DAUGHTERS OF A KING
UGANDA and
STONE QUARRIES
Reported by : Constance Owens DOAK Magazine
Uganda is a beautiful country in East Africa . Known for its abundant wildlife , over 800,000 visitors come to Uganda each year to see its rare eastern mountain gorillas , chimpanzees , and national parks . It is also home to one of the longest running conflicts in Africa ' s history .
Uganda ' s War In 1987 , the Lord ' s Resistance Army ( LRA ) was formed as an armed rebellion against the Ugandan government , led by spirit-medium , Joseph Kony . The LRA was founded to establish a state based on the Ten Commandments and to fight for the independence of the Acholi people - the largest ethnic group in Northern Uganda ( Migration Policy ).
As the intensity of the conflict grew , the LRA began to raid and plunder whole villages for supplies and food - and then destroying them . This sinister tactic was used by Kony to exert power over the Acholi population and underscore the government ' s ability to protect its people .
To instill fear and control , the LRA routinely tortured , raped , and cut off the lips , ears , nose , and breasts of their victims , and abducted children .
IDP Camps
In response to the LRA ' s brutal attacks , the Ugandan government began a policy forcing civilians out of their homes to IDP camps . The idea was to group civilians in more easily defensible locations , which would be surrounded by Ugandan army outposts ( Migration Policy ).
According to RESOLVE : LRA Crisis Initiative ,
1 approximately 1,700,000 Ugandans have been displaced from 1986 to 2007 , making the tiny region home to the world ' s third-largest population of internally displaced people ( IDP ). Strained by overcrowding , insufficient food and lack of employment plague the camps . Assault and rape are also common - committed by the very soldiers assigned to protect them ( Migration Policy ).
Night Commuters Those living outside the IDP camps haven ' t fared much better , especially in Northern Uganda .
Attacking mostly at night , the LRA has caused a phenomenon known as " night commuting ". As darkness falls , as many as 50,000 children and teenagers flee their villages and camps to larger towns up to 5 miles away - to escape abduction . These children crowd together in cities like Gulu and Kitgum , on the front steps of police stations , the hospitals , schools , or other public buildings . They sleep as much as they can and then walk back home in the morning , only to repeat the process again the next night . It is reported that many children have been commuting this way for the past three years ( Migration Policy ).
Boys who are captured are forced to be child soldiers and made to commit unspeakable atrocities . Girls who are captured are forced to become sex slaves or " wives " of LRA commanders . The risk of contracting HIV and other diseases have led commanders to seek out younger girls , believing them to be ' clean ' ( Migration Policy ).
Long years of abductions and killings in the IDP camps and surrounding villages have sent masses of refugees , orphans and widows to urban areas like Kampala , Uganda ' s capital , where many have traded one misery for another . Upon arriving , refugees soon realize their former way of life as farmers and crop producers were over . With no other means of income , many found their only option was to work in the rock quarries .