Longest piece of music goes live

Ancient sounds ring out in London

The world's longest piece of music is being performed live for the first time on a unique 20-
metre-wide instrument at a concert at The Roundhouse in London.

The Longplayer is a 1,000-year-long composition by Jem Finer and is played out by computer at
several public listening posts around the world.

It began playing on 31 December 1999 and will continue - without repetition - until the last
moment of 2999.

The live performance will play a 1,000 minute section of the music.

The performance began on Saturday morning and continue until the early hours of Sunday
morning.

It was in 2002 that Finer - who was also one of the founding members of pop group The Pogues -
developed a score for the music.

It allows the piece to be played as an orchestral installation comprising of six concentric rings of
Tibetan singing bowls.

It is this arrangement that is being performed at the Roundhouse concert.

The Longplayer is continually played out at its flagship location, the Lighthouse in Trinity Buoy
Wharf in London, but listening posts are also stationed in Australia, Egypt and the US.

Facebook strips down to

Lite site
The world's biggest social networking site has launched a
slimmed-down version for people with slow or poor
internet connections.
Facebook is working on other
Facebook has said the Lite site will be faster and simpler translations of its Lite site
because it offers fewer services than the main site.

Initially it is meant to support users in developing countries and where bandwidth constraints
make the current version too slow to use.

At the moment it is only available in India and the US.

The company said around 70% of its more than 250 million users were from outside America.
Countries in Southeast Asia and Europe are seeing a massive increase in growth where fast
internet connections are more common.

News that Facebook was testing the Lite site was first leaked in August.

'Twitter-like'

The options on Facebook Lite are limited to letting users write on their wall, post photos and
videos, view events and browse other people's profiles. There are no apps or special boxes.

"It appears, at a quick glance, to be a better site for Facebook newbies or for anyone who finds
the current site overwhelming and noisy," said Rafe Needleman at technology website Cnet.
"The new layout feels almost Twitter-like."

Terence O'Brien at Switched.com gave the slimmed-down

version of what he called "ol' blue" the thumbs-up because it
"strips away distractions". More than 70% of users are
outside the United States
"The simple site loads noticeably faster, is easier to navigate,
and is much easier on the eyes thanks to the lack of people
sending you 'virtual booze' or asking you to join their 'vampire fraternity'.

"The new layout seems like a direct challenge to Twitter, which can attribute much of its success
to is simplicity and portability," said Mr O'Brien.

'Worldwide rollout'

Many industry watchers said they believed that even users with good internet connections might
well flock to Facebook Lite because of its new look and ease of use.

"That is what some US users are planning to do," said Eric Eldon of InsideFacebook.com

"Indeed the reaction from US users has prompted Facebook

to release it intentionally for US users, something it hadn't
previously planned on doing."

Mr Eldon said he believed a "worldwide rollout doesn't seem

too far away".

Facebook has acknowledged this is a possibility in a

statement on the site which said the firm was "working on
translating Lite into other languages".
Fans of Facebook Lite have said it
So far those who have posted comments on Facebook seem is like a return to the early days
to like the company's new Lite approach.

"It's good to see Facebook listening to their users," wrote one user.

Another said: "Facebook Lite should be great for college campuses like mine that are hung up on
bandwidth."

Having no third-party apps on the site also garnered a fair amount of support.

"The no-apps thing is killer. There's nothing about them I'll miss," noted one user, while another
said: "Whatever you do, please, PLEASE do not allow the quizzes, games, or apps to ruin this
pristine version of Facebook."

Anyone who switches to Facebook Lite and does not like it can switch back to the fuller version
of the site.

Ugandan king postpones

town rally
The king of Uganda's largest ethnic group, the Buganda,
has put off a visit to a town in his kingdom, his
spokesman has said. Kampala is littered with debris
after the king's supporters clashed
It follows two days of riots in the capital, Kampala, in which with police
at least 11 people were killed.
The spokesman said the king did not want to see violence spreading to the town, Kayunga. But
he stressed the event was postponed, not cancelled.

The move defuses the tension for now, says the BBC's Peter Greste.

Our correspondent - reporting from neighbouring Kenya - says although Kampala is now calm,
the police are maintaining a high profile, particularly in neighbourhoods that saw some of the
worst violence.

'Lynched'

The spokesman for King Ronald Muwenda Mutebi II said

the postponement of Saturday's planned youth rally would
allow time for talks with the central government.

He said they would find a way to hold the event in a

"peaceful and secure" environment.

