Kapchorwa local leaders in arms over park evictions
Kapchorwa district leaders are irked by the eviction of the Benet from the slopes of Mt Elgon by the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA). They have demanded that the exercise stops.
By Patrick Jaramogi
Kapchorwa district leaders are irked by the eviction of the Benet from the slopes of Mt Elgon by the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA). They have demanded that the exercise stops.
The evictions, conducted by UWA rangers, assisted by the UPDF, has left over 4,000 Benet/Ndorobos (800 families) homeless.
The evictions, that started on February 16, following the murder of a Belgian tourist, Annick De Vester, at Hunters Cave in Mt Elgon National Park, has caused tension and fear among the, Benet — the indigenous inhabitants of the mountain slopes.
“UWA did not inform the district authorities before the evictions. When I went to consult them, they chased me away,†said Nelson Kaprokuto Chelimo, the Kapchorwa district chairperson.
“They said the evictions followed orders from ‘above’. Hundreds of houses have been demolished and farms destroyed. We are now faced with an internal displacement problem of hundreds of people who are in urgent need of food and shelter. This is a violation of human rights.â€
In a recent meeting, the district council urged UWA to respect the October 27, 2005 High Court ruling that recognised the Benet as the indigenous inhabitants of the area.
With the help of Actionaid International Uganda, that provided advocacy to rid the Benet of landlessness, marginalisation and powerlessness, the tribe in 2000 filed a suit in Mbale High Court demanding that the 1983 line be recognised and that people living within the park be resettled. But after the first court hearing on June 24, 2004, the affected parties agreed to an out-of-court settlement that led to the signing of a consent agreement/judgment/decree on October 27, 2005.
In his ruling, Justice J.B. Katutsi, stated that: “The said community is entitled to stay in the said areas and to carry out agricultural and developmental activities undisturbed.â€
The judgment stated thus:
-The Benet community, including Yatui, Kwot and Kabsekek parishes, is historical and indigenous to the area declared a wildlife protected area or national park.
-The Benet community has the right to live, conduct “agricultural activities†in the areas they are currently inhabiting.
-The Uganda Wildlife Authority and the Attorney General must collaborate with the Benet community and de-gazette the areas in which the Benet people reside.
-Beginning FY2005/2006, the Attorney General must take immediate steps to “redress the imbalance†in social services in the Benet community.
Chelimo says two years down the road none of these rulings has been effected.
He said as a result of the delay to implement the judgment, tension has escalated among the Benet and UWA.
“We urge the Government to ensure that these consent agreements are implemented,†he says.
The resident district commissioner, Jane Francis Kuka, in a security meeting with the Third Division army commander, Brig. Patrick Kankiriho, recently, asked UWA to stop the exercise.
“We need tourism and trees, but we also need people. I was not informed about the evictions. The President says these people should not be evicted,†she said.
Kankiriho said the UPDF was simply deployed to oversee the evictions by UWA.
Maj. Henry Obbo, the Third Division army spokesman, said: “We have deployed in the mountains and shall stay as long as it takes. The UPDF was deployed following the murder of the Belgian tourist. We also want to stop cattle rustling, arms trafficking and the looming threat on tourism. Thugs are taking advantage of the situation in Kenya to cause mayhem, but we shall ensure that stability prevails,†he said.
UWA Mt Elgon National Park chief, Joshua Masereka, defended the evictions, saying: “We have always given the Benet time to vacate. We do not need them in the park.â€
Despite calls to halt evictions, the exercise has continued in Benet, 45km from Kapchorwa town. Huts in Yatui, Sab, Cepiren and Kwosir villages have been demolished.
“The situation is pathetic. People now live in classrooms, caves and under trees,†said David Kanda, the coordinator of the Benet lobby group.
Moses Kiptala, a resident of Ndorobo and Benet lobby group treasurer, said: “We started living here over 200 years ago. Why do they say we are encroaching on the park? It is the national park that has encroached on us.â€
He said over 200 displaced people are now camped in Cheskongo cave, a steep cliff in the mountain.
“We heard UWA officials telling us to vacate our houses in two hours. Soon after, we saw troops armed with guns, hammers, mattocks and pangas demolishing our huts,†said Cherotwo, a resident.
Siraj Chebet, the secretary for production in Kapchorwa local government, said 500 pupils had been displaced from their classrooms which are now occupied by the displaced.
“The evictees urgently need food, medicine and shelter,†he said. Chebet said the Office of the Prime Minister delivered 120 bags of maize flour and 110 bags of beans recently.
The state minister for tourism, Serapio Rukundo, who earlier met the district chairperson in Kampala and was due to visit Benet, said the operation was aimed at re-storing law and order in the park.
“Intelligence has been gathered relating to the shooting of the tourist and six suspects have been arrested and four rifles recovered from people who illegally settled in the park above the Benet area,†he said.
