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First UDU post-Boston conference board teleconference

The teleconference took place on October 24, 2011

The primary purpose was to take stock of the decisions and recommendations at the Boston conference of October 8, 2011 and agree on the next steps.

The meeting also adopted the report of the teleconference of October 2, 2011 as presented.

The Boston conference was well attended by participants who travelled from many places and our hosts in Massachusetts. FDC was officially represented and made a statement.

1. The main item for the Boston conference was the National Recovery Plan (NRP). Participants praised the plan for its clarity, substance and recommendations. After extensive interactive discussion the report was adopted as an alternative development model to NRM’s failed policies. At the request of some participants who endorsed the plan but needed more time to submit written comments, the deadline was extended to December 31, 2011.

2. Delegations commended the committee (now board) for excellent work and timely completion of what it was mandated to do and more in a short time of three months during summer vacation season. Extra work included creation of the website, email addresses of board members, the letterhead and diplomatic outreach.

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Banyankole are not responsible for the suffering in Uganda

Accusations have increased in frequency and intensity that Banyankole have primary responsibility for the suffering being experienced in Uganda, implying punitive measures when the time comes. There were reports that after the brutal manner in which the demonstrators were handled in Kampala in 2009 by security forces, some people vowed that Banyankole would pay a commensurate price including innocent ones that had nothing to do with the disproportionate use of force. Anybody coming from southwest Uganda has been defined as a Munyankole and some of them have been assaulted. Banyankole are therefore wondering on which side to stand: with a tiny group of rulers from Ankole who are causing the chaos and suffering in Uganda or those who are opposed but have vowed to punish any Munyankole when the time comes.

Warnings have gone out that those who accuse Banyankole either in their individual capacity or as representatives of groups should check their facts first to avoid harming innocent people. Southwest Uganda has a complex history of rulers and ruled and of immigrants especially since the late 1950s who pose as Banyankole or Bakiga. We therefore need to know who is who from southwest Uganda and who is doing what. Without this disaggregated information innocent Banyankole and Bakiga or their properties may end up in trouble for nothing.

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Change is coming to Uganda

Change is coming. There is no doubt about that. What is unclear is when and how. Change could come sooner than later as it did in 1979 and 1985 that took the country and new leaders by surprise, calling for preparedness just in case (UDU already has a National Recovery Plan). It could come through violence or peaceful means. Our conclusion that change is coming is based on history lessons and internal dynamics in present day Uganda.

In societies where change has taken place, there was by and large external influence and internal discontent. Regarding external factors, the American Revolution was influenced by the writings of European enlightenment thinkers about liberty, equality, separation of power and Thomas Paine’s advice on independent America. The internal discontent was caused largely by British taxation of Americans without being representation in British parliament. The French Revolution was influenced by European enlightenment writers and French soldiers experience in America’s war of independence which made the Old Regime in their country anachronistic. Internal discontent was generated by the wide gap between the privileged high clergy and nobility who did not pay taxes to the government but taxed commoners for their own use and government revenue. The nobility and the clergy that constituted 3 percent of total population owned 40 percent of total land. The Russian Revolution was impacted by external and internal factors similar to those in France. In Eastern Europe, the influence of Radio Free Europe among others and Gorbachev’s restructuring and openness reforms together with economic failures of socialism generated forces for the 1989 revolutions. Thus, revolutions in America, France, Russia and Eastern Europe were created by external and internal dynamics. What about Uganda?

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Let us not start war against NRM government

We know that when a government fails to take responsibility for the welfare of the people, it should be removed from power. In the last 26 years NRM government has failed to deliver basic services. Ugandans have tried to remove it from power through the ballot box without success. And it is not likely to happen in the foreseeable future without term limits and an independent electoral commission. Logically, some Ugandans are reasoning that since the ballot box has failed, we must resort to war. But some Ugandans have said no. This does not mean that those who do not want war are cowards. It means that they are pragmatic. Starting a war against a recognized government regardless of how it came into power will be condemned by the international community and come to the government’s rescue. In fact, NRM would welcome such attack to give it a golden opportunity to arrest real and imagined enemies of the state in the name of national security against terrorists and put them away for good. It would also help NRM divert development resources to war efforts and impoverish Ugandans further without being blamed. So Ugandans eager to fight need to understand fully the environment at home and abroad in which they are operating before definitive actions are taken.

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M7 address to NEC is a glass half full

I have followed closely Museveni’s statements at home and abroad. When he began his presidency, the focus of his statements was on ending the suffering of the people of Uganda. He stressed at international conferences and summits that his government was interested in eradicating poverty, not reducing it. Uganda would be an industrialized nation within fifteen years with middle class citizens. He had no doubts about that. He used strong sound bites like metamorphosis and fundamental change to convey his message that he was a new leader on the block. He wanted every Ugandan to eat balanced diet, dress well including shoes, get quality and relevant education and healthcare and find a remunerative job in decent working conditions. He emphasized environmental rehabilitation and sustainable management and ordered his staff into action. He underscored processing of Uganda’s raw materials to add value and increase product longevity as a strategy to economic independence. Uganda would pursue a non-aligned foreign policy, establish good neighborly relations and fight for human rights around the world. And the world applauded.

