Camps for Ugandans heading home

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Uganda's army has set up more than 30 "decongestion camps" in the north as part of its plans to help some 2m people displaced by war return home.

Many already live in safe camps to escape attacks by Lord's Resistance Army rebels, but as peace talks continue people are starting to leave.

Ugandan army chief General Aronda Nyakairima said it was important for them to head home to cultivate land.

He said the decongestion camps will serve as safe places near their homes.

They are places where people can stay in safety overnight, but commute to their fields during the day and are based between the original camps and people's homes.

Hundreds of LRA rebels have been congregating in safe areas in southern Sudan, raising hopes that the peace talks taking place in Juba may finally bring an end to the conflict.

Return

Some people at these decongestion camps, which are located in three northern districts, remain reluctant to begin the cultivation process, says the BBC's Sarah Grainger. The LRA abducted many children to become fighters

Two young men at Tyeri camp in Pader district told her they are still fearful of the LRA attacks that drove them from their homes years before and they stay in the camps at all times.

But they say they are watching the peace process closely.

Others have started to return to their land.

One man told our reporter that people are getting used to moving around freely in the area close to the camp.

"You can even wake up in the morning and just decide to go to the fields," he said.