On Thursday and Friday, the king's supporters set up Armed police are out in force in
barricades, looted shops and fought running battles with parts of the capital
police.

At least 11 people are now thought to have been killed, the director of the main hospital in the
city, Iga Matovu, told Agence France Presse news agency on Saturday.

He said some had been killed by bullets and others appeared to have been lynched.

The protests happened when the government - citing security risks - banned the king from
travelling to Kayunga, which says it has seceded from his kingdom.

There have been reports that police opened fire on rioters.

A Ugandan government spokesman, Fred Opolot, told the BBC there would be a full
investigation, but that he believed the police had behaved
"absolutely professionally".

Farmland

Buganda is one of Uganda's four ancient kingdoms and its

tribal members are Uganda's largest ethnic group.

The country's traditional kingdoms were banned in 1966 but

reinstated by President Yoweri Museveni in 1993.

The Buganda have long called for the restoration of a federal administration that would give their
largely ceremonial king the formal political power he is currently denied.

They are also seeking more control over the traditional

lands, which include prime farmland they say has been
taken by other ethnic groups.

Afghan leader closer to

victory
Afghan President Hamid Karzai remains on track to be
re-elected after the first round of voting, with ballots
from 95% of polling stations counted.

Flaws overshadow poll outcome

The latest preliminary results released by the Election Commission give him 54%of the vote -
above the threshold of 50% required to avoid a run-off.

His nearest rival, former foreign minister Abdullah Abdullah, is on 28%.

However, the Electoral Complaints Commission has begun investigating widespread allegations
of fraud.

The election commission said it had quarantined ballots from another 2.15% of polling stations
because of suspected irregularities.

The full preliminary result of the 20 August election had been expected 10 days ago but the fraud
allegations have delayed the process.

The Election Complaints Commission ECC has said it found "clear and convincing evidence" of
fraud.

Queen honours regiment's fallen

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The Queen presented the medals in person for the first time

The Queen has presented the Elizabeth Cross to relatives of six soldiers killed in
Afghanistan and Iraq.

In an emotional ceremony at the Catterick Garrison, North Yorkshire, she gave medals to the
families of six members of The Queen's Royal Lancers.

It was the first time the Queen, who is the regiment's colonel-in-chief, had personally presented
the honour that bears her name.

The Elizabeth Cross recognises the loss of a member of the

armed forces

It is awarded to the next of kin of personnel killed on active

service, or as a result of terrorism.

The soldiers whose families received the honour are:

Trooper Robert Pearson, 22, from Grimsby; Sgt Wayne
Rees, 36, from Nottingham; Cpl Ben Leaning, 24, from
Scunthorpe; Trooper Kristen Turton, 27, from Grimsby; Cpl
Stephen Allbutt, 35, from Stoke-on-Trent; Trooper David The cross is national recognition
Clarke, 19, from Littleworth in Staffordshire. of the loss of a forces member

Trooper Pearson was killed by a mine in Helmand province in southern Afghanistan in April
2008.

His family has criticised how long it has taken to mark his death.

Father Paul Pearson told Sky News: "Robert signed and died for Queen and country and you
don't even get a letter from the Queen."

Iraq deaths

The other five deaths all occurred during operations in Iraq, including Sgt Rees's death in a road
accident during a dawn patrol in January 2007.
In April that year, Cpl Leaning and Trooper Turton were
killed when their Scimitar fighting vehicle was hit by a
roadside bomb while they were on patrol in Maysan
province.

Trooper Turton's widow Sharon told the BBC: "It's an

emotional day but a proud day as well because the Queen is
recognising the troops that were killed and the families. I'm
proud that she's put her name to a medal for this purpose. Sharon Turton's husband Kristen
was killed in 2007
"It's her cross and she presented it as well. She knew my
husband was killed alongside Cpl Leaning - that made it
special because, to her, Kris was a person as well.

"I think he would be really proud, he loved the regiment. If

he's looking down, he'll probably have a smile on his face."

Cpl Allbutt and Trooper Clarke were killed in March 2003

during the first week of the Iraq war in a "friendly fire"
incident when their Challenger 2 tank was hit by another
tank.

The introduction of the Elizabeth Cross is the first time the

name of a reigning monarch has been given to a new award
since the George Cross was instituted in 1940. The first Elizabeth Cross was
given to the wife of warrant officer
It is available to families of servicemen and women who Sean Upton
died in conflicts dating back to 1948.

