UGANDA

COMPENDIUM OF CONFLICTS IN UGANDA
participants revealed that some youth acquired guns by fighting in the conflict between
the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) and the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF), and
that there has not been proper demobilisation of ex-combatants in northern Uganda
since 1986. This has paved the way for an influx of illegal guns that have become tools
for robbery.
While discussing post-conflict robbery in the northern region, participants emphasised
that many youth became accustomed to IDP camp life where basic needs were supplied
by humanitarian agencies, and that these youths resort to robbing instead of engaging
in productive developmental work. These armed robbers are distinct from Boo Kec
because they do not present themselves as rebels and are primarily motivated by their
post-conflict poverty. Nonetheless, they have also caused high levels of insecurity in
numerous villages and urban centres in the region, thereby affecting peace, recovery,
and development, as well as creating conflicts at the family, community and district
levels. 351
351 Research conducted in Gulu, Kitgum and Pader Districts
158