Uganda: January 8, 2005

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: The Ugandan government reported "several skirmishes" January 5 and 6-- clear violations of the ceasefire agreement. The government also said "several" LRA rebels had been killed, but insisted that peace talks are continuing. Meanwhile,  the army has moved a unit next to one of the "safe zones." The government said the move was intended to prevent LRA attacks coming from the assembly zones. While solid casualty figures would be useful in determining just how minor the "skirmishes" were, the fact that the Ugandan government insists it is still pursuing peace negotiations is encouraging. Still, the "end game: of Uganda's long-running war with the LRA will be a long end game. One reason is that an entire generation of LRA rebels only knows the life of armed guerrillas. The civilian equivalent of that life is banditry.