The  former Mozambican President Joaquim Chissano will give his final briefing to the United Nations Security Council on July 15  in his role as the secretary-general's special envoy for the areas of east and central Africa affected by the Lord's Resistance Army and their  two-decade campaign of violence. Although Chissano's mandate was suspended as of June 30, abuses by the LRA - ruthless rebels whose actions have had a devastating effect on civilians in four countries - continue. 

The Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) commanders, wanted by the International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity, have killed numerous civilians and abducted thousands of children across four countries over the last two decades. Uganda’s "Operation Lightning Thunder," with limited US support, failed to root out the LRA from its Congolese bases. US - not Ugandan - leadership is a key component in any multilateral strategy to protect civilians from ongoing LRA attacks and to apprehend the groups’ commanders.

Although the Security Council has identified six grave violations against children in armed conflict, to date it has focused primarily on the recruitment and use of child soldiers. Other violations affect much larger numbers of children, and result in terrible and long-lasting consequences, but have not received the same focused international response.

As a rebel leader during the Democratic Republic of Congo's (DRC) war from 1998 to 2003, Jean-Pierre Bemba Gombo and his group, the Movement for the Liberation of Congo (MLC), controlled a large part of northeastern Congo, with support from Uganda.

While the government and rebel groups take steps toward ending the civil war in the Central African Republic (CAR), civilians in the northwestern part of the country are being abused at the hands of a variety of armed groups.

Human Rights Watch writes to President François Bozizé of the Central African Republic on the continuing lack of accountability for extensive human rights abuses committed in CAR, by both government forces and rebels, since 2005. Ending this impunity is essential in ending the cycle of violence in CAR and ensuring protection for civilians.

Amid reports that the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) is again brutalizing civilians and in advance of the anticipated December 17 Security Council briefing by the UN Secretary-General’s special envoy for the LRA-affected areas, we write to urge your government to take steps toward helping to end LRA abuses and paving the way for apprehension of LRA leaders wanted by the International Criminal Court.

As the Security Council considers adopting a resolution on arrangements for the follow-on by the United Nations of the European operation in eastern Chad and the northeastern Central African Republic, Human Rights Watch offers further concrete and practical measures that the Security Council can take now to reduce abuses and enhance the protection of civilians.