The northern insurgency and children's rights to education in Northern Uganda: A case of Gulu district.

Abstract

The research was a study of the LRA war in Northern Uganda and Gulu district as a case, with focus on the consequences of the war on children‟s right to education. It was conducted from September 2009 to December 2009 in Gulu district with the use of questionnaires, interview guides, observation and content analysis. Effort to protect the people in the Northern insurgency was not very adequate. The study found that children were the main target for conscription into armed groups by the LRA, with a total of 38,000 children abducted, forced to fight, carry baggage and serve as sex slaves, murders, forced into early marriages, defilement, to mention but a few. International community declined to intervene to protect the people from the gross abuse of their rights even at a time when it seemed crystal clear that the capacity of the Government to protect its own citizens, including children, had been very deficient. Parliament failed to come up with a strong policy or law that bars the recruitment of former child combatants into the UPDF before they have undergone full rehabilitation and formal education. Many children lost their parents in the war and were forced by circumstance to take care of their siblings, beside the denial of basic necessities of life and education. Parliament needs to develop strong alternative education policies for Northern Uganda to enable the people and the children achieve their full potential.