No news is...

There is little in the way of news coming out of Uganda currently, but there are a few stories of note. President Kabila of DRC and President Musevini of Uganda met last week to discuss the ongoing operations in the Congo. Uganda, who was supposed to pull its troops from the DRC by the end of February, struck a deal with the DRC to allow Ugandan troops to remain in the Congo through March. There have been a few reports of capture or surrender of top LRA officers, but many are skeptical, and the Ugandan government has yet to provide any concrete evidence for its claims.

Also in the region, the International Criminal Court, the same authority that has issued arrest warrants for Kony and other LRA officers, issued an arrest warrant for Omar Bashir, President of Sudan, last week. Unfortunately, Bashir has responded by kicking out all of the foreign aid workers in the country. During my time in Uganda, many in the North expressed fears that this might happen. Some even went so far as to suggest the possibility of Kony and Bashir forming an alliance and attacking Northern Uganda and southern Sudan. With both men wanted by the ICC, they would have nothing to lose, and thus far, the ICC has had little more than a big bark and a short leash.

Matt

It's that time again...SHAMELESS SOLICITATION!!!

If you haven't already guessed it, I'm going Back to Africa! Uganda (and the fantastic people I met there) treated me so well the first time that there is no way I couldn't return (though the pleading of my parents and girlfriend weren't easy to ignore)! My trip last year (please browse through my archived blog posts for all the dirty details...) provided me with the opportunity to work with teachers in the northern part of Uganda on exchanging and developing curriculum, strategies, and practices that addressed the unique needs of schools in the north. I spent most of my time in Pabo, the largest Internally Displaced Persons camp in Uganda, and returned to Gulu on the weekends for training and workshops (and the ocassional game of volleyball) led by the awesome charity Invisible Children. I am not sure where I will be stationed this year, but will fill you in on all the details as I receive them.

Now for the real purpose of this post...MONEY. My trip last year wound up costing a little over $6000. Through your generosity, I was able to raise a little over $2000 towards the expenses, spending about $4000 on travel, program fees, and other expenses. This year, I have set the goal a bit higher--I would like to try to defray as much as $4000 dollars of the trip--but I can only do that with your help.

I know, I know. You must be asking yourself, "Gee, How can I help such a decent (and modest) guy get halfway around the world to work with teachers and admistrators on developing practices to elevate the quality of education in northern Uganda?" Well, don't fret. The answer is simple. Show me the MONEY!!

There are several ways to donate this year. First, I am running a ChipIn donation event. Any time you donate through the link below (or on the upper left hand side of the blog) you will have the distinct pleasure of watching the temperature rise on the donation thermometer. Whoopee! How fun! You can make donations with a checking account or credit card. If you donate this way, it is not tax deductible.



If you want to be able to take a deduction on your 2009 taxes (sorry, too late for this year), then try one of these super easy methods!

1. Write out a personal check to Invisible Children with my name in the memo. Give it (or send it) to me. I will submit this check with my portion of the payments, and you will receive a receipt from Invisible Children

2. Mail a check directly to Invisible Children. It MUST be addressed as follows (or your donation will go directly to IC, which wouldn't be a bad thing):

To: Invisible Children
Mission: Teacher Exchange
1620 5th Ave, Suite 400
San Diego, CA 92101

In the memo line of the check, you must write T/EX-Matt Michelin
or the donation will not be credited towards my account.

3. If writing a check is too much of a hassle, then try donating with your credit card! Donations may be made by calling Invisible Children directly at 1-619-562-2799 or faxing your CC information to 619-660-0576. If you use this method, please ask for Cara Pryor and mention my name and that I am a part of the teacher exchange. Cara will be making sure that all funds are documented and managed appropriately.

Fianlly, if you haven't yet subscribed to my blog yet, then please do so. I'll be updating about the situation in Uganda, my fund raising efforts, and eventually, my experiences in Uganda. The best part of it all is that it's FREE! My blog posts will be delivered to your e-mail box any time I add an update! You can enter your e-mail address in the box to the left, or subscribe below. And for Pete's sake, tell all of your friends about this fantastic opportunity!

Enter your email address:

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Again, thank you for all of the support as I prepare to return to Uganda. Your help makes all of the difference in the world to me (and hopefully a bit of difference for the people of northern Uganda too).

Best wishes to all!
Apwoyo Matek!
Matt Michelin

Read This!