Karen Upton, the widow of Nottingham soldier warrant officer Sean Upton, who was killed in
Afghanistan on 27 July, was presented with the first Elizabeth Cross at his funeral last month.

PM says UK recovering but

fragile
Britain is on the road towards recovery but things
remain fragile, Prime Minister Gordon Brown will tell
the TUC's annual congress this week. There are fears unemployment
could top three million by the end
He will warn of tough choices in public spending but call on of the year
the unions to support the government's approach.

TUC general Secretary Brendan Barber is expected to warn that cuts in public spending would
be catastrophic and return the country to recession.

On Friday, Mr Brown held talks with union bosses at his Chequers residence.

The TUC's congress, which starts in Liverpool on Monday, will be the last one before the next
general election and it comes at a time of strained relations between the unions and the
government.

But Mr Brown will deliver an upbeat message to delegates when he speaks on Tuesday,
declaring "we are on the road to recovery", though he will say this will not be automatic and the
recovery will need to be nurtured.
 People's livelihoods and
The prime minister will warn of tough choices in public homes and savings are still
spending but say that he will protect front-line jobs first and hanging in the balance
urge TUC members not to disrupt the government's efforts
with industrial action. Gordon Brown

In his speech, Mr Brown will say: "People's livelihoods and homes and savings are still hanging
in the balance, and so today I say to you: don't put the recovery at risk.

"We have to make tough choices in public spending and we will need the support of the labour
movement in protecting the front line first."

Chancellor Alistair Darling's hints at a much tighter rein on public spending - to meet the
commitment to tackle the budget deficit - have reinforced the unions' concerns about jobs.

'Anti-state ideology'

But the prime minister will say jobs would be at greater risk under the Conservatives.

"Don't risk it with the Tories whose obsessive anti-state ideology means they can't see a role for
government in either recession or recovery," he will say.

"Our opponents have one approach to reducing the deficit: slashing jobs and abandoning national
pay bargaining.

"We have another - taking tough choices and empowering those who deliver services to innovate
and secure greater value for money."

On Friday, the prime minister met 15 trade union leaders for three hours ahead of the annual
congress.

No 10 said the talks were "wide-ranging" and "constructive".

The government says it wants to halve the budget deficit - expected to be £175bn this year - over
the next four years but unions say this must not involve mass redundancies.

Despite recent signs of a tentative economic recovery, there are fears that the number of people
out of work could top the three million mark by the end of the year.

French unease at telecom

suicides
French Labour Minister Xavier Darcos is to meet the
head of the country's main telecommunications company
to discuss a number of suicides among its staff.
Unions blame France Telecom's
Twenty-three employees of France Telecom have killed drive for efficiency
themselves since the beginning of 2008.

Unions blame tough management methods at the multinational, which was privatised in 1998.

But France Telecom says the rate of suicides is statistically not unusual for a company with a
100,000 workforce.

According to the World Health Organization, France had an annual suicide rate of 26.4 for
100,000 men in 2008. The rate for women was 9.2 suicides per 100,000.

The latest suicide occurred on Friday, when a 32-year-old woman leapt to her death at a France
Telecom office in Paris.
On Wednesday, a 49-year-old man in Troyes, east of Paris, plunged a knife into his own stomach
during a meeting in which he had been told he was being transferred.

He is being treated in hospital.

Counselling

Mr Darcos is to meet France Telecom chief executive Didier

Lombard early next week, a spokesman for the labour
ministry announced on Saturday.

The unions say a never-ending drive for efficiency is causing

emotional havoc in the workforce - especially among older
employees recruited when France Telecom was part of the
public sector.
Minister Xavier Darcos is wading
Since privatisation in 1998 some 40,000 jobs have gone, and into the row over suicides
unions say there is pressure on many employees either to
leave or to accept new working conditions.

The management of France Telecom denies that there has been a sudden increase in the suicide
rate.

It points out that in the year 2000 there were 28 suicides in the company - a figure which it says
is statistically not unusual.

France Telecom says most suicides are prompted by personal, not professional, causes.

However, a BBC correspondent in Paris says the firm concedes that the cultural and
organisational changes required by the move from French public monopoly to a competitive
multinational were bound to cause stress.

After the latest cases it has promised to hire more counselling staff and to suspend internal job
transfers pending new talks with the unions.

Ugandan apology for royal

arrests
Ugandan Prime Minister Apolo Nsibambi has apologised
to MPs for the manner in which three officials from the
kingdom of Buganda were arrested.
Ronald Muwenda Mutebi II's
They were detained for a week despite a court order kingdom was restored in 1993
demanding their release before they were charged.

