The Acholi People of Northern Uganda: The Forgotten Community

This article explores the lived experiences of the Acholi people of northern Uganda who have been exposed to armed conflict, violence, and internal forced displacement into government controlled and self-settled-camps. For three decades the Acholi have been subjected to all forms of human rights violations. The camps began to emerge soon after this current government took power in 1986 and subsequently (Finnström, 2008; Gersony, 1997). The camps are also referred to as “Protected Villages” by the government. As a result of lack of provision for basic needs, up to 1,000 people have been dying on a weekly bases from starvations and preventable diseases in these camps (World Health Organisation, 2005; Dolan, 2009).
This article focuses on why the Acholi people have been victimised and examines how the Acholi people have used their collective agency to survive the hardship, the lack of basic provisions, the suffering and neglect that they face on their everyday life in a hostile environment.