UGANDA

NORTHERN CONFLICTS
52. NRA/UPDF vs Karimojong conflict (1986 - present)
Conflict between the Karimojong and Ugandan state continued under Museveni’s regime
with the National Resistance Army (NRA) and later the UPDF as key actors. Immediately
after coming to power, NRA soldiers used ‘Kandoya’ (a method of torture used by NRA
soldiers that constituted tying both hands of suspected rebel collaborators in a backward
position) against the Karimojong. The conflict between the army and communities was
ultimately based on the possession of small arms by Karimojong communities. In the
remote region in Uganda, small arms are said to be central to security and livelihood. 290
Initially, President Museveni allowed the Karimojong to keep some firearms for selfdefence
against the Turkana and Pokot cattle raiders of Kenya and Uganda and the Toposa of
southern Sudan. 291 However, the Ugandan Government underestimated the community’s
perception of the importance of weapons and the Karimojong increased the number of
weapons in their communities, leading to a high prevalence of armed violence and fatalities. 292
The Government’s response over the last decade has been a number of disarmament
programmes. A voluntary disarmament campaign in 2001 was followed by forceful
disarmament in 2002. The latter resulted in several violent confrontations between
the Karimojong warriors and the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) and several
deaths. 293 These two campaigns informed the Karamoja Integrated Disarmament and
Development Programme (KIDDP), implementation of which started in 2005, becoming
increasingly coercive over the following two years. ‘Cordon and search’ methods
in particular occasioned 294 various human rights abuses. ,295 It has been argued that
these operations have not been successful and, due to the lack of alternative security
provisions, have in fact contributed to an escalation in armed violence. 296
This is particularly the case since the disarmament was unevenly enforced and did not
happen across the border in neighbouring countries. The disarmament operations
saw several violent confrontations between Government forces and the Karimojong
warriors and have entrenched perceptions in Karimojong communities of the state and
national army as the enemy (“ariang”) rather than as institutions providing services and
protection.
290 Mwaura, C. (2005) Kenya and Uganda pastoral conflict case study (No. HDOCPA-2005-20). Human
Development Report Office (HDRO), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
291 Ibid
292 Bevan J. (2008) Crisis in Karamoja: Armed violence and the failure of disarmament in Uganda’s most
deprived region, Small Arms Survey
293 CDRN, CAFOD & UEC. (2007) The Search for Alternative Initiatives for Sustainable Livelihoods, Peace and
Development in Karamoja. pp. 34-38
294 Bevan, J. (2008) Crisis in Karamoja: Armed violence and the failure of disarmament in Uganda’s most
deprived region, An occasional paper of the Small Arms Survey, Small Arms Survey, Graduate Institute
of International and Development Studies; Human Rights Watch. (2007) Get the gun: Human rights
violations by Uganda’s national army in law enforcement operations in Karamoja Region. September. 19
(13A)
295 Human Rights Watch (2007) Get the gun: Human rights violations by Uganda’s national army in law
enforcement operations in Karamoja Region. September. 19 (13A)
296 Bevan J. (2008) Crisis in Karamoja: Armed violence and the failure of disarmament in Uganda’s most
deprived region, Small Arms Survey.
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