New report approves  eviction of 200 Balaalo

At least 217 illegal Balaalo (herdsmen) settled in the Acholi Sub-region face eviction, should the government act on the recommendation of the Executive Order Number 3 implementation committee to urgently kick them out of the area.  

While there are a record 86 non-compliant Balaalo in Amuru District, the highest number in the sub-region, Pader District has 45.
Last week in Gulu District, the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) 4th Division commander, Brig Michael Kabango, said Gulu has 44 illegal herdsmen, while Nwoya District has 37 and five are in Lamwo District. Collectively, there are more than 2,700 head of cattle.

A new report authored by the Balaalo Verification Committee chaired by Prof Jack Nyeko Pen-Mogi, the acting chairman of the Uganda Land Commission released early this month, recommended that the government should evict the illegal herdsmen in north and north-eastern regions.
It also asked the government to revise all the land lease agreements for land acquisition to ensure locals whose land was hired or bought cheaply are revalued.

“All illegal Balaalo in the Northern and North-Eastern parts of Uganda should be immediately evicted (those without land, those without water sources, those without fences), and all lease agreements should be revised to ascertain terms and conditions of these agreements,” the report read in part.  

It added: “Where agreements are found to be unfair to the landowners, the terms and price should be renegotiated. There is also a need to transfer the current compromised security leadership who frustrate implementation of the presidential directives.”
While it recommends that all Balaalo who illegally acquired land titles should be evicted, it also tasked the government to set minimum land rates, particularly in the Acholi Sub-region to protect the locals from manipulation. 

Brig Kabango told an Inter-Ministerial Technical Committee that the eviction of the illegal herdsmen would start based on the availability of logistics and verification of the remaining pastoralists.
The committee report detailed how the Balalo have continued to grab land and terrorise local communities in host areas, nearly two years after President Yoweri Museveni issued a directive to evict them.

READ: Museveni orders eviction of Balaalo from West Nile

It also revealed that the herdsmen have turned into a security threat, creating food insecurity and exhibiting severe impunity in acquiring land.  

“Some Balaalo acquired land through intimidation, manipulation, and destruction of gardens, leading to poverty and eventually forcing the locals to sell their land cheaply. They (Balaalo) engage in proxy buying of land, which creates a threat to land ownership rights of the local population,” the report said.

The report, the product of a study conducted between June and August 2023, revealed that the Balaalo also posed a security risk to the regions due to their involvement in illegal activities such as acquiring land illegally, grazing in swamps and violence against the local communities.

“Some community leaders, including LCs, collide with police to stifle cases against the Balaalo, further exacerbating the problem. Balaalo bribe these leaders. Some Balaalo are reported to have guns and military uniforms,” he report added.  

In Executive Order 3 issued on May 19, Mr Museveni banned all Balaalo from Northern Uganda, labelling them as indiscipline. 
Also in the Order, the President also sought to criminalise nomadism, prescribing a seven-year prison sentence for anyone convicted and the cattle of those found in the north would be confiscated. 

However, on July 2, Mr Museveni deferred the enforcement of the expulsion of the Balaalo from Northern Uganda. The verification committee was then formed to enable the government to gather data on the herdsmen before the execution of the order could kick off.

While it pins the herdsmen on forcefully grazing their animals in community farmlands, the report pointed out that security apparatus on the ground now fear to settle disputes against the Balaalo for fear of high-ranking people in the government backing them.
For example, the resident district commissioners rejected the handling of the Balaalo land cases in fear of conflicting with high-ranking officials. 

“Some Balaalo always refused to identify themselves, often resorting to violence when asked by the locals thus leading to fears in the community who think the Balaalo are sent by the government to grab their land,” the report said.