Update on our ICC film project

WHY HAVE THE ICC NOT CHARGED UGANDAN GOVERNMENT MILITARY PERSONEL LIKE THEY HAVE CHARGED THE SUDAN GOVERNMENT MILITARY PERSONEL IN THE DARFUR AND NORTHERN UGANDA CRISIS?

The Acholi people of northern Uganda, want Peace rather than ICC Justice. It is my opinion that It has been hard to lay part blame of the crisis on the Museveni Ugandan government since many who have advocated that the Uganda government also be put to task by the ICC for the Crimes in Uganda, have been accused as LRA collaborator or sympathizers.

This is mainly due to the brain washing by numerous TV/Movie documentaries such as the “Invisible Children, Night Commuters”, and now probably yours “The court of Last Resort - ICC”.

Most of these documentaries are one sided and narrow visioned - focussing on the same over done theme of LRA/Child soldier, LRA brutality etc while ignoring the most important aspect which has to do with inactivity or actions of the Museveni government of Uganda to create this crisis.

These docomentaries actaully cause more harm than good since they end up portraying the Museveni government of Uganda as benevolent to the acholi people by putting them in internally displaced camps (IDP) for their safety againts the LRA.

It farther misleads the viewers that the government of Uganda is struggling with a very dangerous, skilled and brutal rebel force rather than the real rag tag LRA, which if the government really had the will they would have eradicated the LRA.  The LRA gave the Museveni leaders reason for expanding the budget to the military so as to engage in their military adventures of looting the Congo.

There are footages of a LRA rebel attack on an IDP camp in which the local Defence Unit (LDU) responsible for guarding these camps ran away and left the populace defenseless. (Mind you the LDU’s are rag tag poorly trained, loosely equipped and not even part of the elite Ugandan Army, and yet they are the ones assigned the responsibility of protecting the IDP camps, while the true uganda army is in Congo exploiting and killing.

The president of Uganda, Yoweri Museveni has a personal presidential protection brigade of 13,000 soldiers, but the Acholi people in the IDP camps consisting of an average of 40,000 people or more per camp are normally protected by only about 20 LDU’s.  (The defense detachment is in the center of the camps, not on the perimeter of the camps to dissuade rebels from attack) Therefore the IDP populace in effect shields the LDU from rebel attack. This explains why the rebels were still able to capture children from these camps and why the children had to have these nightly commute to safety in fear of the LRA abductions. There was In adequate military protection.  The acholi populace were encaged in these camps and left there by the ugandan government without water, food, social programs, employment etc.

Does this indeed mean that the Museveni Government had an interest to protect the IDP campers?. There are horror stories of rape, torture abduction by Uganda government troops which do not appear in the media of these so called documentaries.

The deaths and the suffering from these IDP camps
have kelled the acholi people in the thousands. This is very low compared to the number of deaths caused by the LRA.

So how is it that these so called documentaries focuss on the minors rather than the majors. It would appear that the documentaries are just made to improve the personal carriers of the makers, rather than help bring to light social issues and events.

The Acholi believe that the Uganda government intentionally did not protect them since the Government were intent on wiping and greatly weakening the Acholi by forcefully placing them in IDP.s and leaving them there without water, food any means of social sustenance and worse yet left without poor adequate military protection.

There is no international political will to assist the acholi people. The U.S. government is more concerned with maintaining close ties with the Ugandan and Sudanese governments for purposes of combating terrorism.
At the behest of the United States Uganda sent 1000 troops to Somalia to help crack down on potential terrorist cells. The USA is not interested in the lives of thousands of Acholi dieing every day in the IDP camps victimized by the war in northern Uganda.

This is clearly seen when two months ago, during UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon’s first, albeit brief, stopover in Uganda’s capital, Kampala. He talked about the Darfur crisis and the Somalia crisis. The Secretary General thanked the Uganda Government for contributing 1000 soldiers to Somalia. But not even once did he mention the crisis in Northern Uganda which was only 200 miles away.

It would be nice if you fellows would have a documentary with a fresh theme that can also point out fairly the actions and lack of actions by the Uganda government to cause the tragedy in Northern Uganda.

More importantly, Many International NGO’s who have witnessed groos human rights violations towards the acholi by the ugandan government troops have the big question, “why have the Uganda government military personel like the Sudan Government military personel in darfur have not yet been charged by the ICC?

You go figure it out yourself.

