Is Uganda Police enforcing law or disrupting public order? I was kicked and slapped by a gang of six men in police uniform.
Is this how police is supposed to enforce law?
By Nangayi Guyson
Article 29 clause (2a) of Uganda’s constitution gives me mandate and any other Ugandan Citizen freedom of free movement, residence, and settlement to any part of this country.
Article 24 of the same Constitution also states that no person shall be subjected to any form of torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.
Again article 21 clause (1) of our constitution states that all persons in Uganda are equal before and under the law in all spheres of political, economic, social and cultural life and in every other respects and shall enjoy equal protection of the law.
But on Saturday 11/05/2013 at 9:10pm when I was leaving for my place after work, I was attacked by men in police uniform in Nsambya Ave-Maria road, Makindye Division Kampala where I was subjected to beatings and harassments without reason.
Ignorance about the law is what makes police to do this.
How it all started
This is how it all started. I left my place of work 9pm heading home. After moving a very short distance from Ave-Maria stage, I received a call from my people in the village and I kept talking as I continued walking to my place of residence. When I was still on phone and I had just passed the Minister of Agriculture’s residence in Nsambya along Ave-Maria road. Suddenly, a man in plain clothes attacked me. I thought he was a thief trying to grab my phone. I tried to resist to his arrest as he was taking me to a dark place. Within a very short time, i saw more than six men in police uniform plus other men in plain clothes, about 15 people all together. Two men in police uniform with guns came and started beating, kicking and slapping me asking why I was making noise. I tried to ask them why they were arresting me because I had all my identifications with me but they continued dragging me to a dark place, down to behind Tom Ssebela’s Life Resurrection Church in Nsambya, a Kampala Suburb.
When we reached there, they continued harassing me saying am proving to be wise and knowing law more than them. They said they are enforcing law but I asked them “is this the way howUganda Police enforce law or is just a matter of disrupting public order?” I asked.
Does our constitution give police powers to act like this?
After few minutes, I was asked to present my Identification cards of which I did and I was told to go but they had beaten me for no reason. To my understanding, police is supposed to ask for IDs before anything else, I was not satisfied with the way how I was treated and tried to go on with investigations and this is I what I discover.
What I discovered
Since this year started, many residents in Nsambya a Kampala suburb have been facing the same treatment like what I faced.
My investigation shows when it clocks 7: 00 pm men in police uniform find their way to these suburb where they arrest everyone they find on the way. They arrest you and take you to the dark place not police station where they ask you to give them money before they can release you.
Many people who testified to me and never wanted to be mentioned because they fear for their lives said they are worried about the situation in this suburb.
When I also visited all the local councils (LCs), the leaders said they have received the same reports from the residents and they are very eager to know and report the matter police headquarters in Kampala.
Why does police exhausting money from people?
In a country like Uganda where police is ranked as the most corrupt institution, the blame should be put on the government. Article 4(a,b) of our Constitution states that the State shall promote public awareness of this Constitution by translating it into Ugandan languages and disseminating it as widely as possible; and providing for the teaching of the Constitution in all educational institutions and armed forces training institutions and regularly transmitting and publishing programmes through the media generally. But the government of Uganda has not done this and many Ugandans don’t know what a constitution is. Law enforcers like police and the army are also ignorant about the constitution and that is the reason why many Ugandans have been subjected to torture, death and brutal arrests by security operatives.
Another reason has been that , due to lack of jobs in Uganda , many people join police , army, and other security organizations expecting to get enough money but instead what is paid to them cannot sustain them and their families which forces to start exhausting money from people because they think the law is controlled by them. Following what I went through in the hands of people who called themselves police, many people in this country will continue to face it rough if the government is still silent on teaching people about their rights and the constitution.
Closed media houses in Uganda reopen under tough conditions
By Nangayi Guyson
The independent news Medias that were raided by Uganda police and closed for 10 days mid this month over president Museveni’s succession talk have re-opened today under tough conditions .
The outgoing Internal Affairs Minister Hillary Onek on Thursday told journalists at the government Media Centre that Daily Monitor should resume operations normally after agreeing to a number of conditions.
According to the minister, the Nation Media Group executives acknowledged that there had been violations of their editorial policy by their reporters and editors in Uganda. They availed government with a copy of their Editorial Policy and undertook to ensure that both the letter and the spirit of the policy are respected.
Meanwhile, The Red Pepper Publications, another daily tabloid that was also closed together with the Monitor Publications on May 20 has remained closed. Minister Onek said he is set to hold a separate meeting with officials from the publication later today.
On 20 May, police in Uganda raided two newspapers, The daily Monitor and The red pepper and also closed two radio stations KFM and DembeFM as they searched for the letter that was believed to have been written by Coordinator of Intelligence Services Gen. David Sejusa to the head of the internal security service ordering an investigation into allegations that those opposed to Museveni’s son as a future leader could be targeted for assassination.
