Global Kimeeza travels to Gulu

The Gulu portion of the Global Kimeeza kicked off on Monday evening with a visit from Fabius Okumu-Alya, the Director of the Gulu University Center for Conflict Management and Peace Studies and the newly appointed Minister of Justice for the Acholi region. Mr. Okumu was instrumental in the development of the Juba Peace Talks, and he spoke to participants about the importance of their work at the Kimeeza. "I'm confident that you can come up with a plan that can be utilized," he said. "What comes out of your dialogue may be an eye-opener to us — something we can implement at a professional level."

Mr. Okumu pledged to bring a recommendation to Juba stating the necessity of youth involvement in the peace process.

"The youth are a force to reckon with."
— Fabius Okumu

On Tuesday participants met with Odokarach Shanty Francis, the Advocacy, Information and Research Officer for Gulu Support the Children Organization (GUSCO). He spoke about the variety of methods GUSCO uses to rehabilitate formerly abducted children. Many of the Gulu participants have conducted research at GUSCO; for the Americans, the visit was an opportunity to learn about rehabilitation from one of the most widely-recognized expert organizations in the field.

Participants then traveled to the Paicho Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camp, home to over 17,000 Ugandans who have been displaced from their homes by the LRA conflict. At Paicho, we met with Arop Dennis, Assistant Director of the Gomo Tong program, which works to rehabilitate returnees in the camp. Participants split into small groups and toured the camp with Gomo Tong members.

Tuesday evening brought a visit from 91-year-old Acholi storyteller Ak Akera, who entertained participants with stories of his life in Uganda under British colonialism. His visit added a new perspective to many participants' understanding of the current situation in the country, and his stories were a most welcome addition to the Kimeeza.