Prime
Justice remains elusive for victims of 2016 Kasese attacks
Some of the huts that were destroyed during the attack on the palace of Rwenzururu King Charles Wesley Mumbere in Kasese District in 2016.PHOTO / FILE
What you need to know:
The Rwenzururu king Charles Wesley Mumbere remains under house arrest in Kampala, with 153 of his former volunteer royal guards freed, but another 79 remain in jail.
A joint force of the army and police raided King Charles Wesley Mumbere’s Buhikira palace in Kasese town on November 26 and 27, 2016.
The attack left more than 100 people dead, but five years later, justice for the victims remains elusive.
The Rwenzururu King Charles Wesley Mumbere remains under house arrest in Kampala, with 153 of his former volunteer royal guards out on bail, but another 79 remain in jail.
But this bloody onslaught, has been overshadowed by similar acts of violence, including last year’s Kampala killings in which at least 54 people were killed during the November 18 and 19 protests following the arrest of then-presidential candidate Robert Ssentamu Kyagulanyi.
The Kasese killings, just like the now ended two decade of insurgency in northern Uganda, have marred President Museveni’s government’s the human rights record.
In 2014, President Museveni admitted that soldiers under his overall command committed atrocities in both northern and eastern Uganda. He, however, cited provocation from rebels and other insurgents.
In power for more than 35 years now, President Museveni has previously apologised for the June 11, 1989, Mukura massacre in which 69 men were suffocated to death in a railway goods wagon at Mukura railway station in Kumi District by the 106th Battalion of the National Resistance Army (NRA) on suspicion of being rebel collaborators against the NRA/M regime.
None of the government forces involved or those who ordered them, has been indicted, tried and or sentenced for the killings.
In the aftermath of the Kasese killings, King Mumbere and more than 150 of his royal guards were arraigned before a court in Jinja District and charged with treason, terrorism, and murder, among other crimes.
According to a report released by Human Rights Watch in 2017, at least 153 people, including children, died during the raid, which was commanded by then Brig Peter Elwelu. At the time of the raid, Brig Elwelu was commander of the 2nd Division of UPDF based in Mbarara, western Uganda.
His team is said to have recovered 16 petrol bombs, 47 machetes, 42 knives, three metal detectors, four radio calls, one sub-machinegun, and one pistol with two magazines from the Rwenzururu loyalists in the palace.
Elwelu, now a three star general, has since risen through the ranks quickly to deputise Uganda’s Chief of Defence Forces. While being sworn in as one of the army representatives in Parliament, Gen Elwelu left no doubt about his position.
He said the more than 100 royal guards and family members who were killed during the Kasese clashes were criminals ‘who deserved what they got.’
“Even ICC set me free and said you have no case to answer, so what are you talking about? Those were criminals, I didn’t kill anybody else. They deserved to die because I was on the ground and you were not on the ground, that’s the problem. I know I’m a judge of my own during my work, I understand and that is what I do, I know what I do that’s why I have no problems here. Uganda is peaceful because of my actions and Kasese is peaceful, they are doing very well. Did you hear any problems with Kasese again? Only quiet,” Gen Elwelu said.
While the ICC concluded there was no sufficient evidence that Gen Elwelu and the forces under his command committed crimes amounting to genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity, the court concluded that they committed “underlying acts constituting the crime of murder” under Article 7(1)(a) of the Rome Statute.
Govt response
The government maintains that the matter will be resolved by the courts of law and any other issue, including an independent inquiry, can only commence after the court process.
In response to a Human Rights Watch report “Uganda: Ensure Independent Investigation into Kasese Killings,” government spokesperson Ofwono Opondo on March 15, 2017, said: “The report recommends independent investigations on a matter before courts of law. This is untenable for now because it is at odds with the subjudice rule. However, Uganda does not lack independent investigative capability if there is need. And therefore, the call to suspend some commanders from their duties or restrain them from conducting government duties is uncalled for and unacceptable.”
He added: “The main focus of government has been pursuing criminal investigation, bringing suspects to prosecution and restore order which is being achieved.”
