Refugees International is spending three weeks examining the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Uganda. This little known conflict has displaced an estimated 600,000 Ugandans. They have fled their homes in recent months to escape escalating clashes in the northern region of the country where the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA), an insurgent group committed to establishing a government based on the Ten Commandments, has been attacking local communities and camps for displaced persons. Fighting, which began 16 years ago, has increased since June when Uganda and Sudan signed a protocol stating that Uganda could send its troops into areas of southern Sudan to fight the LRA.

The team will examine the protection and assistance needs of Ugandans who have fled conflict and instability, as well as the needs of Sudanese refugees. The LRA, well known for its human rights abuses, has burned camps, looted property, and abducted women and children. Humanitarian organizations have been forced to curtail their activities because of threats to their security, and thousands of civilians are now without food, shelter and medical supplies. One of the RI team’s main objectives is to examine the security situation in Uganda, including protection concerns of the IDPs, as well as security for the humanitarian agencies operating there. RI will also meet with Ugandan religious and NGO leaders who are attempting to mediate a solution to the conflict. In addition, the RI team will investigate the conditions of the new camps for the Sudanese refugees who had to be relocated from northern Uganda.