Survivors of the 1995 Atiak massacre gathered yesterday to mark the 31st Day of Commemoration, honoring the memory of more than 300 people killed in one of northern Uganda’s deadliest attacks during the Lord’s Resistance Army insurgency.
This year’s theme is ‘’From Loss to Legacy, celebrating the economic spirit of Atiak’s fallen entrepreneurs’’.
The Atiak community holds the annual commemoration to honor loved ones killed by the LRA. Yet for many, the memory remains fresh, and the scars of that day continue to burden survivors.
Fred Okot, chairperson of the Atiak massacre site where 150 names of victims are inscribed, told Radio Favour that Vincent Otti’s actions left an indelible scar on survivors, many of whom have chosen silence.
He urges survivors to move beyond mourning and confront poverty, saying it would help them heal wounds and allow them to let go of the past.
Stella Lanam Angel, director of War Victims and Children Networking, calls on the government to establish an emergency fund to support victims’ families and ease the financial strain of organizing commemorations.
She also criticized local leaders in Atiak for failing to stand with survivors when they are most needed.
The Atiak massacre is one of several mass killings carried out by LRA rebels during their two-decade insurgency in northern Uganda.
Others include Lukodi in Gulu, where 60 people were killed;193 in Pajule in Pader, and attacks in Abok in Oyam, Barlonyo in Lira, and Omot in Agago District.
By Owen Odong
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