UGANDA

COMPENDIUM OF CONFLICTS IN UGANDA
Rwenzori sub-region. 59
In July 2012 violent ethnic clashes erupted in Bundibugyo District between the Baamba
and Bakonzo ethnic groups, resulting in the displacement of over 500 people. 60 This
happened shortly after the conclusion of the NRTJ Audit field-work, but participants had
already seen the violence coming. 61 They discussed a clash between identity, ownership
and belonging, vis-à-vis different cultural and political entities, such as the district and
cultural institutions as well as the state. They placed this in the context of a long history
of perceptions of historical marginalisation and subjugation of their region, first by the
Batooro in collaboration with the British, and later by the Ugandan Governments. With
a joint identity suppressed and threatened from the outside, the Baamba and Bakonzo
(together with a number of other smaller ethnic minorities) struggled jointly under the
banner of the Rwenzururu Movement. The Movement sought emancipation through
secession from the Batooro Kingdom, recognition of the Rwenzururu Kingdom and the
establishment of separate districts.
Under Idi Amin, in 1974, some of these demands were met through the creation of what
are now Kasese and Bundibugyo Districts. Under Museveni, the Baamba and Bakonzo
were recognized as separate tribes (as opposed to being considered part of the Batooro)
in the 1995 Constitution, and the Rwenzururu Kingdom was eventually recognized and
restored in 2007.
With the external threat to identity now reduced, the initial shared sense of identity
became fragmented and the sense of belonging and ownership shifted. This resulted in
new conflict dynamics in the sub-region. Kasese and Bundibugyo Districts, predominantly
inhabited by Bakonzo and Baamba respectively, now became the locations for politicized
ethnic conflict between formerly friendly majority and minority ethnic groups. Belonging
to the majority ethnic identity in these districts came to facilitate access to and ownership
of political power. With the recognition of and increasing power of the Rwenzururu
Kingdom, ethnic groups, such as the Baamba who had previously supported the idea of
the Kingdom, now reportedly turned against it as a Bakonzo imposed institution.
The themes of identity, ownership and belonging also surfaced in other localities.
The discourse of ‘nativism’ - whereby the ‘natives’ in a particular area turn against
‘immigrants’ or ‘newcomers’ - often extends beyond the boundaries of any given district.
In Bunyoro, for example, those who considered themselves to be natives of the land
lamented the presence of the Bakiga and Alur whom they considered ‘immigrants,’
despite the fact that the latter two groups have lived in the region for generations and
carry Ugandan citizenship.
Ethnic based political power, loyalties and marginalisation at national level were also
discussed. Participants emphasised the importance of national unity and harmony, but
59 The Rwenzori region consists of Bundibugyo, Kabarole, Kamwenge, Kasese and Kyenjojo. Out of these
districts, NRTJ Audit researchers only visited Bundibugyo and Kasese.
60 Similar clashes occurred exactly a year later
61 Most recently in July 2014, the region experienced renewed wave of ethnic clashes with simulateous
attacks in Bundibugyo, Kasese and Ntoroko districts killing over 90 people - see New Vision Monday July 07
2014
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