Their dramatic arrest for sedition has been criticised by human rights groups.

A BBC reporter says the government has lately been at loggerheads with the traditional kingdom
of Buganda over a controversial land reform bill.

The Baganda are the largest ethnic group in Uganda and their Buganda Kingdom was restored
with limited political powers by President Yoweri Museveni in 1993, after it has been disbanded
in 1966, four years after independence.

The kingdom has since been demanding the return of its communal land, but the government
wants to give the tenants who have been on the land for the past few decades rights to farm it.
'Incommunicado'

Mr Nsibambi was speaking at the end of a five-hour debate in parliament after the speaker had
been forced to recall the house, which has been in recess, when 100 MPs signed a petition asking
for the issue to be discussed. There is no serious
commitment from government
Both opposition and ruling party MPs condemned the that they are not going to repeat
violation of human rights and demanded that a motion be these mistakes again
moved to that effect.
MP Erias Lukwago
No motion was moved, but the prime minister said that the
government should recognise its mistakes, and enter constructive negotiations with the kingdom.

The BBC's Joshua Mmali in the capital, Kampala, says the arrests of the Buganda Kingdom
officials has caused a furore.

Despite a court order to release the suspects unconditionally after their arrest on 18 July and a
weekend spent in prison, they were re-arrested and transferred to western Uganda.

They were then charged with inciting violence and attempting to obtain firearms to engage in
terrorism.

Medard Lubega, one of the suspects now on bail, told the BBC they were held incommunicado
during their time in detention.

"How can you hold someone for seven days in various detention centres subjecting someone to
psychological torture and emotional stress... then charge me with sedition which I [supposedly]
committed in Kampala and you've been allegedly investigating in western Uganda?" he asked.

Call for action

After the parliament session, the internal affairs minister reiterated the need for an apology.

"It's our duty as a government and as a people and as a country to ensure that when mistakes
occur they are corrected," Ruhakana Rugunda told the BBC's Focus on Africa programme.

"We have a system and mechanisms that ensure that mistakes are corrected and that the rule of
law prevails."

But opposition MP Erias Lukwago said an apology was not enough.

"There is no serious commitment from government that they are not going to repeat these
mistakes again," he told the BBC.

"We wanted action to be taken against the perpetrators of this violation of human rights and
those who violated the constitution."

Bugandan king's healthy message

Traditional leaders in parts of Africa may have an important role in
communicating important issues to people, Mulwanyamuli Ssemogerere,
the Prime Minister of Uganda's Buganda Kingdom, has said.

Mr Ssemogerere, who runs Buganda's government on behalf of the Kabaka, Ronald Muwenda Mutebi II is
Ronald Muwenda Mutebi II, said that Uganda's government had often used the Kabaka - or traditional king
Buganda's government - which is not constitutionally recognised - as a way
- of Buganda
to help spread essential advice on health and citizenship.

He stated that one example was immunisation against a number of prevalent diseases in the country.
"Immunisation had stalled. People had refused to be immunised because they suspected the drugs," Mr Ssemogerere
told BBC World Service's Africa Live programme.

"But when the king came out and said, 'My people, go and immunise,' everybody immunised."

Traditions

He also claimed that perhaps paradoxically, the king had been a great aid to democracy in the country.

"When people registered for voting, the Kabaka came back from London and said, 'My people, register to vote.'

"About three quarters of the nation went and registered in one week - when after one and a half months, only one
quarter had registered.

"So you see the immense power and influence that the king can have in
terms of development."

The argument about the place of traditional leaders is one of the biggest
ongoing debates throughout Africa.

On one hand, democrats argue there is no place at all for them and that they
hold Africa back.

But others argue that democracy is a Western concept that cannot simply be Traditional leaders still
imposed on a continent with traditions that date back far into the past. have a significant role in
governance of rural set-ups
Professor Tom Lodge, an expert in African Affairs at the University of and are popular amongst
Witwatersrand in South Africa, told Africa Live that it could sometimes be various societies
beneficial to live under a traditional leader.
Yitatek Yitbarek,
"The point about Africa is that in many parts of Africa, modern elected
governments have very little authority," he explained. Ethiopian/South Africa

"You might have an elected government in a small country, where the Should traditional leaders be
bureaucracy that that government controls has virtually no presence in the in government?
countryside.

