern Uganda were abducted by the LRA at some point. I remind you of this because most people we meet, whether they are barbers, neighbours, helpers with firewood or primary students have been forced to be child soldiers; beaten and forced to kill. All this in addition to currently being Internally Displaced.

The Primary 7 class that we met last week had 7 out of the 36 students freely write about their abduction and their time in ‘the bush’.

Just a reminder that here in northern Uganda, trauma is a serious problem in addition to the others we have named.

Speaking of the other problems, we have taken a photo of the trash pits to give you an idea of where some of the health problems come from.

These open pits become huge mountains and are interspersed amidst the huts within the camps, close to living quarters, water sources and latrines.

We also met a group of disabled women.

These ladies, in addition to being widows, are disabled, have no family and have been rejected by the community as useless. They try to make some money by braiding hair and making brooms, but a return to their traditional lands in unimaginable. Unimaginable because they don’t have the means or the labour necessary to rebuild their homes. Unfortunately, survival in the camp is a big enough challenge for them.

To end, this is Rosalva.

She is 65 and has survived war under Idi Amin’s tyranny, and for the last 23 years, this LRA-Government war. She barely reminders a time of peace. She is not sure if there will ever be peace here, but peace to her means a return home, without violent acts, and having enough means to comfortably survive.

It was thought provoking speaking to Rosalva. I have done so much research on this 23 year old war, and have visited so many times since 2004, and am so obsessed with the horrible conditions in the camps and the generation that has been scarred by this war. I had forgotten, or really overlooked, the fact that prior to this war was another terrible period under Idi Amin.

When will it be time for peace for the people of northern Uganda? How many generations will grow up in the floodlights of terror, displacement and war? How much can one people, one tribe, one culture take?

Lara