Since then police had occupied the premises of these media houses without showing a sign of leaving even after the court cancelled the search warrant.
Thousands of journalists including workers who were employed by these media houses have been jobless for 10 days.
Medias in Uganda have been enjoying some freedom for more than a decade until in recent years when the media started reporting repeatedly on corruption scams and police harassments on civilians during walk- to- work protests that were led by Col. Dr. Kizza Besigye former Leader of the largest political party known as the Forum for Democratic Change (FDC).
Though, Gen. David Sejusa who is now wanted and is hiding in Britain accepted that he authored the letter, police continued to question its source. The Managing Editor Don Wanyama of daily monitor newspapers and two reporters Risdel Kasasira ,Richard Wanambwa were interrogated by police and charged with refusal to cooperate and divulge information in relation to the Gen. David Sejusa affair.
Since the letter was exposed by the daily monitor newspaper, the news headlines in several Medias across the country and the words on the lips of many in Uganda for the past weeks have been on President Museveni’s Succession plan.
The Uganda Communication Commission warned media houses against reporting on developments around Gen David Sejusa Tinyefunza and the ‘Muhoozi project’ which it said was regarded as sensitive and national security matter.
David Sejusa, one of only six generals in the Ugandan military and a member of its high command, Many of Museveni’s bush comrades have been opposing the so-called “Project Muhoozi” which is expected to be activated after president Museveni leaves power.
Though Museveni himself has shown no any sign of leaving power or handing it over to his first son Muhoozi Kainerugaba who has been rapidly promoted with high army ranks, Many Army generals have started to struggle for power and the army is getting divided.
According to Joseph Luzige, Sejusa’s lawyer, the general is not expected to become to back to Uganda soon and he has been granted —the protection of British police after reporting a threat to his life
Uganda -US Kony hunt in Central African Republic suspended
UPDF-led operation hunt-down Joseph Kony & his remnants in CAR jungles
UPDF-led operation to hunt-down Joseph Kony & remnants of his group has been suspended.
The development has been confirmed by both the U.S mission in Kampala and the UPDF.
The situation in the Central African Republic has not been futile for the hunt of Kony’s LRA rebel group that has terrorist northern Uganda for more than a decade after Seleka rebels overthrew President Francois Bozize’s government last month
Central African Republic Seleka rebels who seized power last month threatened to expel all foreign forces from the Country.
The foreign forces that are in Central African Republic include Uganda’s UPDF, 100 US special forces under AU mission and South African troops that were send by president Jacob Zuma to support President Francois Bozize’s government against the Seleka rebels.
Late last month Uganda said they have plans of keeping its African Union-mandated troops to continue with peace keeping and the hunt for Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) fighters in the Central African nation. Ugandan military spokesman Paddy Ankunda said that the army had got orders from the commander-in-chief to continue with operations there but latest developments shows that the UPDF has been ordered out of the Country.
After the Seleka rebels that ousted President Francios Bozize African Union acted quickly and suspended the Central African Republic from the bloc’s activities and imposed sanctions, including travel bans and asset freezes, on seven top officials from the Seleka rebel group saying CAR is not recognized by the pact.
Political Commissar of the Ugandan Army Felix Kuliagye has confirmed the withdrawal. “The African Union was operating in Central Africa under the Bozize government, and since Seleka is not recognized by the African Union we had to suspend operations,” Kulaigye said.
Uganda has more than 3,000 troops under AU force hunting Joseph Kony’s LRA rebels who are believed to be operating in the jungles of Central African Republic, South Sudan and Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). AU has a strong force of 5,000 troops backed by 100 U.S. Special Forces that were deployed two years ago to help with intelligence and logistical support in the hunt.
LRA leader Kony who has fought the Ugandan government for nearly two decades before being splashed out from Uganda around 2005 is Wanted by the International Criminal Court to face charges against abducting thousands of children and forcing them to fight in a rebel army and other war crimes.
South Africa which also deployed 200 soldiers to Central Africa in January to support the poorly trained, ill-equipped government troops following an offensive launched by the Seleka rebel coalition in December, said last month that the nation has no immediate plans to pull out its troops from the Central Africa Republic even after 13 soldiers were killed in clashes with rebels at the weekend.
President Jacob Zuma told reporters that the Country has not taken a decision to withdraw its troops from CAR since South Africa rejects any efforts to seize power by force.
“There is no reason for us to leave… we are looking at how to reinforce our forces and how to move forward,” President Zuma said.
The rebels on Sunday seized control of the capital Bangui after launching an offensive following the collapse of a January peace deal, prompting President Francois Bozize to flee.
