The two will discuss the International Criminal Court (ICC), which has issued a warrant against Kony, an issue he cites as the main obstacle to a final agreement ending Uganda's two-decade-old civil war.

"General Kony requested to speak to the president directly so that we could resolve the issue of the ICC and we expect that call to happen anytime," said LRA spokesman David Nyekorach-Matsanga, who met Museveni on Monday.

The government delegation inked a peace deal in April but Kony has repeatedly failed to show up at signing ceremonies in the southern Sudan jungle town of Ri-Kwangba, reportedly citing fear of arrest.

Matsanga told AFP that Museveni had given sufficient clarification on the ICC issue to convince Kony to sign.

"He explained it very nicely, so we are very happy about that. We feel that this time the matter will be resolved," he said.

A government official confirmed a telephone call was planned but accused the LRA of dragging its feet on the peace process.

"This time it is that Kony doesn't understand how the switch from the ICC to a Ugandan court would work. We have explained it to him numerous times, but he said he wants to discuss it with the president," said Okello Oryem, the state minister for foreign affairs.

According to Matsanga, Museveni detailed how a special court would be created as an alternative to the ICC to handle LRA issues.

The veteran president also explained how lesser crimes could be dealt with through a form of traditional justice known as mato oput.

Mato oput, loosely means "to eat together", includes rituals where perpetrators are symbolically cleansed of their sins by walking on eggs or drinking from the same gourd as their victims.

Tens of thousands of people have been killed and nearly two million displaced in the two decades of fighting between the Kony's LRA and the government.

The LRA supremo, a semi-literate former altar boy, took charge in 1988 of a regional rebellion among northern Uganda's ethnic Acholi minority.

He is accused by the ICC of raping, mutilating and murdering civilians as well as forcefully recruiting child soldiers.

Kony has already hinted at his readiness to face a local court but wants the ICC warrant against him and his lieutenants lifted.

"To have the warrants suspended we have to persuade the members of the United Nations Security Council. To do that, Joseph Kony has to give us something," Oryem said.

"We'll look foolish otherwise. We need Joseph Kony to help us out, and he can do that only by signing the agreement," he added.

One Ugandan lawmaker told AFP that while direct talks between Museveni and Kony were a positive step, the LRA chief will never sign an agreement until the warrants are withdrawn.

"Going to Kony with this agreement unchanged will not help. The way I saw Kony speak about the ICC, I don't think he will sign this thing with the ICC warrants on him," said Livingston Okello Okello, who represents one of the districts hardest hit by the LRA conflict.

Okello was part of a group of religious and political leaders who met with the LRA top command near their jungle hideout on the Sudanese border with the Democratic Republic of Congo late last month.

Related Links
Africa News - Resources, Health, Food

Memory Foam Mattress Review

SPACE MEDIA NETWORK PROMOTIONS Solar Energy Solutions Tempur-Pedic Mattress Comparison ... Newsletters :: SpaceDaily :: SpaceWar :: TerraDaily :: Energy Daily XML Feeds :: Space News :: Earth News :: War News :: Solar Energy News