Uganda: over 31,000 Sudanese refugees displaced by recent LRA raids

More than 31,000 Sudanese refugees have been displaced from their settlements in northern Uganda in recent weeks, following repeated raids by marauding rebels of the feared Lord's Resistance Army (LRA), according to latest registration figures.

The registration, mounted by UNHCR, the Ugandan government and humanitarian partner agencies counted 28,000 displaced refugees in Adjumani District, 2,500 in Moyo District and 1,000 in Arua District of Uganda. An additional 500 also reportedly crossed back into Sudan after fleeing their settlements. Food and non-food items such as blankets and plastic tarpaulins will be distributed beginning this weekend to the displaced refugees.

The exodus of most of the Sudanese from their settlements in the Zoka Forest Belt south of Adjumani began in early March due to frequent raids by the feared LRA. The rebel group apparently hides in the Zoka Forest and has undertaken 30 raids over the last three months on both refugee and Ugandan communities in the area.

As a result of the massive migration of refugees 30 kilometres northwards to other Sudanese settlements along the east shore of the Nile River, that area's refugee population has doubled in size. The mass displacement has put an additional strain on sanitation and community services resources such as schools and clinics. An assessment team made up of UNHCR and partner agencies is in the area analyzing the immediate needs of the displaced refugees.

The Ugandan army is reportedly maintaining four battalions in the Adjumani region, and the raids on the Zoka Forest refugee settlements, which are now largely empty, have reportedly halted. We hope that the additional security measures will help the displaced refugees to go back since it is urgent for them to look after their farms as this is planting season and they normally must raise much of their own food.

The UN refugee agency cares for 173,000 Sudanese in the north of Uganda. Many live in settlements west of the Nile River, while some 32,000 refugees resided in the area around the Zoka forest where they are exposed to LRA raids. Over the years, some 1.5 million Ugandans living in the region have similarly been displaced from their home villages by the feared LRA fighters.