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 06 September 2008 03:38 BST

Uganda rebel leader delays signing historic peace deal

Thursday, 10 Apr 2008 15:04
Ugandan rebel leader Joseph Kony delays signing historic peace deal
Ugandan rebel leader Joseph Kony has delayed signing a historic peace deal attempting to bring to an end 20 years of fighting that has left tens of thousands of people dead.

Mr Kony, of the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA), was expected in the southern Sudan jungle town of Ri-Kwangba today to sign the peace agreement.

However reports claim that he has delayed the signing and is asking for further discussions.

Ugandan president Yoweri Museveni had been due to sign the deal separately in Sudan's capital Juba on Sunday.

The rebel leader has been in hiding along with four members of the LRA high command in an attempt to avoid a warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC).

The LRA rebels are alleged to have raped and killed thousands of people during fighting over the last 20 years.

They are also accused of abducting thousands of children to serve as child soldiers in the fighting.

The rebels and the Ugandan government have been in peace talks since 2006 and a formal ceasefire was declared in February this year.

If Mr Museveni signs the deal on the weekend, the rebels will have 30 days to disarm, although the LRA now claim they will not do so unless the ICC arrest warrants are removed and they are allowed to be tried in Uganda.

"We are going to sign the document on condition that Uganda goes to the UN security council to remove these indictments," David Nyekorach Matsanga, the rebels negotiator, said.

It is believed as many as two million people have been displaced since the conflict began in 1986.End of story


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