Reader input:

I received the following commentary from a reader of this blog after my last post, "Congo Craziness". Twon Dako is a northern Ugandan, and offered up a perspective that is often missed. In the age of the Internet and the World Wide Web, it is very easy to type in a search term, gather countless articles, and gobble up all the information presented. Unfortunately (especially when we are thousands of miles away from the news) we often miss the context of that news, the human connection.

As posted at 9:15 p.m. on January 27th:

As a northern Ugandan who has followed the blogs from your last trip (many of them transporting me right back to familiar locations and people), I am so grateful for your enthusiasm for helping the children and schools, and also fully aware of the sacrifices you make towards it. Apwoyo matek!!!

I also wanted to comment on the latest military action in the DRC aimed at ending the LRA threat. I think I speak for most Acholi in saying to us, news of the offensive was very sad and heartbreaking, ending hope for the only viable way to achieve real peace in the region.

From the perspective of our experiences over the last 23 years, this looks uncannily like déjà vu, reminding us of Operation Iron Fist I (2002) and later Iron Fist II (forays into southern Sudan declared to eliminate the LRA once and for all) and many others before that. Here are what they all have in common:

Each time, as the local population in the war zone presses for dialogue with the LRA to end the war, and it looks like there is peace on the horizon, the government and army gradually ramp up their rhetoric against the LRA, and for a military solution, then they launch a sudden scary-named end-all military operation, with a lot of bravado. The operations involve aggressive strategies such as the use of helicopter gunships and bombing indiscriminately without a care for abductees, but generally not engaging them closely enough to harm the LRA leadership or rescue a significant number of abductees.

As the LRA very predictably scatter and retaliate against the civilian populations, and as they widen their forage for food and supplies (having lost their bases and supplies), the Uganda army and government then step aside to watch from a safe distance, leaving civilian populations totally unprotected. As a result of Operation Iron Fist in Sudan, the LRA intensified and extended the range of their raids and abductions in Sudan, and in Uganda even farther than Acholi, into Lango and Teso in eastern Uganda, places not previously affected. And reaching levels of brutality never witnessed before. Then just like the current military offensive in the DRC, with Iron Fist, the Ugandan army asked Sudan for many subsequent extensions to give them time to wipe out the LRA. I don’t need to tell you what the outcome was.

And then when proof is demanded of the loudly proclaimed success of the operation, the army provides photographs of an assortment of trophies from Kony. Following Iron Fist, I think it was Kony’s favorite “Kaunda” suit and photographs among other things. This time in Operation Lightning Thunder it was a wig, guitar, pots and pans, and later computers and satellite phones. All this proof is provided with impressive claims of very narrowly missing the capture of Kony by a whisker - they nearly grabbed his shadow, and how it is only a matter of time before LRA are history. (It is a big joke with many Ugandans.) We’ve heard it so often it sounds like a broken record!

As the death toll, horror, destruction, and displacement from reported increased LRA atrocities mount, then the Uganda government propaganda arm loudly proclaim to the UN, the world and any international donor partners who will listen how evil the LRA are, while avoiding all responsibility on their part, and giving a litany of excuses for the failures to meet operation goals (bad weather, dense jungle terrain this time), and no explanations for their failure to protect civilians – always getting to the scene of a just concluded massacre or discovering a fresh mass grave.

All this may not make logical sense to most straight-thinking people but through the half-hearted military operations with predictable results they can now provide fresh proof of the evil and brutality of LRA, further demonizing them (if that is possible), and more importantly creating justification for more aid for military spending, and more empathy for their side. At the same time, it is a great excuse for the continued total marginalization of northern Uganda and abdication of government responsibility towards its northern citizens. Surprise, surprise - the president last week suspended the implementation of the PRDP (Peace, Reovery & Development Plan) worth hundreds of millions of dollars!

So, was the Uganda army attack December 14 attack and the few LRA “trophies” captured worth the 640 plus Congolese, Sudanese and abducted Ugandan children’s lives with massive displacement and human suffering incurred in the region? Is it worth the new risks and exposure of victim communities? Could a little more patience and diplomatic or psychological strategy have yielded better results in this hostage situation? You be the judge.

I pray that our worst fears are not realized so that you and all the volunteer teachers will still be able to go to northern Uganda this summer.

Twon Dako (not my real name)

January 27, 2009 9:15 PM

Thank you, Twon, for providing us with your unique perspective. I hope that, in sharing your thoughts, others will understand the true frustration and desperation of the people of northern Uganda. Apwoyo tutwal.

