Many readers have contacted and thanked me for the commendable work I am doing on Bahororo story. They think, however, that I have not done enough to explain who lived in Rujumbura and what they did before 1800 when Bahororo led by Bashambo clan under the leadership of Rwebiraro arrived in search of a new home 60-90 years after the disintegration of Mpororo kingdom which covered parts of southwest Uganda and northern Rwanda.
In Uganda Bahima, under the leadership of Bahinda clan, replaced Bahororo and renamed Bairu (slaves) or commoners the people they took over from Bahororo who had been called Bahororo – the people of Mpororo. Bahororo who founded Mpororo kingdom were Batutsi from Rwanda. So when they founded Mpororo all the people who had been living in the area and known by their clan names became Bahororo.
What we know is that Bantu speaking communities entered Uganda from the southwest corner where Rujumbura is located. They brought with them short-horn cattle, goats, sheep and technology. They cleared vegetation with hand hoes, axes and pangas. They grew more food and grazed their livestock on cleared forest land. They supplemented their cultivated foodstuffs with plenty of game meat, wild fish, fruits and vegetables. They ate well, developed immunity against diseases and increased their population size. They lived in scattered communities under their clan names like Bakimbiri. The also engaged in a wide range of manufactured products based on local materials like iron ore, timber, clay, cloth and mats based on abundant resources. They traded surplus foodstuffs and manufactured items in local and regional markets and accumulated wealth. Therefore contrary to popular belief, the indigenous people known by their clan names were not just mere cultivators.
Let me repeat the indigenous communities engaged in a wide range of economic activities ranging from producing foodstuffs, to collecting wild fish, fruits and vegetables and hunting wild game besides manufacturing a wide range of products. They were wealthy and healthy.
Also contrary to popular belief they were not stateless. Although they did not have parliament, cabinet and a president in the western sense they had adequate governance systems that kept law and order, settled disputes when they arose and defended themselves against external aggression.
Because they had everything in plenty – land, foodstuffs etc, there was no room for conflict and preparation for full scale and destructive warfare. They lived relatively peacefully with their neighbors. That was the situation up to 1800.
Then came Bahororo
Bahororo were culturally cattle keepers of the long-horn type. Traditionally cattle keepers live in hostile environments, relatively dry areas, characterized by shortages of pasture, water supplies and droughts. They therefore engage in constant fighting for pasture, water and cattle theft to increase their herds or replenish after a severe drought or theft. Therefore they are good fighters. There is evidence that while in Mpororo they fought a lot over cattle and were experienced fighters when they arrived in Rujumbura.
Secondly, Bahororo and their Bahima, Batutsi and Banyamulenge cousins do not like cultivation arguing that it is below their dignity but they enjoy food and beer. So they had to find a formula for exploiting the people they found in Rujumbura and obtain their food virtually for free. The following is what happened as I understand it.
They took over all the grazing land from the indigenous communities for their long-horn cattle and the short-horn cattle owned by the native people disappeared. Later with the arrival of Arabs and Swahili slave hunters who brought manufactured goods destroyed indigenous industrial sector. Consequently the indigenous people were reduced to cultivation – they did not choose it.
In order for Bahororo to access foodstuffs produced by native communities they came up with the idea of Bahororo ‘protecting’ the local communities they had now called Bairu (slaves) in exchange for tribute in terms of foodstuffs, drinks and free labor. When exchange of goods took place in a normal trading sense Bahororo exchanged infertile cows or bulls for agricultural produce – many times over Bairu never got paid or they were given meat when a Muhororo cow died whether the cultivator wanted meat of a dead cow or not. That is how local communities by then Bairu got impoverished and marginalized. They were not allowed to own fertile cows to produce and accumulate wealth. For this reason also they could not marry Bahororo girls because they did not have cattle for dowry.
The Arabs and Swahili slave hunters arrived at a time when Makobore, a Muhororo chief, assisted by Miranda was expanding his territory against strong resistance. Makobore was described as a restless man who with the help of Arabs and European weapons defeated indigenous communities and the defeated or weak natives were captured as slaves whom the Arabs shipped out of Africa to the Middle East and Asia.
Then came the British
The British wanted to rule colonized people through Africans to save on expenses and manpower. In Rujumbura and Kanungu they picked Makobore over other chiefs in the area. I do not know why. What is known is that Makobore chose to become part of Kigezi rather than Nkore presumably because Bahima chased Bahororo from former Mpororo which disappeared from the maps of Uganda – but has been restored after NRM came to power under the leadership of Bahororo.
Bairu then became Bahororo
For colonial administrative convenience, Kigezi’s many ethnic groups were merged into three groups – Bakiga, Banyarwanda and Bahororo. Since Makobore was a Muhororo, it was natural that all groups under his administration should become Bahororo. But there were two classes of Bahororo – Bahororo the rulers under Bashambo clan, and Bahororo the commoners or Bairu. Bahororo the rulers sometimes refer to themselves as Bahima thereby creating confusion. As far as I know, there are no Bahima in Rujumbura. There are Bahororo many of whom are the rulers of Uganda now.
That is why some Bairu people who do not have this background knowledge call themselves Bahororo and when they are lumped together with Bahororo proper – that is Batutsi who came from Rwanda through Mpororo kingdom which disintegrated after a short life span – do not know how to respond appropriately. Others deliberately accept to be referred to as Bahororo in order to gain access to the corridors of power in Uganda.
Because of this confusion and because they do not want to revert back to Bairu which means slave, some people from Rujumbura are quietly beginning to refer to themselves as Banyarujumbura or Banyarukungiri.
I hope this brief historical analysis clarifies a rather complex Bahororo story.