After capturing power, they (rebels) suspended the constitution and dissolved parliament saying there would be a transition period until “credible and transparent” elections are set
Meanwhile, Uganda has linked CAR Seleka rebels to Sudan saying some leaders from the movement are close to Khartoum government. Col. Kulayigye said “The information we get is that one of them has Sudanese connections,” he said.
The relationship between Uganda and Sudan has continued to be dense after the two countries started accuse each other of supporting rebel groups against their governments.
It is not yet clear when the hunt for Mr. Kony will resume but US and Uganda says the suspension is temporary.
Uganda and Sudan relationship continues to deteriorate over rebel support accusations
Sudan President Omar Al-Bashir (left) shakes the hand of Uganda President Yoweri Museveni during the Dec.8,1999 peace accord as former US President Jimmy Carter and Kenya’s president Denial Arab Moi looks on
By Nangayi Guyson in Kampala, Uganda
The relationship between Uganda and Sudan has continued to deteriorate this year after the two countries started accusing each other of supporting rebel groups against their governments.
In January this year, Sudanese rebel forces and opposition groups signed an accord in Kampala calling for the toppling of president Omer Hassan al-Bashir’s regime. Some of the opposition alliances that met in Kampala were National Consensus Forces (NCF), National Umma Party (NUP), and the armed groups included SPLM-N, Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) and two factions of Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM) led by Abdel Wahid Al-Nur and Minni Minnawi.
The meeting of rebels in Kampala Prompted the Sudanese government through the speaker of the country’s national assembly, Ahmed Ibrahim al-Tahir, to announce that Sudan is also working with opposition groups in Uganda to bring about positive political influence to the country but did not mention which opposition groups it was working with or going to support.
Sudan also went ahead as saying the government would also close Uganda’s Embassy in Khartoum to end its relationship with the Country.
According to Sudan tribune newspapers, the Sudanese government has again accused Uganda of undermining regional security by harboring and supporting anti-Khartoum rebel movements.
The spokesman of Sudan’s Foreign Ministry Abu-Bakr al-Sideeg said on Saturday that Kampala’s stances have become incomprehensible especially since Khartoum has repeatedly called on Uganda to refrain from backing Sudanese insurgents and interfering in the country’s affairs.
The Sudanese diplomat noted the signed protocol on security, stability and development in the Great Lakes Region which he said obligates all countries in the region including Uganda not to cooperate with the rebels.
In response to Sudan’s accusations, Uganda Foreign affairs Minister Sam Kutesa, said the country has no intentions of over throwing the Sudanese government and is not supporting any rebel group to change the regime there. He added that even if Sudan supports opposition groups in the country, it will have no chance to succeed in it.
Khartoum has lodged several complaints with the African Union (AU) and other regional blocs against Uganda saying it is supporting regime change in Sudan.
The relationship between Sudan and Uganda deteriorated some years back when Kampala accused Khartoum of supporting the rebel Lord Resistance Army (LRA) which operates in South Sudan’s Western Equatorial and neighbouring countries of Congo and Central African Republic.
The Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter tried to mediate a peace accord between Sudan and Uganda in Dec. 8, 1999, in which the two countries agreed to take steps to restore diplomatic relations and promote peace in the region but this peace accord seemed to have not worked and since then there has been no any serious Bi-literal relationships between the two nations.
In May 2012, President Museveni said they have intelligence that LRA rebels were planning a major offensive and warned Sudan over reports saying they received weapons from Sudan but she denied the allegations.
Two years ago US President Obama authorized the deployment of approximately 100 well equipped US troops to Uganda to help regional forces capture or kill – Lord’s Resistance Army leader Joseph Kony and senior leaders of the LRA but since then there is no hope that they may come closer to him. Uganda believes Kony’s LRA has hiding places in Sudan and Central Africa Republic
To mount pressure on Khartoum to stop its alleged support to the LRA rebels, Uganda for more than 2 years, has opened its territory for various Sudanese rebel groups.
Sudan had admitted in the past using the LRA rebels to fight the insurgency in southern Sudan before the signing of a peace agreement in January 2005 with the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) which was supported by the Ugandan government.
The SPLM are now the governing party of South Sudan, which seceded from Sudan in July 2011.
Political relations between South Sudan and Uganda have been friendly for several decades, in contrast to Kampala’s relations with the Khartoum government, which have often been strained. One reason for this is that Sudan’s President, Omar al-Bashir, is alleged to have provided support to the LRA, which terrorized northern Uganda for many years.
South Sudan and Uganda have continued to enjoy relativelystrong cultural, political, and economic ties. When South Sudan neared independence, both states begun to take advantage of increased opportunities for trade, development and educational exchanges which has affected Sudan.
Uganda’s President, Yoweri Museveni, was a personal friend of South Sudan rebel leader John Garang who died in a plane crash and supported the Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA).
