Why write this article at this time
I have written this article for posterity. I have thought long and hard about this subject. In the end I decided to go ahead and write the story fully aware of the dangers to me, my family, relatives and friends. When I wrote the article in Uganda’s Observer newspaper about “How Rujumbura’s Bairu got impoverished” many readers expressed shock about how man can deliberately destroy another man. A few others attacked me viciously for being sectarian and full of hatred. They even distorted what I was saying to score a psychological point, scare me and force me into obscurity. The plan did not work and I have since written more provoking some to describe me as ignorant, insane and a bigot.
Relations between Bahororo and Bantu peoples in Rujumbura County
Relations between Bahororo (Nilotic Batutsi from Rwanda) and the indigenous Bantu people (dubbed Bairu or slaves) have been marked by domination, humiliation, exploitation, impoverishment and marginalization of Bairu by Bahororo. Bahororo are Batutsi from Rwanda who came to Rujumbura around 1800 in search of refuge after their short-lived Mpororo kingdom (hence the name Bahororo or people of Mpororo) had disintegrated and was taken over by Bahima of Nkore under Bahinda ruling clan.
Bahororo brought with them the feudal mentality of lords and serfs that existed in Rwanda. They came with the hamitic myth of physical and military superiority, intelligent, white, born leaders to rule over ugly, short, unintelligent people whose job was to serve them as serfs as existed in Rwanda.
Situation before Bahororo arrived in Rujumbura
Before Bahororo arrived in Rujumbura of Rukungiri district of south west Uganda, indigenous Bantu people were known by their clan names. They practiced mixed farming growing a wide variety of crops, herding short-horn cattle, goats and sheep, manufacturing many products using abundant natural resources especially iron ore. They manufactured farm implements such as hoes, machetes, axes, and wooden products including canoes, ceramics and a wide range of other products like cloth from bark material, hides and skins, baskets, and mats.
They ate adequate and balanced meals combining home grown produce with wild game meat, fish, fruits and vegetables. They were healthy and their population grew fast and lived in settled communities requiring an appropriate governance system. They had kings with palaces, chiefs and councils of clan heads as appropriate to maintain law and order, settle disputes when they arose and protect the people against external attack. Inter-community or inter-tribal relations were maintained through cooperation and preventive diplomacy thereby minimizing conflicts (B. A. Ogot 1976 and R. W. July 1998). Accordingly, there was no need to build sophisticated war machines. This was the situation of healthy, wealthy and peaceful people when Bahororo arrived around 1800 led by Rwebiraro of Bashambo ruling clan.
Then entered Bahororo and hell broke loose
With their feudal mentality and military experience and a standing army (G. N. Uzoigwe 1982) Bahororo quickly overwhelmed innocent, peaceful and unarmed people. They gave indigenous people a new name of Bairu (slaves), occupied their grazing land and replaced Bantu’s short horn cattle with long horn ones they brought with them. Bairu were prevented from owning cattle and were thus deprived of a source of food (meat and milk), a store of value, means of exchange, capital accumulation and a symbol of prestige. Bahororo forced Bairu to graze goats to supply meat to Bahororo thus depriving Bairu of yet another source of protein. Since Bahororo do not cultivate which is considered below their dignity, Bairu grew food for them in exchange for so-called unspecified protection which was a convenient device to extract food, drinks and labor for free.
When Arab and Swahili slave hunters arrived with European weapons, Bahororo collaborated with them and they terrorized indigenous people. “For example, Makobore a Muhororo of Bashambo ruling clan, the king of Rujumbura, [described as restless by Paul Ngorogoza 1998] employed them [Arabs] in his raids against Butumbi and Kayonza.
“The important social effect of the coming of the coastal traders on the people of south-western Uganda was arms trade [including with Bahororo]. Weaker societies [of Bairu] were raided for slaves [in collaboration with Bahororo] while intense warfare became rampant” (B. A. Ogot 1976). These are facts as recorded by historians.
When the British arrived in the area at the start of the 20th century, Bairu had been so thoroughly beaten and humiliated that there was no resistance which gave a wrong impression to the British that the area was peaceful under Makobore whom the British chose over other chiefs to be their agent under the indirect rule system.
All people of Rujumbura became Bahororo
At the time of British colonization, Rujumbura had two ethnic groups: Bahororo (Nilotic ruling class), and Bairu serf class (formerly indigenous Bantu people). For colonial administrative convenience one name of Bahororo was adopted and that is how all the people of Rujumbura became Bahororo with upper and lower classes. (1) Bahororo of the ruling upper class are Batutsi people from Rwanda and are erroneously referred to as Bahima, and (2) Bahororo of the lower serf class who have lived in the area for 3000 years.
The Bahororo who are ruling Uganda today are those Batutsi who came from Rwanda and live mostly in Ntungamo and Rujumbura of south west Uganda. Others are scattered in different parts of Uganda. Through an elaborate system of network they know themselves and help one another. Wherever they are men do not marry outside of their ethnic Nilotic group. They use local names and local language but they are still strictly Nilotic.
As an aside, in the western region it is the minority group of Bahororo and their Bahima cousins that are occupying senior and strategic positions in government, security forces and business sector. Those who write or comment on this subject must qualify what they are saying otherwise it may give the wrong impression that all from the western region are equally benefiting from the NRM government.
