Kony will soon be history - Museveni By Carolyne Nakazibwe
President Yoweri Museveni has blamed the insurgency in northern Uganda on colonial authorities, who engraved in Ugandans� minds that people from the north were fit only for fighting. Museveni said the colonialists and subsequent national governments also told Ugandans that people from southern Uganda were good only at civil service duties, a fact that has prompted insurgencies in the north since the Movement government came to power in 1986. Most of the top leaders in the Movement in 1986 were from southern Uganda. Museveni, however, said the Joseph Kony-led Lord�s Resistance Army would �soon be a thing of the past�. The president�s remarks are contained in a speech to mark the Movement�s 17th anniversary, to be celebrated on Jan. 26. Museveni has on several occasions said the 17-year-old war in the north is going to be finished, although some politicians in the region have remained sceptical about the success of military means. Last year, the president shifted base to Gulu, to oversee the war operations. �Without security, there will be no investor confidence," Museveni said. "Without investing there cannot be development. Recurrent incidents of murders in the national parks in the past have damaged our tourism. It is therefore erroneous to argue that you are fighting poverty and promoting development without guaranteeing security.� Museveni said because of the colonial ideologies about the population, the regimes that followed did not decolonise the army and build a pro-people security system. �Consequently the country was treated to state-inspired violence, extra-judicial executions, rape of women by the army and robbing of the population,� Museveni said. He said when the NRM came to power, the infrastructure, economy and security system had broken down. The president also said if there were no conflicts, the country�s achievement of a 6.5 percent GDP growth since 1986 would have been much higher. He said because of the importance of peace to a country�s development, this year�s theme for the anniversary would be Consolidation of Peace in the Country. Museveni said the country�s defence system is currently undergoing review and the country would continue to build capacity. __________________________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Mail Plus - Powerful. Affordable. Sign up now. http://mailplus.yahoo.com