South Sudan and Uganda share cultural, religious, and economic ties. Intermarriage, cross-border migration and the prevalence of Christianity exist on both sides of the border.
However, Sudan president Al-Bashir , a controversial figure both in Sudan and worldwide is wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) to face crimes against humanity and war crimes in Darfur.
Sudan announces support for Uganda opposition and threatens to close Embassy in Khartoum.
By Nangayi Guyson in Kampala, Uganda
Sudanese government announced that it is in preparation of closing Uganda’s Embassy in Khartoum and forming alliance with opposition groups in Uganda to topple president Musveni’s government. Sudan’s newspapers reported on Sunday.
The speaker of the country’s national assembly Ahmed Ibrahim al-Tahir said that Sudanese government is working with forces in Uganda that are opposed to President Yoweri Museveni to bring about positive political influence to the country but did not mention which opposition groups or parties Sudan is working with.
Uganda Foreign affairs Minister Sam Kutesa, said the country has no intentions of over throwing the Sudanese government and is not supporting any rebel group to change regime there. He added that even if Sudan supports opposition groups in the country, it will have no chance to succeed in it.
Khartoum has lodged several complaints with the African Union (AU) and other regional blocs against Uganda saying it is supporting regime change in Sudan.
Sudan’s reactions come after this year rebel forces and opposition groups signed an accord in Kampala last January calling for toppling the regime of president Omer Hassan al-Bashir.
The relationship between Sudan and Uganda deteriorated some years back when Kampala accused Khartoum of supporting the rebel Lord Resistance Army (LRA) which operates in South Sudan’s Western Equatorial and neighbouring countries of Congo and Central African Republic.
In May 2012 Museveni said they have intelligence that LRA rebels were planning a major offensive and warned Sudan over reports saying they received weapons from Sudan but shed denied the allegations.
To mount pressure on Khartoum to stop its alleged support to the LRA rebels, Uganda since more than 2 years opened its territory for various Sudanese rebel groups who are now based in Kampala.
Two years ago US President Obama authorized the deployment of approximately 100 well equipped US troops to Uganda to help regional forces capture or kill – Lord’s Resistance Army leader Joseph Kony and senior leaders of the LRA but since then there is no hope that they may come closer to him.
Sudan had admitted in the past using the LRA rebels to fight the insurgency in southern Sudan before the signing of a peace agreement in January 2005 with the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) which was supported by the Ugandan government.
The SPLM are now the governing party of South Sudan, which seceded from Sudan in July 2011.
Sudan president Al-Bashir , a controversial figure both in Sudan and worldwide was indicted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) of crimes against humanity and genocide crimes in Darfur.
Why Africa can never have a Pope?
Francis Arinze, of Nigeria, (left) and Peter Turkson, of Ghana, (right) are the candidates that were expect to replace Pope Benedict XVI as head of the Roman Catholic Church.
By Nangayi Guyson
When Pope Benedict XVI of the Catholic Church resigned in an unexpected move that shook the Catholic community and left it undecided on who will be their next Pope, all continents including the poor African continent also had hope that this time around the Pope may emanate from Africa.
If things went on well for Africa, Two West African cardinals, Peter Turkson of Ghana and Francis Arinze of Nigeria, were the expected top candidates to replace Benedict as head of the Roman Catholic Church.
But all these hopes evaporated this morning when the Catholic Church named Jorge Bergoglio, a Jesuit from Argentina as the new pope, becoming the first pope from the Americas and the first from outside Europe for more than 1,800 years and was given the title of Francis I.
This move follows what happened to Africans again when the Church of England failed some Africans like the Ugandan born John Sentamu, Archbishop of York, to head the Church.
As a writer, I will call this as racism and under esteem to Africans in church leadership. I think Africans hold final positions in Church leadership.
Africans are looked at as Children in religion and it can be a shame if an African is selected as a Pope.
Africans used to believe in their Gods, religion only came in when Europeans came to colonize the Continent introducing their two churches, the Catholic Church and the protestant Church.
Electing an African to head one of the two Churches is like forcing the King to step down and replacing him with the servant.
With the pope looked at as a god, many white people around the world would find it difficult to worship and kneel down before a black pope considering that Africans have always been seen to be backward and in most cases the devil has been portrayed in many images as being black
Right from the mid-1800s until 1978, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) had a policy which prevented most men of black African descent from being ordained to the church’s lay priesthood. This resulted in black members being unable to participate in some temple ordinances, considered necessary for salvation. Though the church had an open membership policy for all races, relatively few black people who joined the church retained active membership,despite reassurance that the ban would one day be lifted when all the other descendants of Adam have received the promises and enjoyed the blessings of the priesthood and the keys thereof.
Historically, Mormon attitudes about race were generally close to or more progressive than the national average. Accordingly, before the Civil rights movement, the LDS policy went largely unnoticed and unchallenged.