Congo Craziness

In the month since my last post, quite a lot has happened on the ground in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The armies of the DRC, Uganda, and Southern Sudan have destroyed most of the Lord’s Resistance Army’s (LRA) bases, eliminated many of their food stores, and captured multiple weapons caches. Several rebels have turned themselves in (mostly children and abductees), but most of the LRA is still scattered and moving through the Congo. Along the way, they have reportedly raided many villages, murdered many civilians (the UN places the number at over 900 currently—the worst attacks in 4 years), and abducted many more into their ranks. On a few occasions, the LRA has locked villagers into churches. In one instance, they murdered hundreds with machetes and clubs, and in another, they burned the church to the ground. As a side effect of these atrocious acts, over 130,000 civilians in the DRC have become displaced, fleeing their villages out of fear. Several LRA soldiers have also reportedly moved into Southern Sudan where they have killed a Sudanese Chief, Gordon Jalal Ngirimo.

The LRA, of course, is denying the attacks while continually calling for the resumption of peace talks. They are claiming that president Yoweri Musevini has orchestrated the attacks with UPDF soldiers, placing blame on the LRA in order to bring hatred on the LRA both locally and internationally. The ICC is investigating these allegations, but the UN is convinced that the attacks are attributable to the LRA.

On January 14, the Ugandan and DRC governments agreed to extend their military efforts against the LRA (the recent agreement ended Jan 14, 30 days after the initial December 14th attacks) for another 21 days. They are still confident that the LRA is running and Joseph Kony’s days are limited. Just this week, another rebel leader, Laurent Nkunda, was captured in Rwanda putting the UPDF and Congo forces in high spirits. Nkunda was responsible for capturing Bukavu, the capital of Sud-Kivu province in the DRC, last year causing the displacement of thousands. Hopefully this is a sign of positive change and progress on the ground.

In Uganda, people are certainly nervously optimistic. Musevini has assured his country that the LRA will not set foot on Ugandan soil, and has taken measures to ramp up security along the borders of the north. Unfortunately, for many in the north, the fear of future attacks is enough to keep many people in the Internally Displaced Camps. Up until recently, many residents of the IDP camps had begun moving home to the more remote villages. Now, most people still in the camps are staying, and several are moving back from their villages.

As for the Teacher Exchange program, I am moving forward as planned. The situation in Uganda is secure, and if there were ever a time to help try to restore a sense of normalcy and help rebuild infrastructure, now is it. Please keep your eyes open for forthcoming posts about how you can help me get to Uganda. If you want to make a donation, you can do so by clicking on the ChipIn donation link on the top left of my blog. I will be posting information soon about how to make donations directly through Invisible Children to support my trip as well. If you would like to wait to use this option, you will receive a tax receipt to use as a deduction on your 2009 taxes (sorry, it’s too late for 2008!) I will also be running several fundraisers in the coming months to raise money for my trip.

Best,
Matt

Uganda takes decisive action

This past Sunday (December 14), the joint forces of Uganda, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Sudan attacked Joseph Kony and the LRA's camps in the Garamba National Forest in the DRC. This action signaled the offical end to the ceasefire agreement that has lasted (unless you count Kony's countless attacks on villages in the DRC, Sudan and CAR...) for almost three years. The UPDF Commenced the attacks with an air raid that severely damaged the huts in Kony's main camp setting them on fire and sending the rebels fleeing into the jungle. When ground troops arrived to inspect the camps, however, they did not find any casualties. Troops did locate evidence of severe injuries and soldier presence leading up to the attacks though and speculate that the rebels may have been alerted to the attacks or were able to carry off wounded and dead rebels before the ground troops arrived. Currently, cut off from his food supplies and other resources, Kony may be in trouble. The UPDF is air dropping leaflets throughout the jungle in an effort to encourage the scattered troops to assemble at safe points so that they may avoid attack and be rescued. They have also set up an opportunity for Joseph Kony to travel to Ri-Kwangba in safety to sign the final peace deal (he has already failed to sign seven times). If he does not, then he will be hunted down until captured or killed.

Human rights groups are somewhat supportive of this action, but also warn that there is the possibility of injuring or killing child soldiers--many of whom were abducted and are being held against their will.

Uganda has vowed that the LRA will not be able to get back into Uganda and is ensuring that its citizens will remain safe. There has been no word yet from Invisible Children (nor do I expect any--there is a lot of time between now and next summer) about the possible impact on the teacher exchange for 2009. Right now our best bet is to hope for the safety of all involved as well as a speedy resolution to this 23-year crisis. I will keep you informed as the situation develops.

Best,
Matt