The LRA's abusive manner of waging war, through abductions, killings, and attacks on civilians, has produced a desperate situation for northern Ugandans. This has been compounded by the fact that the Ugandan government has frequently failed to protect civilians from military attacks.
Even in a nonmilitary sense, the Ugandan government has not satisfactorily provided for the needs of the civilians in northern Uganda. While Uganda is not a rich country, it has received a considerable sum of international assistance. These failings are illustrated by the "night commuters," the spread of poverty and associated "survival sex" and spread of sexually-transmitted diseases, and the sad state of education in northern Uganda.
In villages and outlying areas around Gulu, Kitgum, and Pader towns, LRA raids have resulted in the abduction of children and the looting of personal property. Parents faced with the continued insecurity send their children to sleep in town for their own security while they themselves stay at home to guard their property.
While the LRA abducts both children and adults, adults tend to be held for a few days and released whereas children can spend years in captivity. Children's fear of abduction was poignantly reflected by a survey of school children in Kitgum.
When asked if they had ever been abducted by the LRA, 75 percent of those who had not replied by saying "not yet. Around dusk, streams of children known as "night commuters" begin to flow into Gulu, Kitgum, and Pader towns to seek shelter and return home the next day at dawn. A few children are able to stay with relatives in their homes; many more sleep in groups on verandas, at the bus park, on church grounds, or in local warehouses.