Beginning in the 1960s, however, the church was criticized by civil rights advocates and religious groups, and in 1969 several church leaders voted to rescind the policy, but the vote was not unanimous so the policy stood. In 1978, church leaders led by Spencer W. Kimball declared they had received a revelation instructing them to reverse the racial restriction policy. The change seems to have been prompted at least in part by problems facing mixed race converts in Church. The church opposes racism in any formand today has no racial policy.
In 1997, there were approximately 500,000 black members of the LDS Church, accounting for about 5% of the total membership; most black members live in Africa, Brazil and the Caribbean.
This racism in church never died and I believe is producing some seeds which are still being planted.
Note
what you are reading in this article is my own perception not any Church’s involvement
Today’s marriage is wastage of time and resources.
Ladies having fun at club Silk in Kampala. Photo Martin Ndijjo
By Nangayi Guyson
Somebody who is about to read this article, may call my perception as being a backward person, primitive and thinking like a layman but hey!!!!!!!!!!!! I have a point here to mention. Just continue reading!
As you can read the headline “Today’s marriage is wastage of time and resources” it is true and this is how I am going to support my point:
Since am an African, I will start like this; I will first look at how marriage was considered in our societies in those early years.
Marriage in those days
Marriage in those days was valuable not like it is today. It was not about money and properties. Women or girls looked at their bodies as something important to their families. Sex was a taboo intended to preserve moral behavior, to “play” with sex was held to merit a curse. Cheating on your Husband or wife was another criminal case. Virginity was held in high esteem. If a girl came to marriage as a virgin, the bride wealth (dowry) that her suitor’s family had paid would have to be increased. In some tribes, for instance, her mother might be given a cow as a tribute to her successful upbringing of the girl. In such a case, the fact other virginity would be a matter of public knowledge, and would earn her special respect from her in-laws.
Girls and boys marrying old men and women was a grave disgrace to his and her family and to the rest of the society.
People used to enjoy marriage and divorce was considered as a solution to the failed marriage.
My intention here is to bring out some of the positive values that underlie traditional African approaches to marriage. I am not trying to paint an idealized picture of an unenlightened person but am trying to compare the two to see where we heading to.
Marriage today.
Be careful when marrying a modern woman or man today!!!!!!!!!! You may hate marriage the whole of your life.
One weekend, we were on outing with my fiancé together with our seven months son. We were seated somewhere in one of the good happening places around Kampala. On the next table, there were around six girls seated, their table was blacked with all types of wine you know in the world. They were putting on very tight short skirts. Their lips were full of too much applied lipstick. They were conversing and shouting at a very high voice irritating everyone seated in the place. But many of us never minded about their business.
As they went on shouting, I discovered they were celebrating a breakthrough of one their friends who had got a “Muzungu” (white man) of about 60 sixty years and she was heading to USA two days to come for marriage. The girl looked to be in her 20s. They kept talking and one happened to ask “do you love this Guy?” and her reply was like this “it is not all about love, what matters is that is the Guy is loaded (having money)? This is business my friend”. She explained as she opened the third bottle of Champagne to continue with the cerebration.
Anyway not to go off the road, let me continue with my point, I just wanted to give you a picture of how marriage is looked at today.
Many women like these ones above are common everywhere in our cities around the world. Marriage is business nowadays; someone can marry you today and kill you tomorrow to take what belongs to you.
When a woman is searching to marry nowadays, they look at the type of job the man is doing. How many houses and cars does he own? It is not about how much the man loves her and how good is he.
Sex workers in many cities value sex as something simple. It is just like an exercise, they sale themselves at less than a dollar and the word marriage kills them. They can’t even think about it.
The sexual permissiveness that has spread through the West in the past 30 or 40 years has made serious inroads into African societies. African thinkers in growing numbers are becoming sharply critical of the West for having destroyed the marriage system and left nothing but a moral vacuum in its place. In some cases their criticism may be no more than opportunism at work. In other cases it is undoubtedly quite sincere.
Christian pastors and teachers are often not sensitive enough to the confusion underlying this criticism and to the harm it can do.
Even married Christian couples find themselves cheating on the holy spirited husbands.
Why should we marry when marriage is useless now days?
Where will Uganda’s president Museveni be after office, in exile or at home with his family?
By Nangayi Guyson
I have been wondering where our Ugandan president Museveni will be after completing his tenure in office as the president of Uganda. This came in my mind recently when in bed admiring the next life of President Mwai Kibaki of Kenya who stepped aside peacefully and went to meet his family to continue living a normal life.
But when this question came in my mind, I had to rush back to the Ugandan history of our Presidents right from the first to the current one and I started wondering if this history is hunting for our current president too.
Right from our first president Edward Frederick Mutesa, this is how Life after presidency for our presidents has been.
