Uganda: Child Abductions Skyrocket in North

(Geneva, March 28, 2003) - Children are being abducted in record numbers
in northern Uganda by the rebel Lord's Resistance Army (LRA), Human
Rights Watch said in a new report released today. The children are
subjected to brutal treatment as soldiers, laborers and sexual slaves.

Since June of 2002, an estimated 5,000 children have been abducted-a
striking increase from 2001, when fewer than 100 children were abducted.
In total, an estimated 20,000 children have been abducted during the
16-year conflict between the LRA and the Ugandan government.

"The increase in abductions is dramatic and alarming," said Jo Becker of
the Children's Rights Division of Human Rights Watch. "More children
have been taken in the last 10 months than in any previous year of the
conflict."

The surge in abductions followed the return of the LRA to Uganda after
the Ugandan government launched a military offensive, "Operation Iron
Fist," against the LRA's bases in southern Sudan in March of last year.

Children abducted by the LRA are frequently beaten, and forced to carry
out raids, burn houses, beat and kill civilians, and abduct other
children. They must carry heavy loads over long distances and work long
hours as virtual slaves. Many are given weapons training and some are
used to fight the Ugandan army, the Uganda People's Defense Force
(UPDF). Girls are sexually enslaved as "wives" to LRA commanders, and
subjected to rape, unwanted pregnancies, and the risk of sexually
transmitted diseases, including HIV/AIDS.

The LRA uses brutal tactics to demand obedience from abducted children.
Children are forced to beat or trample to death other children who
attempt to escape, and are repeatedly told they will be killed if they
try to run away.

The 31-page report, "Stolen Children: Abduction and Recruitment in
Northern Uganda" draws on interviews with children who have recently
escaped from LRA captivity. The majority of those interviewed were
abducted after the escalation of the conflict last year.

"Children live in fear," said Becker. "They know that if they are
abducted they will be brutalized, possibly killed, and may never see
their families again."

Every night thousands of children pour into Gulu and other northern
Ugandan towns from surrounding areas, hoping to avoid abduction. They
sleep on verandas, in bus parks, on church grounds, and at local
hospitals before returning home again the next morning. In February
2003, Human Rights Watch observed nearly 3,000 individuals, the vast
majority unaccompanied children, seeking refuge at Lacor hospital in
Gulu. These children are known locally as "night commuters."

Uganda's government also recruits children. Human Rights Watch
documented the recruitment of children as young as 12 into Local Defense
Units, also known as home guards. These children are trained, and
sometimes fight, with the Ugandan army. Boys who manage to escape from
LRA captivity, particularly those with combat experience, are also
pressured to join the UPDF while in UPDF custody for debriefing.

Human Rights Watch called on both the LRA and the Uganda government to
comply with international standards prohibiting the recruitment and use
of children as soldiers.

"The abduction of children has destroyed the lives of thousands of
children and their families," said Becker. "The United Nations should
appoint a special envoy to act on behalf of these children and to seek
their release."

Human Rights Watch called on the United Nations Commission on Human
Rights, which is now meeting in Geneva, to request that the UN
Secretary-General appoint a special envoy to seek the release of the
abducted children, by conducting "shuttle diplomacy" between the LRA and
the Ugandan government. A broad group of Ugandan and international
non-governmental organizations has endorsed the proposal. These include
humanitarian agencies working in the north such as Save the Children,
International Rescue Committee, Norwegian Refugee Council, and World
Vision International.

On March 2, the leader of the LRA, Joseph Kony, announced a unilateral
ceasefire. The government initially rejected the declaration, but later
announced a limited ceasefire to allow for talks with the LRA. However,
the LRA did not appear at sites designated by the government for the
talks, and LRA fighters have violated Kony's ceasefire announcement by
attacking and abducting civilians.

The report is online at: http://hrw.org/reports/2003/uganda0303/

Testimonies from Stolen Children: Abduction and Recruitment in Northern
Uganda (children's names have been changed):

Children abducted by the LRA:

Early on when my brothers and I were captured, the LRA explained to us
that all five brothers couldn't serve in the LRA because we would not
perform well. So they tied up my two younger brothers and invited us to
watch. Then they beat them with sticks until the two of them died.
They told us it would give us strength to fight. My youngest brother
was nine years old.
-Martin P., age thirteen, abducted in February 2002

I was scared. There were many bullets fired. I dropped down for
safety, but could see the tree leaves falling from the bullets. . . . I
didn't shoot, but six rebel soldiers and many abducted children were
killed. Over twenty children died. I was running for safety and had to
jump over many of the bodies. The youngest was about twelve.
-Grace T., age sixteen, abducted in July 2002

One eighteen-year-old male tried to escape but was soon captured.
Soldiers laid him on the ground and told us to step on him. All the new
recruits participated-we trampled him to death. During my time with the
LRA, there were other children who escaped and seven of these were
caught. Of them, two were hacked to death with machetes and five were
clubbed or trampled. We were either made to participate or watch the
killings. The youngest recruit killed was maybe nine or ten years old.
-Mark T., seventeen, abducted in August 2002

As we moved from place to place, we would have to sleep on the grass,
under trees, or in the sand. I had to fetch water, wash clothes, and
cook the meals. The wives would sometimes beat me or make me carry
heavy loads. If I walked slowly, I was beaten. I was beaten
practically every day.
-Susan A., age twelve, abducted in October 2002

I'm not happy at all because they ruined me. I had to cut short my
studies. I have no hope that I will one day be somebody. I gave birth
to two children and was not prepared. I have two children and no means
of survival. I worry about what will happen next.
-Christine A., age twenty, abducted in 1996

Child recruitment by Ugandan government forces:

I joined nine others who were there, mostly boys. The soldiers lured us
into accepting to fight with the UPDF with offers of money and benefits,
but I refused. One boy, sixteen, accepted and he immediately started
training at the barracks with the other soldiers. He was moved from us
and kept in better quarters.
-Edward T., age eighteen

When I arrived at the barracks, there were twenty-four escapees
there-almost all were boys under seventeen. We were asked if we would
join the UPDF. Five of the boys accepted, but I refused. The youngest
was a fifteen-year-old named Michael. Soldiers would tempt and taunt
us, insulting us for being in an army like the LRA which only runs away
during the fighting. 'Be a real man, fight with a real army now like
the UPDF. You will get money for your work, a gun and a uniform.'
-Mark T., age seventeen