When Protectors Become Killers
For a silent village in the north-eastern parts
of Uganda, 16 June comes with memories; not ones of birthdays and anniversaries
but those of pain and loss. Indeed 16 June remains stuck in the minds of many for
this is the day when the community of Obalanga in Amuria district commemorates
the days in June 2003 when the Lord’s Resistance Amy (LRA) infiltrated Teso
sub-region in eastern Uganda for the first time. The civilian population
and the government army were caught unaware, a factor which had disastrous
humanitarian implications. In line with their trademark pattern of atrocities,
the rebel soldiers carried out killings, abductions, maiming, looting, rape
arson and pillaging. By the time the Uganda People’s Defense Force (UPDF)
repulsed them, almost 8 months later, approximately 90% of the population in
Teso sub-region had been displaced into internally displaced persons (IDP)
camps, several thousand children had been abducted and thousands of people had
lost their lives and property.
Reading the Justice and Reconciliation Project (JRP) report of
2012 about the said LRA attack titled “the day they came” reminds me of Kenya’s
“operation okoa maisha” (save lives) by the Kenya Defense Forces (KDF) in Mount
Elgon, western Kenya. When soldiers who are meant to protect the people
literally prey on them. The JRP report documents the events of those days in
mid-June when the people of Obalanga went all the way to hell and back. Apart
from the atrocities committed by the LRA, the report contains a whole section
titled “when protectors turn perpetrators.” This recounts painful experiences
and horrors of the community in the hands of the very people they expected to
come to their aid, government soldiers. For instance, it is reported that in
Obalanga Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camp, civilians often became
victims of the UPDF soldiers guarding the camp.
Disturbing stories on how victims were bombed by the UPDF
helicopter gunships in Angica and Morungatuny as the army ‘hunted for LRA
rebels’ have been documented. Most of the civilians had fled the villages
and sought refuge in Obalanga IDP camp. This particular group of people
remained to nurse a sick person, who was critically ill and could not flee with
the others to safety. As they went about attending to the sick and performing
domestic chores, a helicopter gunship suddenly emerged from the direction of
Obalanga at around 4:00pm, and on sighting them, immediately opened fire. The
civilians scampered for safety as bombs exploded to their left and right. One
survivor lost five members of her family in that incident. After the helicopter
departed, the survivors of the incident were left with the remains of their
relatives and the smoke and ashes from the mortar shells.
The burials were conducted the following day, but under pressure
from the UPDF, the people had to hurry up with the burials because many were
afraid that the LRA could still be nearby. The soldiers even forbade the
relatives of the dead to weep loudly, in fear that it would attract the LRA’s
attention. Even though it is possible that the helicopter gunship could have
mistaken the civilians for rebels, the surviving relatives of the victims are
still bitter about the incident since they tried to signal the soldiers that
they were innocent civilians with raised hands, signals that soldiers ignored
and went on to flatted the village with bombs. In neighboring Morungatuny sub‐county,
another incident of a helicopter gunship bombing civilians had been earlier
reported. This particular incident involved approximately 50 civilians who had
left the safety of Morungatuny to look for food. Two people died on the spot
and several others were injured. Many women, whose husbands were killed by the
UPDF, both in the helicopter attacks and numerous other ground
attacks, had to struggle on their own to build new homes, or rely on the
goodwill of neighbors, relatives and some humanitarian agencies.
Most of the incidences have never been investigated, leave alone
holding the soldiers who committed those crimes accountable, despite the fact
that victims have since been able to identify the officers that committed
crimes. In addition, Survivors and surviving relatives of the victims have
never been compensated. Obalanga remains a community waiting for justice;
thirsting for some even though President Yoweri Museveni promised to compensate
victims for health complications. The UPDF has neither apologized nor issued
any public statement to the families of the victims either in Morungatuny or
Angica. The bitter memories of June are the lot of the people in a peasant
Obalanga community. Just when shall they ever receive justice? Who will wipe
their tears?
When Protectors Become Killers
Reviewed by Ibrahim Magara
on
June 21, 2016
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