Edward Frederick Mutesa who was the first president of a newly independent Uganda and the kabaka (king) of Buganda was deposed by Apollo Milton Obote in 1966, after which he went into exile in Britain and died from there. His body was only brought back by Dictator Iddi Amin to gain popularity over Obote.
President Apollo Milton Obote, who deposed Edward Mutesa also remained in exile after the military coup of Dictator Iddi Amin took over the government when he was still in Singapore, he only came back when Iddi Amin became a tyrant and was helped by the Tanzanian Army to depose him.
Dictator president Iddi Amin who governed Uganda from 1972 -1979 with his rule characterized by human rights abuse, political repression, ethnic persecution, extrajudicial killings, nepotism, corruption, and gross economic mismanagement, Was also deposed in January 1979, by Tanzania People’s Defence Force mobilized by president Nyerere and counterattacked, joined by several groups of Ugandan exiles who had united as the Uganda National Liberation Army (UNLA). Amin’s army retreated steadily, and, despite military help from Libya‘s Muammar Gaddafi, he was forced to flee into exile by helicopter on 11 April 1979, when Kampala was captured. He escaped first to Libya, where he stayed until 1980, and ultimately settled in Saudi Arabia, where the Saudi royal family allowed him sanctuary and paid him a generous subsidy in return for his staying out of politics.
On 20 July 2003, he died in King Faisal Specialist Hospital in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, from kidney failure and where he was buried like any other local man in the village.
Back to President Milton Obote , to Know where his life ended after ruling Uganda, Milton Obote who had been ousted by Amin’s 1971 military coup, came back after winning the national elections in December 1980 as president and called on the army to restore peace, but several ethnic-based military forces emerged instead to challenge his authority and in 1985 was a gain deposed by President Museveni and his joint Army . He also died of kidney failure in a hospital in Johannesburg, South Africa in exile on 10 October 2005 after staying in Zambia.
However, between obote and Amin, there were other three presidents who also ruled for a short time. These presidents seemed to have not tested the sweetness of the Chair. President Paulo Muwanga ruled for a little time in 1980 and survived going to Exile. President Yusuf Kironde Lule also served Uganda between 13 April and 20 June 1979 but after coming back from exile.
President Godfrey Lukongwa Binaisa, throughout the early 1980s and 1990s, lived in New York practicing law and later returned to Uganda, where he led a quiet life in retirement. He was the only former president of Uganda being looked after by the state under provisions of the Constitution of Uganda.
Going back to where I started from, my conclusion will still be: where will Uganda’s president Museveni be after office, in exile or at home with his family or he will follow the path of other presidents? But if in exile, what does this mean for him, his family, and all Ugandans at large?
In the book of Matthew 16:26-27 the bible asks a question that: For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul? But my question will also be : what does it mean for a president to govern a certain Country well , bring peace, developments and be forced out office because of greed and lose all what he had been working for and die in a mysterious way?
It would have been good if a president stepped aside peacefully and continued living a normal life and served the nation a gain in another way.
Refugees vow not to return home but to die in Uganda as fighting resumes in eastern Congo.
By Nangayi Guyson in Kampala, Uganda
KAMPALA- Many Congolese refugees who fled the fighting between DRC forces and M23 rebels who captured the City of Goma but later handed it over to government forces to enter into negotiations are vowing not to return to Congo but at least to die in Uganda.
In the recent fighting that broke out following the sacking of the political leader of the M23 rebel group, Jean-Marie Runiga, on Thursday, more than 4,000 people are believed to have crossed into Uganda through the border of Bunagan.
Mr Runiga is allied to Bosco Ntaganda, a rebel commander wanted by the International Criminal Court on war crimes charges. Mr Runiga was accused of treason because of “financial embezzlement, divisions, ethnic hatred, deceit and political immaturity.
Tens of thousands of people have fled since the fighting began early last year where many have sought refuge in the neighbouring countries of Uganda, Rwanda and South Sudan.
Over 800,000 people are estimated to have been displaced in the fighting that broke out in May 2012 when the rebels launched a rebellion against the DR Congo government.
The Congolese government and UN accused Rwanda and Uganda for supporting Rebels but both countries denied accusations. This week, the Former UK Prime Minister, Tony Blair, defended Rwanda while on BBC Africa saying Kagame’s government should not be singled out to blame over the conflict in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo and condemned the cutting of foreign Aid to country which he said is punishing ordinary Rwandan people. Tony Blair is a personal adviser to Mr Kagame.
The M23 rebels claim they fight to improve living conditions for the poor people of eastern DR Congo. M23 and other armed groups in eastern Congo control the mines and trading routes for minerals where they profit hundreds of millions of dollars a year.
Congo’s government and rebels have been holding talks in Uganda aimed at reaching an agreement on a range of issues after they left Goma.
