Lily My name is Lily. I have a small business and I am one of the disabled. I feel chest pain. I was beaten in 1998 by the rebels. That is why my ribs are bent and I still feel a lot of pain. Interviewer How were you abducted? Lily I was abducted while I was from school. I was then taken to the bush. After abduction we were taken to Gulu and from Gulu to Sudan. There was a lot of fighting in Sudan and we later came back to Uganda. That time that I was abducted I was in Primary Three. [26] At one time, we went to a place called Agoro in Sudan, it was there that I managed to escape. When I escaped I was taken to the Local Councils who were also afraid. Later, I was taken back to my original home in Okiri. Unfortunately, the rebels found me there and they beat me so much. That is why I am disabled. I was taken to hospital later but before that I was being treated with local herbs because there was no money to go to a hospital. The biggest problem I experienced in the bush was hunger. In addition to hunger, we were given about 70 kilograms to carry. I was about twelve years old and was given to a man who was too old to be my husband. We would eat only at night. When we would get food, they would grab it from us. The top commanders would eat first. I am stopping to speak. I am not crying. I am feeling pain. I cannot talk too much or walk long distance (she bends). The doctor told me that they cannot do much for my chest pain but they asked me to be careful not to overwork. I am now completely deformed.
Interviewer How did you escape?
Lily We were coming from Sudan, I escaped when we camped at Agoro Mountain just at the Ugandan border with Sudan. We camped there and started to cook, but there was no water. So some other girls and I had to go and fetch water from a well that was very far from where we were camping. While we were there, I told the other girls that I was going for a long call. Luckily enough, there was a very big cave near the well. I hid in the cave. The other girls waited for me in vain then they went back to the camp and reported to the LRA rebels that I had escaped. The rebels looked for me but they did not find me. The cave was very big. They camped there and slept there. The next morning the Uganda People’s Defence Forces came after the rebels. They started to exchange fire. Later on the rebels went away. I was afraid to come out of the cave because I feared that the UPDF soldiers might shoot me. So I remained in the cave until the UPDF soldiers also went away. I slept in the cave for two days. On the third day, I saw a woman in a field harvesting her cabbage. I went to her and told her that I was hiding in the cave afraid that the UPDF might kill me. I also told her that I escaped from the LRA rebels. Then she quietly took me to her house. I was kept there without even notifying the local authorities. She was afraid that if the LRA got to know they might kill her. Luckily, there was a relative of mine in that neighbourhood who I met later. I moved in and stayed with her until a vehicle was brought to take me to Okiri, my village. After one month, the same group of rebels I was with came home. They recognized me. They beat me until they thought that I was dead. But I was not dead. That is how I managed to escape.
Interviewer Were you worried about anything else in the cave?
Lily I was very afraid mostly of snakes while in the cave. While I was there I did not see any snake or baboon. But I was preferred to be bitten by snakes and baboons instead of suffering in the bush.
Interviewer Do you consider yourself lucky to have survived?
Lily I feel I am lucky to be alive that is why I am saved. I am a mulokole [27]. I have been through a lot.
Interviewer Is there anything else that you went through that you would like us to know?
Lily They are very many. While in the bush, there were several ambushes that I survived. Sometimes someone would be shot right in front of me, besides me or behind me. I survived all that by God’s grace. Now I look healthy. At first many people thought that I would not survive even for a week. While still in the bush, one time we were sent to go to Gulu in Acakocwenyi and attack the trading centre and I was almost killed. I escaped very narrowly. I cannot forget that incident.
Interviewer How did you escape that particular incident?
Lily As we advanced, we met the UPDF soldiers and we chased them away. We looted their camp and went away carrying heavy loads. The UPDF reinforcement came from Kitgum and other areas. When they reached where we were, they threw mortars at us. As each mortar fell, it fell with a dead body. Many of our colleagues died. I narrowly survived.
Interviewer At the time, the rebels beat you, what did they beat you with?
Lily It was a stick used for pounding millet. We were very many people. Others were outside and I was inside. Those who were outside managed to run away. I was still pushing my way out, and then they recognized me and said. Ehh... That I am the one who escaped from them. They beat me and thought they had left me for dead because their intention was to kill me. They then ran for one mile and sent some people back to see if I was dead because their intention was to kill me. They found that I was not completely dead, but they touched my hands and felt the blood was still hot so they left thinking that I would die anyway.
Interviewer What would you advise the government to do about Kony?
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| Manoocher Deghati/IRIN |
Lily My advice is that Kony should be killed completely. Even at night when I go to bed and try to recall what happened to us, I feel that Kony should not be alive. At times, I feel afraid that I cannot sleep alone when I remember what was happening while I was with the rebels. Sometimes I was afraid of the man I got married to after I left the bush. When I came back from the bush, I had no intention of getting married to any man. But my parents insisted that I get married. As of now, I don’t want any man.
Interviewer Did you make any friends while in the bush?
Lily I had female friends while I was there.
Interviewer Aren’t there some that you miss?
Lily Very many of them died. There were some who were trying to escape. One of them we had been to the same school as me. They got them, undressed them, put them before all of us and shot them naked. In the bush even if you were related to somebody you would pretend you are not because when they would kill your relative, they would also kill you.
Interviewer What plans do you have when you go back home?
Lily I am disabled but staying here in the camp will damage my children. When we are going back home, we can go with some relief food. Going back home is okay but the government should do it’s best to wipe out Kony completely.
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[26] For pupils aged eight to 10 years
[27] Lugandan word meaning born again Christian