Refugee camp in Northern Uganda. Photo: Inger A. Heldal©Riksantikvaren

The war in Northern Uganda has caused human suffering for more than two decades. Under the leadership of Joseph Kony, the Lord Resistance Army (LRA) terrorised the population. Thousands of children were abducted, and 1.6 million people were forced into protected villages and refugee camps.

The final signing of a peace accord between LRA and the Ugandan government in 2008 failed, but the security situation has improved and people have started to return to their villages. Some of the refugee camps have become permanent settlements and have been given the status of towns.

The National Museum of Uganda sees the urgency of contributing to the peace process by linking heritage to peace and reconciliation. The first step will be to document and present memorial landscapes. As a pilot project, we have selected the following sites: St. Mary's Aboke Girls School, Barlonyo Massacre Site, Lukodi Massacre Site and Pabbo IDP Camp.

The NMU and the Directorate for Cultural Heritage are cooperating with institutions and organisations that are involved in post-conflict issues in Uganda as well as in other countries.

The project is financed by the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and has a three-year timeframe (2010-2012).