Last week, Regional African leaders signed a peace accord in the Ethiopian capital; Addis Ababa which aims at bringing peace to the troubled eastern region of the Democratic Republic of Congo but many Congolese civilians who fled there feels Eastern Congo is not yet safe for them to return to.
In Uganda’s capital Kampala, we caught up with some of the refugees and asked them if they could wish to return to their country when the peace agreement between government and rebels is signed and this is what they had to say.
The refugees believes it will take long for the eastern Democratic of Congo to have peace following what it has been going through since the first Congo war of 1996.
A refugee who only gave a single name as “Seraphin” said, there are many small militias in DR Congo who are being supported by neighbouring governments and are making the situation more complicated for civilians. “These are mineral curses which the people of eastern Congo are facing, all these is happenin Congo because of its mineral, it is true Rwanda and Uganda are fueling the conflict to get chance to steal the minerals. Sometimes I feel so disturbed to live in a country which is disrupting peace in my home country but I have no other option only to keep myself alive”. He said.
He continued to say “There is no way we can go back home, we have gone through a lot of horrible things before reaching here. We would even better die here instead”.
This refugee wrote to the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) in Uganda requesting the government for his protection. He claims he fled his Country to live in Uganda as a refugee after receiving several attacks and threats and lack of peace that were caused by officials in the government of Joseph Kabila and also from soldiers and the rebels. All these attacks on him came from accusations due to his work of human rights activist linking to a “solidarity youth league of Aba/ Bunia” organization where he was working as a Vice chairperson in charge of monitoring the publication of articles treating denunciations of violations of rights and goods, marginalization of civilians among others by soldiers, officials in the government and the rebels.
More threats also came due to his work as teacher and were accused of mobilizing the youths to wage war against Joseph Kabila’s regime.
Rebels too went on accusing him of leading their plans to fail endorsing their lack of progress on him. When all this happen, he realized his life was danger and that he would be eliminated any time.
On 20/08/2011 by 10 25 pm a lot of soldiers stormed their house broke their door and threatened to kill him and all the family members. He escaped through the room window and fled to sleep in the bush that day but was followed up and abducted by the military who blind folded him and was taken to un known place where he was subjected to all kinds of tortures including urinating in his mouth day and night, tying his hands and legs. The parents, sisters and brothers got beaten and wounded and they looted everything valuable in the house including money.
His father was shot in a disagreement with the soldiers and the mother including the sisters was treated like animals by repeatedly being raped near to death. He was beaten and dragged and told to rape his mother as they asked him to release all the important documents which were about to be published regarding victims of war in Kisangani, Bunia and Haut ouele.
After his release, he went back home and found the whole family had deserted and Due to fear and threat, he decided to leave the place for his safety to Uganda without any documents where he has lived up to now.
The refugee thanks the government of Uganda along with the police that helped him to register and stay in Uganda. “What is hunting me is the fact that since my sister got raped, she had not accessed proper health care, therefore she is having pains in the abdomen, back, hips, infections that never end and leads to menstrual complications, and she sometime get out of her senses”. He alarmed.
Many other refugees like Seraphin, has gone through some many horrific situations and narrating their stories makes the sky their limit.
End
Can there be possible violence in Kenya’s March elections?
By Nangayi Guyson in Kampala, Uganda
KAMPALA, UGANDA, As Kenya prepare to hold general elections on March 4, this year, which is the first elections since the serious violence that engulfed the country after the 2007 polls and the first under Kenya’s new constitution, there is high tension and many Kenyans are worried that what happened in 2007 may repeat itself in this year’s elections.
In 2007, Kenya went into elections which turned violent with Inter-ethnic clashes and police violence that left up to 1,300 people dead and more than 650,000 displaced.
The Kenyan government after these incidents promised to make reforms to pave way for a future democratic, free and fair elections but it has failed to address ongoing and past human rights abuses which have contributed to tensions across Kenya prior to national elections on March 4, 2013.
The Human Rights Watch, released a report last week warning and urging the Kenyan authorities to take urgent steps, including the arrest and fair trial of all those who directly incite or organize violence, to help ensure that elections are peaceful, free, and fair.
The whole world is putting an eye on Kenya to see it go through this elections process peaceful, US President Barack Obama in a video message posted on YouTube last week urged the people of Kenya to put aside tribal and ethnic differences and clearly reject intimidation, violence and consider the elections as a historic opportunity for the country to stand together as a nation, for peace, progress, and for the rule of law. African leaders are also urging Kenya to have free and fair elections.
Elections under Independent Electoral Commission
The elections in Kenya this year are to be organized by an Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) which is an Independent regulatory agency that was founded in 2011 by the Constitution of Kenya and is mandated to conduct peaceful elections to avoid further elections violence in the Country.
