Urging Nonviolence in dealing with the Lord's Resistance Army

Posted January 11th, 2012.  This article by Bahati Jacques from the Oct-Dec Edition of Around Africa, 2011.

On October 14, 2011, President Barack Obama sent a letter to Congress to inform law-makers that he had authorized the deployment of one hundred "combat equipped U.S. forces to central Africa to provide assistance to regional forces that are working toward the removal of Joseph Kony from the battlefield." This decision is in compliance with US Public Law 111 172, the Lord's Resistance Army Disarmament and Northern Uganda Recovery Act of 2009, enacted on May 24, 2010.

For more than two decades Joseph Kony, the Ugandan leader of the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) has been killing, abducting and raping children, men and women in Uganda, the Central African Republic (CAR), the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), and the Republic of South Sudan (RSS).

Read more: Urging Nonviolence in dealing with the Lord's Resistance Army

Responses to US Troops in Central Africa

Posted October 26th, 2011

ACHOLI RELIGIOUS LEADERS PEACE INITIATIVE

October 24, 2011
Response to the Deployment of U.S. Military Advisors to LRA Affected Regions

For us, the Acholi Religious Leaders’ Peace Initiative (ARLPI), President Obama’s October 14th announcement that 100 U.S. troops have been deployed to the region to assist with the capture of Joseph Kony and the dismantling of his Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) leaves us concerned. Over the past two decades, the people of Northern Uganda have endured horrific violence as a result of the war between the LRA and the Government of Uganda (GoU). Despite numerous attempts at resolving this dispute, to date, these measures have not only failed to result in the hoped for peace but led instead to the broadening of the conflict to neighboring countries.

Read more: Responses to US Troops in Central Africa

End U.S. Military and NATO aggression in Libya, says Coalition

Posted 8/19/11

Below is a clip from a press release discussing a recent NGO statement calling for ceasefire in Libya.  AFJN was instrumental in the creation of this statement in its work with ADNA, among others, to come together in one voice and demand a peaceful, political solution to what has become a violent stalemate. Read the full press release.

Major National Organizations Call for Ceasefire in Libya, De-funding of U.S. Military and Intelligence Operations

Washington DC – Libyan rebels recently overtook the coastal oil refinery in Zawiyah, reportedly with assistance from NATO bombers. As U.S. surveillance drones and NATO bombs continue to fly over Libya, a number of major national organizations and activists are calling for an end to U.S. military action in Libya, as well as calling on Congress to de-fund U.S. military and intelligence activities in the country. As fighting inches closer to the stronghold of Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi in densely-populated Tripoli, the groups are calling for a new form of engagement to save lives, focusing on non-military and diplomatic solutions to the tension. In a written statement signed by 16 leading organizations and activists, the coalition says that U.S. hostilities for the purpose of regime change are not aiding Libyans, stating, “The U.S. policy of regime change first, peace later is prolonging the hostilities and adding to civilian casualties.”

Read more: End U.S. Military and NATO aggression in Libya, says Coalition

Arms control: what was done and what needs to be done

Posted on July 15, 2011

By Alyse Martin

Arms’ trafficking in Africa is an issue that should be monitored. Wars in African countries are fought with the illicit small arms that are smuggled in from across the globe. According to the UN, access to illegal arms in African nations, “fuels conflict, contributes to poverty, and stalls development.”

The use of illicit arms is prevalent in many African societies. The rich cultures of these African nations have been overshadowed by the armed conflicts that have taken over. According to Rachel Stohl, an expert in illicit arms trafficking, of all the small arms that are globally in circulation, 59% of them are owned by civilians; and about 500,000 people are killed each year by these weapons.

Read more: Arms control: what was done and what needs to be done