Uganda To Pardon Rebel Leader If Talks Succeed
Nji Che - All Headline News Staff Writer Kampala, Uganda (AHN) - Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni on Tuesday promised to grant Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) leader, Joseph Kony, amnesty if peace talks scheduled between the government and rebels succeed. On Monday, a Ugandan government spokesman said there would be no conditions for the talks which had been slated for next week. The agreement would be mediated by the south Sudan government. Robert Kabushenga told the BBC's Focus on Africa program, "There will be no preconditions on our part. We are going there with an open mind." Southern Sudanese President Salva Kiir told reporters during a news conference, "In the meantime, consultations will take place. Next week, the talks will begin." Last week, Kony said he was not guilty of war crimes. The rebel leader is widely blamed for insecurity in northern Uganda and southern Sudan. He is also wanted by a U.N. tribunal for war crimes charges. The group is accused of killing several thousands of people in a 20-year conflict with government soldiers. Kony's interview, which was aired last week over the BBC, was his first encounter with the media after his group picked up arms two decades ago. Although the group claims its principles are based on the Biblical Ten Commandments, the International Criminal Court in The Hague has accused it of killing, abducting and raping teenage girls. Reacting to the Ugandan governm |