However, despite that, there are still dangers of violence that may erupt due to government failures to carry out needed reforms. These dangers have already shown some signs, in 2012 and early this year, there have been inter-communal clashes in parts of Kenya that have claimed more than 477 lives and displaced about 118,000 people due to pre-election maneuvering as local politicians mobilize support. The police and other authorities have repeatedly failed to prevent the violence or hold those responsible to account.
Possible violence after elections
“Violence is not inevitable but the warning signs are too bright to ignore,” said Daniel Bekele, Africa director at Human Rights Watch. “The government has failed to address the root causes of violence that have marred multi-party elections since 1992, and especially the atrocities of 2007-2008, so urgent steps are needed to protect Kenyans.”
The government is facing a secessionist group opposed to the elections as well as a violent inter-ethnic conflict. In Nyanza and Central, powerful criminal groups and armed gangs are believed to be backing politicians. In North Eastern government security forces have stoked tensions by using excessive force against local residents, especially after attacks by armed groups on the police and military.
Gangs and armed groups
Based on research conducted by Human Rights Watch between August and December 2012 in Kenya’s Central, Coast, Eastern, North Eastern, Nyanza, and Rift Valley regions, there have patterns of violence and human rights violations in six of Kenya’s eight regions organized by gangs
In the Nyanza region in western Kenya where violence affected people the more in 2007-2008, with about 115 people killed, more than 90 percent of them killed by the police, according to the Commission of Inquiry into Post-Election Violence (CIPEV, also known as the Waki Commission), Nyanza has historically witnessed high levels of political violence from different criminal gangs that include the Baghdad Boys, Sungu Sungu, American Marine, and China Group which police have been accused of failing to prevent them from committing crimes, and instead some police collaborating with them. These gangs are also believed to be allies of politicians: American Marine based in Kisumu apparently supports Prime Minister Raila Odinga and China Group appears to support Uhuru Kenyatta and William Ruto. Violence erupted between the two gangs in September 2012 after a visit to Nyanza by Deputy Prime Minister Kenyatta, and the police failed to intervene. In October 2012 the murder by unknown suspects of a candidate from Odinga’s Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) sparked riots, this time the police intervened but with their apparent use of excessive.
The Coast region also has experienced mounting tension since 2009, with the secessionist Mombasa Republican Council (MRC) warning the government against organizing elections there. Facilities and officials of the electoral commission, as well as police stations, have come under attack in Kwale, Kilifi, and Malindi counties, but MRC denied responsibility.
In the Rift Valley mistrust and anger remain high between members of the two main ethnic groups, the Kalenjin and the Kikuyu, who fought fiercely in 2007-2008. The government of President Mwai Kibaki, a Kikuyu, has not adequately promoted reconciliation between the communities; on the contrary, some of its policies have widened the divide. Human Rights Watch research indicates that government assistance to the roughly 400,000 persons displaced in the Rift Valley five years ago—a rebuilt home, a new home, money, or land— has significantly favored the Kikuyu and left the Kalenjin internally displaced, many of them unregistered, concerned that the government will not assist them.
In Eastern and North Eastern regions, the prospects for violence are on two fronts: inter- clan clashes and widespread abuses by government security forces after attacks inside Kenya by the Somali militant Islamist group al-Shabaab. In the former, the police have consistently failed to intervene; in the latter, they have repeatedly used excessive force. The inter-clan violence began in late 2011, primarily in Isiolo, Moyale, and Mandera, and has left roughly 120 people dead and 77,000 people displaced. At the same time, al- Shabaab has continued to target Kenyan security forces since Kenya’s intervention in Somalia in October 2011. Kenyan forces have responded with excessive force, arbitrary detention, and mistreatment in custody of people believed to be supporting al-Shabaab in places such as Garissa, Wajir, Dadaab, Mandera, and El Wak. Al-Shabaab supporters have also launched grenade and gun attacks at churches, mosques, buses, and other public places in Nairobi, Mombasa, and northern Kenya.
In Central Kenya, a traditionally Kikuyu area, the key danger stems from candidates and their parties using criminal groups and armed gangs to silence opponents and rally support. As with previous elections, politicians seem to have hired gangs, including the violent Mungiki, to intimidate voters. Police have taken no effective action against these Illegal groups despite the passage of a law in 2010 to respond to the threat of armed gangs.
The country will be heading to election polls among eight presidential aspirants who include; Uhuru Kenyatta, Peter Kenneth, Raila Odinga , Martha Karua , Wycliffe Musalia Mudavadi, James ole Kiyiapi , Paul Muite and Mohamed Abduda Dida. Two top contenders, Kenyatta and Ruto face crimes against humanity charges at the International Criminal Court for allegedly fueling post poll chaos after a flawed presidential vote in 2007.
ENDS
