Getting Alalo's remains still a far cry

The team that had gone to Ethiopia. Photos by Stuart Yiga

ALALO    REMAINS    FAMILY

After spending a week in Ethiopia trying to get the remains of the fallen Uganda Police officer Christine Alalo, the team has come back empty-handed.

Alalo was among the 157 victims of the ill-fated Ethiopian flight ET302, which crashed minutes after take at Addis Ababa.

A week ago, the Police spokesperson, Fred Enanga disclosed that the team they had dispatched to Addis Ababa was led by their Medical Services Director, Dr. Moses Byaruhanga, in accompaniment of the late Alalo's children; Emmanuel Junior Ahimbisibwe and Alvin Asiimwe.

According to Peter Elamu, the brother to the late Alalo, he says they are optimistic since experts already carried out DNA tests from the two children and their brother; soon they will find her remains and accord it a decent burial.

"Well, the team came back and the DNA test was done only that they told us it would take some time, but we hope everything will be ok," he said.

The death of Alalo sent shock waves to the country and her homes district, where a district council passed a resolution to honour her.

Who was Alalo?
Alalo was born in 1970 to Jane Apubo and Stanley Etori, a retired civil servant. She is the ninth child in a family of 16. She studied from Moroto Municipal Council Primary School up to Primary five. She then moved to Swairia Primary School in Soroti, where she completed her primary level in 1985.

In 1986, she joined Tororo Girls for ‘O' level and later joined Immaculate Heart Girs' Secondary School in Rukungiri district for A'level.

She went to Makerere University where she studied a bachelors' degree in Social Sciences', majoring in sociology. In 1996, she graduated and later got married to Alex Kamujuni, but unfortunately passed on in a car accident at Bweyogerere, on his way back home in 2004. At this time, her first born, Emmanuel Junior Ahimbisibwe, was aged four years-old while Alvin Asiimwe, was aged three years-old.

Previously, she headed Children and Family Protection Unit, a department in Police that handles child abuse and gender-based violence in Police across the country, at the time of her death; she was attached to AMISOM in Somalia.

She also worked with the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) as Police Advisor in Juba for two years (2007-2009)

AMISOM/AU mourn Alalo
During the Inter-Denomination Memorial Service in Somalia, officials praised the late Alalo, for her outstanding contribution towards restoration of peace in Somalia through championing community policing among the children and women in several villages in Somalia.

Among the dignitaries' that recognized the late for her dedicated services to AMISOM included; Lisa Filipetto, the head United Nations Support Office in Somalia (UNSOS), Rex Dundun, AMISOM Police Chief of staff, Francisco Caetano Madeira, the African Union Special representative, among others.