"If in that context you say, that the traditional leaders, kings, paramount chiefs, or whatever, should have no political
authority, it often means that you have authority at all in the countryside.

"You've got to recognise the weakness of many governments in Africa."

However he warned that in some countries, such as Swaziland, the king did have too much power.

"You have a traditional leader presiding over a modern government.

"Partly because the government that he presides over is modern - it has a national police force, a national army, it
commands a modern industrial economy - that traditional leader has much greater powers than might have been
sanctioned by tradition.

"By claiming a monopoly of power, he is sometimes claiming greater things than maybe custom or convention
might have allowed him."

Timeline: Uganda
A chronology of key events:

1500 - Bito dynasties of Buganda, Bunyoro and Ankole

founded by Nilotic-speaking immigrants from present-day
southeastern Sudan.
Kampala, the capital, is spread
1700 - Buganda begins to expand at the expense of Bunyoro. over a series of hills
1890: HQ of British colonial
administration
1962: Capital of independent
Uganda
Population: 1.2m

2003: Drawing inspiration

from Kampala's colour
1800 - Buganda controls territory bordering Lake Victoria from the Victoria Nile to the Kagera
river.

1840s - Muslim traders from the Indian Ocean coast exchange firearms, cloth and beads for the
ivory and slaves of Buganda.

1862 - British explorer John Hanning Speke becomes the first European to visit Buganda.

1875 - Bugandan King Mutesa I allows Christian missionaries to enter his realm.

British influence

1877 - Members of the British Missionary Society arrive in Buganda.

1879 - Members of the French Roman Catholic White Fathers arrive.

1890 - Britain and Germany sign treaty giving Britain rights to what was to become Uganda.

1892 - British East India Company agent Frederick Lugard extends the company's control to
southern Uganda and helps the Protestant missionaries defeat their Catholic counterparts, who
had been competing with them, in Buganda.

1894 - Uganda becomes a British protectorate.

1900 - Britain signs agreement with Buganda giving it

autonomy and turning it into a constitutional monarchy
controlled mainly by Protestant chiefs.

1902 - The Eastern province of Uganda transferred to the

Kenya.

1904 - Commercial cultivation of cotton begins.

1921 - Uganda given a legislative council, but its first African Milton Obote went into exile in
member not admitted till 1945. Zambia after the 1985 coup
Prime minister 1962-70
1958 - Uganda given internal self-government. President 1966-71, 1980-85

1962 - Uganda becomes independent with Milton Obote as 2005: Former Ugandan leader
prime minister and with Buganda enjoying considerable Obote dies
autonomy. On This Day 1971: Idi Amin
ousts Obote
1963 - Uganda becomes a republic with Mutesa as president.

1966 - Milton Obote ends Buganda's autonomy.

1967 - New constitution vests considerable power in the president and divides Buganda into four
districts.

Idi Amin years

1971 - Milton Obote toppled in coup led by Idi Amin.

1972 - Amin orders Asians who were not Ugandan citizens - around 60,000 people - to leave the
country.

1972-73 - Uganda engages in border clashes with Tanzania.

1976 - Idi Amin declares himself president for life and claims parts of Kenya.

1978 - Uganda invades Tanzania with a view to annexing Kagera region.

1979 - Tanzania invades Uganda, unifying the various anti-
Amin forces under the Uganda National Liberation Front and
forcing Amin to flee the country; Yusufu Lule installed as
president, but is quickly replaced by Godfrey Binaisa. Up to 400,000 people were
killed during Idi Amin's
1980 - Binaisa overthrown by the army. dictatorship
In pictures: Life of Idi Amin
Milton Obote becomes president after elections.
2003: BBC's Sarah
1985 - Obote deposed in military coup and is replaced by Tito Stancer on Amin's rule
Okello.

1986 - National Resistance Army rebels take Kampala and install Yoweri Museveni as president.

Beginnings of recovery

1993 - Museveni restores the traditional kings, including the king of Buganda, but without giving
them political power.

1995 - New constitution legalises political parties but maintains the ban on political activity.

1996 - Museveni returned to office in Uganda's first direct presidential election.

1997 - Ugandan troops help depose Mobutu Sese Seko of Zaire, who is replaced by Laurent
Kabila.

1998 - Ugandan troops intervene in the Democratic republic of

Congo on the side of rebels seeking to overthrow Kabila.

2000 - Ugandans vote to reject multi-party politics in favour of

continuing Museveni's "no-party" system.