He said the encroachment issue is also being addressed in Sironko, Mbale, Bududa, Manafwa and Bukwa districts.
Kapchorwa district leaders are irked by the eviction of the Benet from the slopes of Mt Elgon by the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA). They have demanded that the exercise stops.
The evictions, conducted by UWA rangers, assisted by the UPDF, has left over 4,000 Benet/Ndorobos (800 families) homeless.
The evictions, that started on February 16, following the murder of a Belgian tourist, Annick De Vester, at Hunters Cave in Mt Elgon National Park, has caused tension and fear among the, Benet — the indigenous inhabitants of the mountain slopes.
“UWA did not inform the district authorities before the evictions. When I went to consult them, they chased me away,†said Nelson Kaprokuto Chelimo, the Kapchorwa district chairperson.
“They said the evictions followed orders from ‘above’. Hundreds of houses have been demolished and farms destroyed. We are now faced with an internal displacement problem of hundreds of people who are in urgent need of food and shelter. This is a violation of human rights.â€
In a recent meeting, the district council urged UWA to respect the October 27, 2005 High Court ruling that recognised the Benet as the indigenous inhabitants of the area.
With the help of Actionaid International Uganda, that provided advocacy to rid the Benet of landlessness, marginalisation and powerlessness, the tribe in 2000 filed a suit in Mbale High Court demanding that the 1983 line be recognised and that people living within the park be resettled. But after the first court hearing on June 24, 2004, the affected parties agreed to an out-of-court settlement that led to the signing of a consent agreement/judgment/decree on October 27, 2005.
In his ruling, Justice J.B. Katutsi, stated that: “The said community is entitled to stay in the said areas and to carry out agricultural and developmental activities undisturbed.â€
The judgment stated thus:
-The Benet community, including Yatui, Kwot and Kabsekek parishes, is historical and indigenous to the area declared a wildlife protected area or national park.
-The Benet community has the right to live, conduct “agricultural activities†in the areas they are currently inhabiting.
-The Uganda Wildlife Authority and the Attorney General must collaborate with the Benet community and de-gazette the areas in which the Benet people reside.
-Beginning FY2005/2006, the Attorney General must take immediate steps to “redress the imbalance†in social services in the Benet community.
Chelimo says two years down the road none of these rulings has been effected.
He said as a result of the delay to implement the judgment, tension has escalated among the Benet and UWA.
“We urge the Government to ensure that these consent agreements are implemented,†he says.
The resident district commissioner, Jane Francis Kuka, in a security meeting with the Third Division army commander, Brig. Patrick Kankiriho, recently, asked UWA to stop the exercise.
“We need tourism and trees, but we also need people. I was not informed about the evictions. The President says these people should not be evicted,†she said.
Kankiriho said the UPDF was simply deployed to oversee the evictions by UWA.
Maj. Henry Obbo, the Third Division army spokesman, said: “We have deployed in the mountains and shall stay as long as it takes. The UPDF was deployed following the murder of the Belgian tourist. We also want to stop cattle rustling, arms trafficking and the looming threat on tourism. Thugs are taking advantage of the situation in Kenya to cause mayhem, but we shall ensure that stability prevails,†he said.
UWA Mt Elgon National Park chief, Joshua Masereka, defended the evictions, saying: “We have always given the Benet time to vacate. We do not need them in the park.â€
Despite calls to halt evictions, the exercise has continued in Benet, 45km from Kapchorwa town. Huts in Yatui, Sab, Cepiren and Kwosir villages have been demolished.
“The situation is pathetic. People now live in classrooms, caves and under trees,†said David Kanda, the coordinator of the Benet lobby group.
Moses Kiptala, a resident of Ndorobo and Benet lobby group treasurer, said: “We started living here over 200 years ago. Why do they say we are encroaching on the park? It is the national park that has encroached on us.â€
He said over 200 displaced people are now camped in Cheskongo cave, a steep cliff in the mountain.
“We heard UWA officials telling us to vacate our houses in two hours. Soon after, we saw troops armed with guns, hammers, mattocks and pangas demolishing our huts,†said Cherotwo, a resident.
Siraj Chebet, the secretary for production in Kapchorwa local government, said 500 pupils had been displaced from their classrooms which are now occupied by the displaced.
“The evictees urgently need food, medicine and shelter,†he said. Chebet said the Office of the Prime Minister delivered 120 bags of maize flour and 110 bags of beans recently.
The state minister for tourism, Serapio Rukundo, who earlier met the district chairperson in Kampala and was due to visit Benet, said the operation was aimed at re-storing law and order in the park.
“Intelligence has been gathered relating to the shooting of the tourist and six suspects have been arrested and four rifles recovered from people who illegally settled in the park above the Benet area,†he said.
He said the encroachment issue is also being addressed in Sironko, Mbale, Bududa, Manafwa and Bukwa districts.