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National Recovery Plan (NRP)

Executive Summary

The NRP is based on a vision of free, united and prosperous Uganda and a mission of rule of law, equality and justice for all Ugandans.

Despite its natural resource abundance, resilient people and strategic geographical location at the heart of Africa, Uganda has remained a poor country with over 50 percent of its population of some 33 million living in absolute poverty because of inappropriate policies, political instability, wars and, above all, rampant corruption, sectarianism and mismanagement of public funds. Uganda has been declared a failed state under military dictatorship disguised as democracy. The country is in deep political, economic, social, spiritual and environmental crisis. Corruption has spread and deepened becoming endemic and a principal constraint in Uganda’s development process. NRM has lost the will and capacity to address these challenges. It has resorted to electoral malpractices to stay in power and use of force to frustrate Ugandans demanding change. Consequently, Ugandans and increasingly development partners are losing confidence in the NRM government.

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Statement on the Gross Violation of Ingrid Turinawe’s Human Rights

Gender Department (UDU)

By Dorothy Lubowa

The rule of law is enshrined in the constitution of Uganda but it is hardly observed by the Ugandan government. Rule of law has beenupheld by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights since 1948 and, as a result, has become a part of international customary law binding on all members of the United Nations including Uganda. Uganda has ratified the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights which protects the rights of all Ugandans to associate, assemble and express themselves as they see fit. Ugandan citizens, under the constitution of Uganda and the Convention Against Torture, have a right to be free from torture and inhumane treatment by the officials of their government.

Therefore all women of Uganda, and men who support them,in the international community:

Condemn the behavior of the Uganda Police who tortured IngridTurinawe while illegally arresting her without justifiable cause;

Are seriously disgusted by the silence of the government of Uganda and NRM regime on the issue of abusing women rights by the police;

Are further astounded and enraged by the savage violation of feminine dignity by the Ugandan police who denied committing the atrocities recorded on video available on u tube at http://www.youtube.com/user/ntvuganda;

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M7 address to NEC is a glass half full

I have followed closely Museveni’s statements at home and abroad. When he began his presidency, the focus of his statements was on ending the suffering of the people of Uganda. He stressed at international conferences and summits that his government was interested in eradicating poverty, not reducing it. Uganda would be an industrialized nation within fifteen years with middle class citizens. He had no doubts about that. He used strong sound bites like metamorphosis and fundamental change to convey his message that he was a new leader on the block. He wanted every Ugandan to eat balanced diet, dress well including shoes, get quality and relevant education and healthcare and find a remunerative job in decent working conditions. He emphasized environmental rehabilitation and sustainable management and ordered his staff into action. He underscored processing of Uganda’s raw materials to add value and increase product longevity as a strategy to economic independence. Uganda would pursue a non-aligned foreign policy, establish good neighborly relations and fight for human rights around the world. And the world applauded.

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Only true democracy will end Uganda suffering and insecurity

Holding regular elections even if free and fair does not constitute democracy. It is just a small part of a bigger package. In Uganda elections are held basically for two reasons: to give NRM legitimacy and to meet the requirement for foreign aid and technical assistance. To many Ugandans true democracy occurs when public opinion helps shape government policies and behavior including accountability. In Uganda what NRM is doing has very little, if at all, to do with public opinion. What Ugandans want is very clear and simple and we have the means to deliver but NRM leadership is not interested. Ugandans want a country and society that is peaceful, stable and free from absolute poverty which Robert McNamara, former World Bank President, described as “a condition of life so degraded by disease, illiteracy, malnutrition, and squalor as to deny its victims basic human necessities” as well as freedom from abuse of human rights and fundamental freedoms.

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If M7 hears peoples’ grievances and acts, a revolution will be averted

Revolutions that overthrow long established regimes happen swiftly. But conditions leading up to them take longer to crystallize. Revolutions thus occur in countries where regimes are incapable of adjusting to the demands of the people. Revolutions such as those in France, Mexico and Russia occur in stages. They are preceded by enlightenment or reform movements whose suggestions are ignored, then the regime collapses followed by a full scale civil war. Countries where revolutions occur exhibit similar characteristics. In France, Mexico and Russia the respective previous decade was marked by famine and economic crisis. The three countries were also predominantly agrarian in which the peasants who formed the majority of the population were exploited and starving. The three elements of hunger, economic crisis and agrarian society define today’s Uganda.

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