Govt ordered to pay Lango landlords Shs55b over camps
LRA war survivors attend a meeting at Barlonyo Memorial Site in 2017. PHOTO | BILL OKETCH
What you need to know:
- At least 5,506 land owners from the Lango Sub-region that suffered arbitrary and unlawful deprivation of the right to a clean and sustainable environment, will benefit from the compensation package.
The High Court in Lira City has ordered government to pay more than Shs55b to individuals affected by the creation of internally displaced people’s (IDP) camps during the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) conflict.
At least 5,506 land owners from the Lango Sub-region that suffered arbitrary and unlawful deprivation of the right to a clean and sustainable environment, will benefit from the compensation package.
While delivering the judgment on Tuesday, Justice Alex Mackay Ajiji observed that indeed the landlords had a cause of action against the government.
This, he said, was because their right to property and to a clean environment, was violated by the IDP camps and it’s the government to be held liable.
“The court orders the defendant (government) to pay the applicant compensation for the arbitrary and unlawful deprivation of the right to a clean and sustainable environment land that has been rendered infertile,” Justice Ajiji ruled.
He added: “The plaintiffs are, therefore, awarded compensation of Shs5m each.”
The decision of the court followed a law suit filed against government by Mr Jackson Oneka and 5,505 other landlords in 2016.
They had accused the government of violating their right to property and to a clean environment in the cause of the protracted conflict that lasted for at least two decades.
Facts
The landlords’ facts are that at the peak of LRA insurgency in northern Uganda (between 2003 and 2007), government came up with a policy to create IDP camps. Court heard that the creation of these camps was done throughout northern Uganda, including Lango Sub-region where the cause of action emanated from. The affected districts in Lango Sub-region were Lira, Otuke, Apac, Oyam, Dokolo and Kole.
The landlords claimed that during the period of the IDP camps, their soil and crops were destroyed by the people living there, for which they claimed compensation.
The landlords claimed they had planted various crops including orchards of pineapples, bananas, maize, potatoes, mangoes, avocadoes, oranges and some had planted or maintained eucalyptus, Nsambia, palm, shear nut and other natural trees, which were all eaten and destroyed.
They also contended that in their homes, they had graveyards, pit-latrines, residential houses and other domestic animals such as chicken, goats and pigs among others, which were destroyed.
Degraded environment
The landlords further alleged that the big population of IDPs destroyed their environment, which included their personal land measuring approximately 25,500 acres by polluting it with toxic chemicals, solid waste, plastic bags, deforestation, over use of land and in many other ways.
“Some dug house foundations, cut grass and leaves to build roofs, polluted the air by burning charcoal, and almost all used petroleum products for lighting hence pollution. The environment was destroyed in three ways: pollution, degradation and damage,” they said in their petition.
They argued that the IDP camps left gaping holes in their land, which now requires to be refilled at a high cost.
They further argued that they lost relatives due to poverty caused by IDPs and that some have broken homes due to inability to support their families. They had asked for Shs10m each amounting to over Shs55b. The judge also awarded each of the landlords Shs3m as general damages.
