Somali mission was sanctioned by UN, AU!

Mar 12, 2007

SIR — The <i>East African</i> of march 5-11 published an article entitled “UPDF’s role in Somalia mission now in doubt”. Uganda’s participation cannot be “mind-boggling” or “ill-fated as the paper claims, considering the country’s earlier participation in peacekeeping in Liberia.

SIR — The East African of march 5-11 published an article entitled “UPDF’s role in Somalia mission now in doubt”. Uganda’s participation cannot be “mind-boggling” or “ill-fated as the paper claims, considering the country’s earlier participation in peacekeeping in Liberia.

Uganda is only part of a mission whose mandate is regulated by the African Union (AU) and therefore doubting the UPDF participation is doubting the entire AU and the UN which sanctioned the deployment of Uganda.

Several references in regard to the DRC were made in the article but let us remember that the misdeeds in the DRC were not a result of institutional policy but individual selfishness. Moreover, some of the implicated members were prosecuted for them. The $10b in damages referred to in the article was never ruled by the International Court of Justice.

It is the DRC which estimated that the damages could amount to $10b. The UPDF is a force that is conscious of Africa’s problems and is always ready to help when called upon.

Maj. Felix Kulayigye
Defence/UPDF spokesman

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