Uganda’s struggle with freedom and democracy
The Republic of Uganda has been independent from colonial powers for less than 60 years, and yet they have seen more dictatorships, military coups, rebellions, and human rights infringements than many nations have experienced over multiple centuries. Their problematic history derives from conflict and inequality between social groups and formations, and although most of the violence and bloodshed seem to have been left behind with the advent of the 21st century, it cannot be denied that even today, the country is facing a multitude of complex humanitarian and political issues, affecting the lives of their citizens daily. This article will explore a few such controversies and violations of international law, including those that have emerged more recently as a result of the January 2021 elections.
The Lord’s Resistance Army
In January 1986, Yoweri Museveni, the current president, seized power of the country from Tito Okello, the former president and general. This happened after several years of civil conflict, both between Okello’s government and Museveni’s National Resistance Army (NRA), and the former government and the NRA. However, the Acholi natives, an indigenous group from northern Uganda, were not content with Museveni’s government, because Okello was Acholi, but also because a new wave of Acholi nationalism had gripped the country. The Acholis had long been marginalised and stigmatised during the country’s British colonial history, and so this served as a tipping point for many frustrated Acholis, who decided that they had had enough.
Thus, in 1987, the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) was founded by Joseph Kony, as a rebel formation that succeeded the Holy Spirit Movement, whose core belief was that Acholis would be triumphant in overthrowing the government. On top of this, Kony’s secondary purpose was to reform the government under the biblical Ten Commandments, and so the LRA’s war of attrition against the Ugandan government began. Their main strategy was to incite violence, terror, and fear in the general population, in order to create the impression that the government was incompetent and unable to protect their citizens, and since their formation, they have relied mainly on child soldiers to fight their battles, with more than 30,000 children being abducted to this day.
Around 2006, after multiple unsuccessful attempts at peace were made, the LRA was sent out of the country, and they have since been wreaking havoc and causing distress in the neighbouring countries of South Sudan, Congo, and the Central African Republic. The ICC issued arrest warrants against Kony and a few of his followers on counts of crimes against humanity and war crimes, and although many of them are still at large, one commander, Dominic Ongwen, has been convicted this February, providing hope that the rest may follow suit soon enough.
2021 elections and Museveni’s dictatorship
In the January 2021 elections, Museveni won yet another term, securing 59% of the votes, while opposition candidate, Bobi Wine, won only 35%. However, many accuse the incumbent president of rigging the elections in his favour and even of creating a dictatorial regime, since he has been in power for over 30 years, and it wouldn’t be the first time that allegations of unfair elections would be brought up. This year, Bobi Wine was bound to be a crowd favourite among the youth, and so to prevent this, Museveni ordered a complete internet blackout both before, during, and after the elections were concluded. In the previous elections he had ordered a shutdown of all social media, but this time he took it a step further. Not only this, but Wine had been arrested multiple times in the months preceding the poll, for allegedly violating COVID-19 regulations, and then when protests for free speech and free elections ensued, military personnel were employed, armed with tear gas and bullets, and over 54 people were killed.
During the presidential campaign, countless opposition members, journalists, and supporters were arrested and beaten up, and many rallies were banned, in Museveni’s fervent attempts at ensuring a majority. Then, when Wine stated that he would legally dispute the fairness of the results, his home was surrounded by security forces, not allowing anyone in or out, thus irrefutably restricting his freedom.
Other human rights violations
Although the internet was reinstated a few days after the elections, social media was still banned for a while, raising questions about the country’s censorship policies and the reasoning behind them. Enforced disappearances and abductions of opposition members still take place to this day, and on March 5th, Wine’s party declared that 423 of their members/ supporters were still missing after being abducted, with only 41 being released. Such abductions and arbitrary detainments are illegal under international law, and in addition to all this, riots and protests are still being obstructed, essentially taking away power from the opposition, which is one of the key elements of a democracy: without a fair and unstifled opposition, who is going to keep the government and those in power in check?
Such occurrences and issues are not novel on the international scene, however, they must be dealt with in a concise and rapid manner, to avoid any future escalation, and to ensure that democracy and freedom of speech are respected. Concern regarding the safety of Ugandan citizens is by no means unreasonable, however as events will continue to unfold, the international community can only hope that Uganda will not succumb to the fates that other African nations have had to deal with in the past.
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