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wretched: IDPs on the run in
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I am amazed at the level of xenophobia in this country. You should have
seen the language of the text messages and phone calls I received because
of my thoughts last week. Anyway, for the record, let me state that my
beef on the issue of Bakiga in Kibaale is with our national leadership.
It�s got nothing to do with the land grievance of the Banyoro and in
fact I think it is a legitimate one. The only problem is that in blaming
the Bakiga for the land problems of Bunyoro is misdirected anger. History
clearly states that the Banyoro were dispossessed of this land by the
invading colonial forces supported by the Baganda. This land was then
distributed to various Baganda generals and administrators as a reward for
their support of the colonial war and administration. This injustice was
never reversed, not even by the hoax that was the 1964 referendum that
purported to return the lost counties back to Bunyoro.
In 1979, the
Baganda landlords who own vast tracts of land in Bunyoro learnt that the
effect of the referendum was to transfer administrative authority of the
counties from Buganda to Bunyoro. The land remained in the hands of
absentee landlords in Buganda who then proceeded to mortgage it to finance
their less contentious businesses in Kampala. Others decided to flog it on
the market on a willing seller/buyer basis and this is where your average
Mukiga comes in to buy.
These then encouraged their relatives to
migrate to Bunyoro and buy land, which was available for sale. The return
on this investment has been impressive considering the level of success
that many of the migrants have achieved. This, it seems to me, is what has
ticked off the groups in Kibaale that are agitating for the eviction of
Bakiga from the land. How else does one explain the xenophobia that was
used by these elements remove a duly elected leader purely on the basis
that he was a Mukiga?
There is of course the group from Toro, which
was resettled in Kibaale in an area formerly designated as a game reserve.
This turned to be a hard one for the Banyoro to swallow. They argued that
since the government had failed to redress the injustice of land ownership
by absentee landlords, they should have been given first priority to
settle on this land. Let me say that I identify with this sentiment
although this need not have been done either to the exclusion of or the
disadvantage of the Bakiga. Everyone could have been accommodated in the
resettlement deal. The other reason for deserving first priority is that
the Banyoro have first claim as the descendants of the area. Apart from
being a stupid and self-serving argument it is hardly borne out by
history.
The failure here was that of government and not the imaginary
notion that Bakiga have moved from the south-west of this country to grab
land in Bunyoro. The government failed to uphold the right of its citizens
to live in Toro on the grounds that they were not born there. They
compounded this by accepting to resettle these people anywhere and thus
making the point that government can compromise on this issue. Now I hear
that there is a proposal to resettle these people in Kyankwanzi. I think
that this merely postponing the problem and that eventually these people
will wind up settling outside parliament. The answer is for the government
to enforce the right of the Bakiga to stay in Kibaale on land they have
acquired lawfully. It should then work on the politics of ensuring that
this solution is accepted.
The other thrust of the Kasirivu argument
is that the Banyoro were willing to be generous in hosting the Bakiga
because there was a surplus of land. Now that their own populations are
growing they are justified in driving out the Bakiga to create living
space for their progeny. Those of us who live in a modern economy believe
that land is a commodity to be exchanged on the market. This kind of
sentimental approach normally leads to low productivity because it is not
used optimally. So if the land in the area can no longer support the
population of the area the answer is to offer alternative settlement
opportunities for the Banyoro.
I therefore believe that the solution
is to protect the Bakiga who have acquired land lawfully. The other is for
the government to address the issue of injustice to Banyoro whose land was
forcefully taken and is now in the hands of absentee landlords from
Buganda. This can be bought back and given to the Banyoro by government.
This discussion however needs to be conducted in a sober manner, and not
with the likes of those masquerading in the name of Bunyoro patriotism
that have added arrogance to the reasons for evicting Bakiga.
Eends
Published on: Sunday, 8th June,
2003 |
The
Mulindwas Communication Group
"With Yoweri Museveni, Uganda is in
anarchy"
Groupe de communication Mulindwas
"avec Yoweri Museveni, l'Ouganda est dans
l'anarchie"
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