After The First Trial: A Population-Based Survey on Knowledge and Perception of Justice and the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia
On July 26, 2010, Kaing Guek Eav, alias Duch, was convicted of crimes against humanity and grave breaches of the 1949 Geneva Conventions for events that took place three decades earlier under the Khmer Rouge regime. Following this important milestone for the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC), the present study was implemented to (1) monitor public awareness and knowledge of the ECCC’s work, as well as of outreach and victim participation initiatives organized by the tribunal and local non-governmental organizations; (2) assess attitudes about justice and the desire for reparations for past crimes; and 3) recommend ways in which the ECCC, civil society, and the international community can continue to engage Cambodians in the work of the ECCC. This report presents the results of a survey of 1,000 Cambodians, aged 18 or above, randomly selected throughout the country to be representative of the adult population. The interviews were conducted anonymously and confidentially in December 2010 by a team of trained interviewers using a structured questionnaire. This is the second population-based survey conducted in Cambodia by the Initiative for Vulnerable Populations at UC Berkeley’s School of Law Human Rights Center. It is hoped that the findings will contribute to establishing a dialogue between the ECCC, the government, the Cambodian population, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and the international actors on the role and impact of the ECCC, expectations of the population, and beyond the Court, what must be done to deal with the violent past.
Transitioning to Peace: A Population-Based Survey on Attitudes about Social Reconstruction and Justice in Northern Uganda
Dramatic changes have taken place in Northern Uganda since the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), a notoriously brutal rebel group, withdrew its forces in 2005. The displacement camps that previously hosted up to 90 percent of the population, some for over a decade, have been dismantled and people have returned home. They are rebuilding their houses and cultivating their land. From a devastated and dangerous region with little or no economic activity, northern Uganda is beginning to revive. But recovery from decades of conflict takes time, commitment and resources. Much work remains to reach sustainable peace, to develop the economy and establish essential services. The needs and priorities of the people remain largely unknown. At the same time, the LRA has not disbanded. From its current base in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Central African Republic, it continues to perpetrate serious human rights violations and remains a shadow over the region. This report presents the results of a large-scale population-based survey about peace, justice, and social reconstruction in northern Uganda intended to capture community views on matters that affect ordinary people and the recovery after twenty years of conflicts. The survey was carried out between April and May 2010 in four districts (the Acholi districts) of northern Uganda: Amuru, Gulu, Kitgum, and Pader. The findings are based on a total of 2,498 interviews with adults in various locations, including home villages, resettlement sites, and former camps. They provide results that are representative of the adult population in those four districts.Over half the population lost a household member to the two decades of conflict, and sixty-seven percent witnessed violence such as killings, beatings, and rapes. However, unlike in earlier surveys conducted by the authors, where respondents listed achieving peace as a top priority, needs have shifted as violence subsided.People in the affected region are struggling to meet their basic needs for food, education and health care. One in three people surveyed see improving services such as health and education as necessary to build a lasting peace, and twenty eight percent mention reducing poverty. Thirty-two percent also highlight the need for more unity and reconciliation among the people of Uganda.Highlighting the need for a national dialogue and truth-seeking process on the violence that affected northern Uganda for two decades, respondents called for more information about the conflict and why it had happened, and they wanted those responsible for the violence to be held accountable.The results presented in “Transitioning to Peace” show the importance of a continued effort to establish security for northern Uganda and the region, and addressing cross-border security threats such as the LRA. This should include strengthening existing collaboration with the Congolese and Central African Republic governments to apprehend Joseph Kony and his commanders, say the researchers.
Kony's Message: a new Koine? The 'Lord's Resistance Army' in Northern-Uganda
The article offers a sketch of Joseph Kony's Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) both in historical perspective and in a wider framework of the world system. The authors discuss the different stages and content of Acholi nationhood, from vague notions in pre-colonial days, through the building of an ethno-military identity during the colonial period, until the Acholi heyday after Obote II. The second period can be described as Acholi-hood on the defensive. Initially, the campaign of resistance fought by the Acholi-dominated Uganda People's Democratic Army (UPDA) still fits into standard conceptions of political resistance. However, social collapse eventually gave birth to Alice Lakwena's Holy Spirit Movement and finally to the LRA. Possessed of a charisma bordering on the prophetic, Kony has forged a new vision of Acholi-hood, based on individual salvation and purity. This 'biblical' vision of political redemption, at first sight an inward-looking strategy, is making this movement extremely vulnerable to outward manipulation. Joseph's face was as black as the night The pale yellow moon shone in his eyes His path was marked By the stars of the Southern Hemisphere Paul Simon JOSEPH KONY s LORD S RESISTANCE ARMY (LRA) is not just another rebellious movement in sub-Saharan Africa. Kony's behaviour, highly sensationalized in the media, has shocked the world and is seriously damaging Uganda's image as a country ready for take-off. Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni has recently been praised by the World Bank, congratulated by President Clinton and is widely cited as the prototype of a new generation of black leadership. However, he is at the same time confronted with an armed opposition operating along very puzzling lines of conduct. One of the most striking elements of the conflict in northern Uganda is the brutality and apparent arbitrariness of LRA violence. By nature, all rebellions and civil wars make use of violence. Kony's actions, however, Ruddy Doom is Professor and Director of the Centre for Third World Studies (CTWS) at the University of Ghent. Koen Vlassenroot is preparing a PhD on conflict in Central Africa at the CTWS. This content downloaded from 207.46.13.15 on Fri, 26 Aug 2016 05:36:24 UTC All use subject to http://about.jstor.org/terms