Read more articles about the acholi on the acgoli website.

http://www.acholinet.com

Bunia, I really appreciate your comments, and we have a long way to go before we finish this documentary.  We are looking at the role of the UPDF in the northern Uganda conflict, and believe me, we want to hear from all parties.  At the same time, I wouldn’t let your anger at the UPDF and Museveni diminish the role of the LRA - many victims we spoke to in northern Uganda simply wouldn’t agree with you that they are just a rag tag bunch - they have caused a tremendous amount of suffering.  Nevertheless, I also have to wonder why the UPDF has not captured the LRA leaders, and it’s a certainly a question we are asking.  What needs to be done to try to reach at the truth is that human rights organizations working with the Acholi people have to document all the atrocities that have happened in the 20-year war, on all sides.  this is a basic step in defending human rights - has this been done?  Does such a document exist?

Dear Paco de Onis - Thank you for your response to my comments. I am sincerely curious as to when the final production of your documentary/Movie. on “The ICC - Last resort” will be out.

However I am very disappointed with your response in particularly this statement;

“"I wouldn’t let your anger at the UPDF and Museveni diminish the role of the LRA"”

First of all, as an Acholi, whose mother and two cousins were killed, 3 nephews kidnapped into child soldiery, unmentionable numbers of nieces and aunts defiled and others raped and brought into servitude all by the LRA. It would be presumptuous, arrogant and offensive of you to think that my anger is simply focused on “Museveni and the UPDF”.  You are assuming that I am not angry at the LRA. My anger if any would be towards anyone or group that would commit crimes against the Acholi or any other group of people.

In your careless remarks, you have effectively insulted me and many other non Acholi’s. You have implied directly that any one, expressing anger at a national government like Uganda Gov’t for its responsibility in starting or its failures in protecting its people and ending the northern Uganda war, is an LRA sympathizer or collaborator who is wrongly focusing their anger at Museveni and the UPDF. It makes me wonder if your documentary is partly sponsored by the Ugandan Government. I look forward to an answer for this question. There are rumours already flying.

If I did not know better, such is the exact insinuations and statements of accusations made by the Uganda Government Propaganda Machine to any person who mentions the Uganda Gov’t role in the atrocities against the Acholi People.

Paco de Onis, If you were an acholi whose people died in the thousands and had your whole generation destroyed, your future culture and way of life degenerated, would you like to have some one tell you who you should be upset with and with whom you should blame for the problem as if you were mentally incapable of doing this for yourself based on evidence presented?.

In your comment you did not mention that you spoke or have footage of acholi victims by Uganda government atrocities. But you were very clear to point out the acholi victim’s of the LRA.

It is already very obvious and in plain site that the LRA have committed great atrocities to the Acholi, However for the ICC to have credibility, we also want the part played by the Uganda government to be brought out.  Is it wrong to want that all people who committed atrocities be brought to justice?

Many Acholi’s, non Acholi’s, NGO firms, Human rights Organizations alike have pointed out very frequently that “the UPDF need to be indicted”.  Are they just focusing their anger on Museveni and the UPDF?

In my personal Opinion, both UPDF(Musevenei) and LRA(kony) need to be indicted. (Note that there are many Acholi people in the ranks of the UPDF army) Person’s like Lt Gen. Ochora Walter, Brig Gen Otema Awanyi who are Acholi by tribe, and yet are the very instruments within the UPDF who have commited crimes against Acholi. 

The Ugandan Government in its public relations effort, has spent millions of dollars to USA and other European PR companies to spin doctor the war in Northern Uganda. There are also many mini documentary firms like yours that have been sponsored in part to create documentaries that twist public perception in Uganda Govt’s Favor by focusing on the LRA in a systemic manner of public Brain Wash.

Many documentary firms who receive money from the Museveni Uganda government to spin doctor atrocity cover ups should be aware that the Uganda Government of Yoweri Museveni will not last forever and eventually will be brought to answer for its crimes against humanity against the acholi people and peoples of Congo. Lubanga Dyilo and other Congolese rebel fronts that commited serious atrocities have also been rumuored to have been sponsored by Museveni’s terror system.  Media company Collaborators and spin doctors who participated in fact twisting or cover ups will also be held accountable as agents of these atrocities.

Charles Taylor, Pinochet, Milosovich, Sadam, Lubanga Dyilo to name a few, never dreamt in a million years that they would be brought to justice.

The current ICC may not want to indict Museveni and cronies for its political survival. But political Tides and governments change.

I simply hope that your documentary is that of integrity rather than that which focuses on sensationalism

Good luck

Okello Bunia

Hello Okello Bunia - you are making many accusations against me that are completely unfounded.  We have been making documentaries about human rights and justice, independently and with integrity, for 25 years.  I think the best would be for you to look at our latest work and then judge for yourself - send me your address and I will send you a DVD of our last film “State of Fear”.  I am truly sorry to hear about your family losses, and I absolutely agree that all parties should be investigated in the Uganda crisis, and all other humanitarian crises that are occurring in the world.  See our last film and then let me know what you think.  Best, Paco