UGANDA

COMPENDIUM OF CONFLICTS IN UGANDA
By the 1980s, the rebel group Federal Democratic Movement for Uganda (FEDEMU)
led by George Nkwanga, emerged in hopes of establishing a federal state with more
autonomy for the Buganda region. 93 Under the current regime of President Yoweri
Kaguta Museveni, multiple altercations with the Central Government have continued
to undermine the relationship between the Buganda Kingdom and the State. From
1992-1993, the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) insurgency led by Major Itongwa, a
National Resistance Army (NRA) renegade, called for the restoration of a federal system. 94
Later, in 2009, a Governmental decision to stop the current Kabaka of Buganda, Ronald
Mutebi, from visiting Kayunga, provoked huge protests in which many people died and
Kampala ground to a standstill. Governmental efforts to give away part of Mabira forest
to investors sparked further mass protests in 2010, and tensions mounted following a
mysterious arson attack on the Kasubi tombs.
The Central Government and the Buganda Kingdom remain in conflict over the control
and ownership of resources within Buganda, and over Buganda’s autonomy from state
interference. One senior citizen interviewed in Mukono commented;
“If the Central Government is not willing to cooperate with
Buganda Kingdom, then they should take away the capital
city (Kampala) from Buganda land to western Uganda and
leave us alone.”
93 Research conducted in Nakasongola District
94 Research conducted in Luwero District
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