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, a view that is supported by the late conservationist Lawrence Anthony in his book The Last Rhinos (2012). Anthony writes that a few days before Otti was killed, Anthony had visited Otti in the bush to firm up an agreement that Anthony would help communicate the LRA's case at the 2005 round of peace talks, in exchange for the LRA's protection of endangered rhino species in the Congo. 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 raising questions about Kony's commitment to the 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