2015 Autumn GTM (SA)

Laying a Secure
Foundation in
Karamoja
Humans crave security in all areas of life, from
finances to relationships to health. In many
countries, numerous resources are available to aid
individuals in the quest for a comfortable lifestyle.
For the Karamojong tribes, located in Uganda’s
northeast region, however, modern conveniences
and comforts do nothing for the insecurity with
which they are plagued.
The Feinstein International Centre conducted a
study in the Karamoja region to help understand
the manifestations and sources of this wide-spread
insecurity. The study concluded that a number
of factors contribute to the high stress levels in
Karamoja. Armed livestock raids along with smaller
scale livestock thefts, destruction of property,
personal injury, death, sexual assault and revenge
attacks were found to cause continuous devastation
for families in the region.
In the same study, a group of women from the
Matheniko community expressed their thoughts:
“In the past, we had days of much sorghum. We
had peace. We could move around in this area. We
had animals at home. The insecurity, now, is spoiling
everything. We could deal with the famine if it
weren’t for the insecurity.”
2015 Autumn/Winter
29