2001 January - East African Community (EAC) inaugurated in

Arusha, Tanzania, laying groundwork for common East
African passport, flag, economic and monetary integration.
Members are Tanzania, Uganda and Kenya. Soldiers pursue the notorious
Lord's Resistance Army
2001 March - Uganda classifies Rwanda, its former ally in the
civil war in DR Congo, as a hostile nation because of fighting Q&A: Uganda's northern
in 2000 between the two countries' armies in DR Congo. rebellion
Profile: Uganda's LRA rebels
Museveni wins another term in office, beating his rival Kizza
Besigye by 69% to 28%.

Campaign against rebels

2002 March - Sudan, Uganda sign agreement aimed at containing Ugandan rebel group, Lord's
Resistance Army (LRA), active along common border. LRA
wants to run Uganda along lines of biblical Ten
Commandments. Led by "prophet" Joseph Kony they have
kidnapped thousands of children and displaced many civilians.

2002 October - Army evacuates more than 400,000 civilians

caught up in fight against LRA which continues its brutal
attacks on villages.

2002 Multi-party politics made a

comeback in 2006
December - Peace deal signed with Uganda National Rescue
Front (UNRF) rebels after more than five years of negotiations. 2006 Q&A: Uganda votes
2005: Uganda backs multi-
party return
2003 May - Uganda pulls out last of its troops from eastern DR Congo. Tens of thousands of DR
Congo civilians seek asylum in Uganda.

2003 August - Former dictator Idi Amin dies in hospital in Saudi Arabia.

2004 February - LRA rebels slaughter more than 200 people at a camp for displaced people in
the north.

2004 December - Government and LRA rebels hold their first face-to-face talks, but there is no
breakthrough in ending the insurgency.

2005 April - Uganda rejects accusations made by DR Congo at the International Court in The
Hague. DR Congo says Uganda invaded its territory in 1999, killing citizens and looting.

2005 July - Parliament approves a constitutional amendment which scraps presidential term
limits.

Voters in a referendum overwhelmingly back a return to multi-

party politics.

2005 October - International Criminal Court issues arrest

warrants for five LRA commanders, including LRA leader
Joseph Kony.

2005 November - Main opposition leader Kizza Besigye is

imprisoned shortly after returning from exile. He is charged in
a military court with terrorism and illegal possession of Joseph Kony has waged war
firearms. He is released on bail in January 2006. for almost two decades

2005 December - International Court in The Hague rules that Profile: Rebel leader
Uganda must compensate DR Congo for rights abuses and the
plundering of resources in the five years leading to 2003.

2006 February - President Museveni wins multi-party elections, taking 59% of the vote against
the 37% share of his rival, Kizza Besigye.

2006 July - Peace talks between the government and the LRA begin in southern Sudan.

2006 26 August - The government and the LRA sign a truce aimed at ending their long-running
conflict. A ceasefire comes into force on 29 August. Subsequent peace talks are marred by
regular walk-outs.

2006 November - Government rejects a United Nations report accusing the army of using
indiscriminate and excessive force in its campaign to disarm tribal warriors in the lawless
northeastern region of Karamoja.

2007 March - Ugandan peacekeepers deploy in Somalia as part of an African Union mission to
help stabilise the country.

The UN World Food Programme says it will have to halve food handouts to more than 1 million
people displaced by war in the north.

2007 April - Protests over a prized rain forest explode into racial violence in Kampala, forcing
police to protect Asian businesses and a Hindu temple. An Asian man and two other people are
killed.

2007 July - Lord's Resistance Army says lack of funds for foreign travel and to reach
commanders in remote hideouts will delay peace talks.

2007 August - Uganda and DRCongo agree to try defuse a border dispute.

2007 September - State of emergency imposed after severe floods cause widespread devastation.
2008 February - Government and the Lord's Resistance Army sign a permanent ceasefire at talks
in Juba, Sudan.

2008 November - The leader of the rebel Lord's Resistance Army, Joseph Kony, again fails to
turn up for the signing of a peace agreement. Ugandan, South Sudanese and DR Congo armies
launch offensive against LRA bases.

2009 January - Lord's Resistance Army appeals for ceasefire in face of continuing offensive by
regional countries.

The UK oil explorer Heritage Oil said it had made a major oil find in Uganda.

2009 February - Opposition criticises appointment of president's wife Janet Museveni as minister
for Karamoja region. President says no one else wanted the job.

2009 March - Ugandan army begins to withdraw from DR Congo, where it had pursued Lord's
Resistance Army rebels.