Ugandan Court Asks Government to Pay LRA War Crimes’ Victims

Kampala — A Ugandan International Crimes Division Court has ordered the Ugandan government to pay reparations to war crimes victims affected by atrocities committed by former Lord’s Resistance Army commander Thomas Kwoyelo.

The judges argue the order is based on both international and domestic law considering Kwoyelo, 50, has no funds.

Kwoyelo was captured in 2009 in the Democratic Republic of Congo and held in detention until a court found him guilty in August of murder, kidnap with intent to murder, pillaging, cruel treatment, torture, rape, and crimes against humanity. He was sentenced to 40 years in prison in October.

The LRA, founded in 1986 by Joseph Kony, led a more than 20-year insurgency against the Ugandan government and is accused of carrying out multiple massacres. Kony remains at large.

Justice Duncan Gaswaga said the court declaration is not based on fault or vicarious liability but on principles of collective responsibility.

“Atrocities committed on a scale warranting transitional justice is considered a manifestation of a failure on the part of the government that triggers a responsibility for the state to pay reparations to the victims,” said Gaswaga.

Transitional justice is a set of policies or mechanisms to address the aftermath of large-scale human rights abuses and sometimes political instability.

The office of the Ugandan Attorney General, the government’s representative, reiterated its argument that the government is not liable to compensate for crimes committed by private actors and that reparations sought are matters of policy.

Speaking to VOA by phone, Silas Aogon, a lawmaker from Northern Uganda, says the draft Transitional Justice Bill has been in the offing since 2019 but has not been brought before Parliament for consideration. He says the bill would address accountability, reparations, institutional reforms, and enable truth telling.

Aogon faults the delayed justice on a number of weaknesses.

“There is already institutional weakness, legislative weakness, oversight weakness, given the kind of situation that we have in the country,” he said. “The kind of polarization that the country went through. The kind of human and other injustices that occurred in society. The social unrest. We needed a strong law, and we needed the Transitional Justice Bill to be passed into law as soon as possible.”

The court declarations include $2,700 to be paid to families of each deceased person, $1,000 to those who suffered physical injuries, $950 for each victim household of property loss and $1,350 for victims of gender-based violence such as rape, forced marriage, forced labor and other physical abuse.

Lawmaker Betty Ocan says they have been pushing for this bill for a year, and fears they are running out of time since the current Parliament ends in 2026 and passing the Transitional Justice Bill doesn’t seem to be a priority.

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“We need the bill to be worked on to come to an Act of Parliament. In order for our victims also to have, you know, fair compensation,” she said. “You know, this Parliament is also a difficult one. Instead of prioritizing things which are really for the people, sometimes we prioritize things which are for the president [Yoweri Museveni]. So, we will continue to push.”

The court’s judges noted their inability to enforce orders in this matter, stating that the establishment of a trust fund for victims, provisions for an annual budget for victims, and a draft implementation plan to serve the victims, all hinge on parliament.

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