There is confusion about Bahima and Bahororo that needs to be removed. (1) There are no Bahima in Rujumbura. (2) When Bahima took over former Mpororo kingdom, all the people there became commoners and therefore Bairu (Chretien 2006). However, Bahororo from Rwanda have clung tenaciously to their Bahororo name. In disguise as in Rujumbura they refer to themselves as Bahima to avoid being called commoners and therefore Bairu (slaves). And (3) in Rujumbura there are Bahororo of the ruling upper class who came from Rwanda and Bahororo (Bairu) of the lower serf class (the indigenous Bantu people who were designated as Bahororo for administrative purposes under colonial administration and who are wallowing in absolute poverty, disease, hunger and illiteracy and whose land has been forced (disguised as through representative democracy) into the expanded municipality.
To avoid this confusion and abuse resulting from Bahororo and Bairu designations the indigenous Bantu people are discreetly referring to themselves as Banyarukungiri or Banyarujumbura. Those who want to confuse argue that all people of Ntungamo and Rujumbura are Bahororo who do not even have ethnic differences. These are two distinct ethnic groups: Nilotic Bahororo from Rwanda (whose ancestors were Nilotic Luo-speaking people who came from Southern Sudan), and Bahororo of Bantu origin from West Africa.
Bahororo from Rwanda continued as chiefs during colonial rule
To save on human and financial resources, Britain decided to employ African chiefs to administer the colony under the system of indirect rule. Bahororo chiefs were chosen over others. Just before independence in 1962 Rujumbura was ruled by the late Makobore, the late Karegyesa and the late Kitaburaza, all Bahororo of Bashambo clan as county chiefs. They continued to extract free food, drinks and labor from Bairu in addition to colonial taxes, free labor on public works and church tithes.
Bahororo have continued to dominate since independence in 1962
There was hope that with independence based on majority rule and free and fair elections Bairu who constitute the majority, and not Bahororo, would triumph. That dream was still born. Bahororo of the ruling class controlled the church and colonial administration. They used three strategies to cling to power. (1) They divided Bairu of the serf class who belonged to UPC (Uganda Peoples Congress a Protestant-based party) and DP (Democratic Party a Catholic-based party) and (2) decided that the candidate to run for parliament on UPC ticket to which Bahororo of the ruling class belonged must be selected by Protestant church leadership which they controlled. The Bairu serf candidate with a larger following was dropped. Since they had been chiefs and controlled all levels of colonial administration, they used civil servants to campaign for them. (3) Those Protestants who belonged to Bairu serf group were then accused of stealing and roasting the Kigezi king’s (Rutakirwa) cow. They were called all sorts of names, harassed and many left to settle in Toro and Bunyoro and others went into exile. The DP parliamentary candidate and his supporters were thoroughly harassed and cheated at the polls. Kam Karegyesa, a Muhororo of Bashambo clan got elected to Parliament.
Major General Jim Muhwezi enters Rujumbura politics
Since NRM came to power in Uganda in 1986 led by Museveni a Muhororo of Batutsi ancestry from Rwanda, all Bahororo and their Bahima and Batutsi cousins have benefited disproportionately. Major General (rtd) Jim Muhwezi a Muhororo of Batutsi ancestry from Rwanda as well chose to continue the 210-year old tradition of Bashambo clan of Bahororo to represent Rujumbura in parliament. With tons of money (and there are many stories about how he got this money) and his military background and operating in an environment of extreme poverty at household and institutional levels he simply bought his way. He donated generously to churches, schools and gave comfortable handshakes to leaders of all stripes. Peasants were given match boxes, a little salt, a piece of soap and others got soaked in cheap local brew in return for a promise to vote for him. Jim Muhwezi then disappears from peasants’ view after he is elected and returns with another ton of money at the next election time and repeats the same exercise.
Meanwhile, basic services have deteriorated including quality education, healthcare, nutrition and above all, absolute poverty has increased rapidly and the atmosphere stinks. A journalist wrote an article in Uganda newspapers on this subject. Because of absolute poverty in Rujumbura men are abandoning their families in search of work in faraway places which they cannot find.
Others are committing suicide because they cannot pay taxes and they believe they would rather die than face torture in jail and yet others have been shot at rallies for expressing their different political views. A student was killed at school and others injured for demanding better food.
When Jim Muhwezi reports that his job as MP for Rujumbura is to alleviate poverty at household level one wonders which households he is referring to. Certainly not the ones I have studied and wrote about in the Observer.
Finding a permanent solution to Bairu problem
With pressure mounting against Jim Muhwezi from Bairu, a permanent solution had to be found. He originated or supported the idea that areas mostly occupied by Bairu should be incorporated into the expanded municipality. Since most of the Bairu are totally or functionally illiterate peasants, they would not meet standards of a municipality including construction, land taxes and other municipal charges. They would be forced to sell at giveaway prices and thereby become landless and penniless. This is ethnic cleansing – pure and simple!
Why parliament’s approval of Rukungiri municipality should be annulled
The procedures at the district and parliament levels regarding the designation of Rukungiri municipality were totally ignored. There was no announcement by the Ministry of Local Government that Rukungiri town would be upgraded and expanded into a municipality, hence no debate on pros and cons. An emergency session of District Council members was held on a Friday and passed a resolution which was presented to parliament the following Monday by Jim Muhwezi, as opposed to the Minister of Local Government who has mandate to make the presentation to parliament. Surprisingly parliament approved the resolution.
Upon consultation, I have written to the Speaker of Uganda’s Parliament, with copies to the Prime Minister, who is leader of government, Leader of the Opposition and Uganda’s Ambassador to the United Nations in New York (where I work) who represents the President. I have requested that because the procedures were not followed and no consultations took place with the people who have been affected the approval should be nullified. I have not yet received a response. This is a good example of the stronger suffocating the weaker.
In order for all of us to live in a safer Rujumbura, decisions must bear in mind what is contained in Article II of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights which states that “All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood”.
Short of that there will be tyranny and anarchy. Rujumbura is steadily drifting in that direction.