Vincent Otti - Death

Death

In October 2007, sources in the Ugandan military reported that "Otti was killed on or around 8 October 2007 during a high command meeting that Kony convened at his base camp in Garamba", following a disagreement with Kony over the peace process. LRA defector Sunday Otto, who claims to have been present during the execution, states that Otti was killed on 2 October, along with two other officers, and that Otti was the impetus behind the negotiations for peace. However, Member of Parliament Reagan Okumu claims to have spoken with Otti by telephone on or around 19 October 2007, but says he has since been unavailable. LRA spokesperson Martin Ojul has repeatedly denied that Otti was executed and claimed that Otti was simply suffering from cholera. On 7 November 2007, Kony told Gulu district chairman Norbert Mao that Otti was alive and had been detained for plotting to kill Kony and "conspiring with the enemies of the LRA". Kony also stated that Otti would not be allowed to speak with anyone until the LRA decided it was appropriate.

The President of Southern Sudan, Salva Kiir Mayardit, said on 7 November 2007 that Otti's status remained unclear. The government of Southern Sudan has sent a team to the Congolese border to investigate Otti's fate.

The government newspaper New Vision reported on 22 November, based on statements from LRA defectors, that Otti had been executed by firing squad, along with "many others", on 2 October. Defectors said that he had asked Kony to allow him to speak to his son before his execution. "To strengthen Kony's spirit", Otti's body was said to not have been buried for three days after his death. Defectors also claimed Otti had been killed because of his enthusiasm for peace, thus questioning Kony's actual commitment to peace negotiations. On 21 December 2007 a diplomatic briefing claimed that Otti was executed on 2 October 2007 at Kony's home. According to this account, when Otti arrived there he found that the home was surrounded by Kony's guards, and before entering he made a phone call to Kony due to his concern about this, but was reassured by Kony. Inside the house, however, LRA commanders held Otti at gunpoint and told him that he was arrested; he was then bound, blindfolded and taken outside, where he was shot, despite his pleas for mercy. Kony subsequently claimed that Otti had received foreign funds and was trying to kill him. On 23 January 2008, Kony confirmed that Otti was dead, but did not offer any details.