How vigilante youth groups spark chaos in Ugandan elections

While election violence is often associated with the actions of law enforcement, studies show that youths are frequently at the forefront of these violent acts.

Ms Sylvia Namutyaba, the Opposition National Unity Platform (NUP) youth secretary for Buganda region, remembers November 27, 2020, as one of her worst days. Three years later, the scars from the wounds she suffered on that day are still fresh.

On the fateful day, a scuffle erupted between the police and supporters of then presidential candidate Robert Kyagulanyi in Masaka. A bullet hit journalist Ashiraf Kasirye.

“All that happened as we were watching, and it was traumatising because Kasirye was my personal friend. Amid all that confusion, we almost lost a life,” she recounts.

Sounds of bullets, teargas canisters, and hand grenades became a looming shadow. “Psychologically, we were not okay because we had been through the everyday tear gas, we heard those sounds of the hand grenades, those bullets they used to follow us wherever we could go,” Ms Namutyaba says.

As they rushed Mr Kasirye to the hospital, the security agencies were hunting for them. As they approached Busega, Mr Frank Ssenteza, a close friend of hers, was run over by an army vehicle.

Dates of her encounters with election violence have stuck in her head like her birthday. On November 18, 2020, when Mr Kyagulanyi was arrested, they followed him to Nalufenya prison in Jinja for answers.

Ms Namutyaba claims that what was meant to be a calm dialogue was welcomed with numerous physical tortures by men in uniform. The sight of a hand grenade aimed at her has never left her mind. Fortunately, she was only hurt by the fragments. She has a picture of the policeman who threw the grenade at her, and it still gives her goosebumps anytime she sees it.

At this point, she recounts that her team and herself were emotionally exhausted from the traumatising events they had witnessed, as most of them were young and amateurs in the political arena. Election violence for them, had always been hearsay but on that day, they were face-to-face with the devil.

“Most of us, it was our first experience because we had never experienced such election violence before. We used to hear stories, but this time around, we were at the very front of everything,” she says.

Election violence is often associated with the actions of law enforcement, but an investigation by the Daily Monitor reveals that youths are frequently at the forefront of these violent acts.

A 2021 report by the International Civil Society Action Network revealed that since 2011, Uganda has experienced election-related violence, with the 2016 post-election violence being the worst.

“During these periods, young people, who make up more than 75 percent of Uganda’s population, often find themselves enmeshed in violent contestations. Gangs of youth, particularly young men, are recruited by politicians to disrupt rallies, harass candidates, and cause insecurity. In post-election months, youth may be mobilised for violent protests by those who contest the result, resulting in arrests, injuries, and even death,” the report states.

The preliminary results of the 2024 census reveal that more than 70 percent of Uganda’s population is below the age of 30, with 22.7 percent aged between 18 and 30 years. This significant youth demographic, which has grown at a rate of 3.5 percent per annum since 2014, plays a crucial role in election dynamics. The large and growing youth population means that young people are not just a critical voting bloc but also a key group often at the forefront of election violence.

Elections have progressively become an extremist competitive process in Uganda. This competitiveness is further worsened by the ‘winner-take-all’ approach.

Mr Henry Muguzi, the executive director of Alliance for Finance Monitoring (ACFIM), has encountered youth in the face of violence.

“So, you have a bunch of young people who are jobless but energetic, loitering in towns. So, the young people see the campaign period as an opportunity to earn a living. And so, they earn a living by offering a number of services, one of them being the formation of militia groups or vigilante groups,” he explains.

“Vigilante groups that are hired by candidates to cause havoc in the camp of the opposing candidates. So, in that case, because young people have offered themselves to be used as vigilantes and offer their vigilantism in elections for money, they have been one of the causes of electoral violence in Uganda because they are energetic,” he adds.

According to him, candidates are always willing to pay. Mr Muguzi blames this on the commercialisation of politics in the country.

“Politics is so commercialised that whoever participates in it whether as a supporter, a campaign agent, mobilizer, or vigilante earns from the candidates. The payment, he says, depends on the context of the constituency and the task at hand, but also on how resourceful the campaign is.”

Whereas some youth activists rule out money in causing election violence, there is evidence that some of them are paid to cause violence. One of such incidences happened in Gulu District.

Mr Erick Stover Ocan, the youth chairperson of Gulu District, acknowledges that young people are paid to vote.

He says: “If I can recall, my opponent from the opposition party paid off some group of youth to disrupt the elections and disorganise the electoral processes.”

“He gave them Shs20,000, and they took the local waragi and came and started causing trouble during the electoral processes. A friend of mine confided in me that he was assigned to wait for youth who were coming to vote and buy them alcohol so that they could get high and cause havoc at the polling stations,” he adds.

Mr Ocan notes that the person who was paid revealed that he willingly accepted the offer since they promised him some good money after his assignment.

Richard Ojok, 23, a resident of Amuru Sub-county, Amuru District, recounts receiving five litres of fuel to cause violence in the opposition camp during the 2021 elections.

“The ruling party [NRM] came to me and some fellow boda boda guys. We were given money to fuel our motorcycles to follow the campaign trail of an opposition candidate,” he says.

“We were approached by our friend, whom we know likes violence, Though the money was little, I could not resist because I needed that money so that I could chill with friends,” he adds.

Police spokesperson Kituuma Rusoke, who has been at the forefront of taming election violence, shares similar sentiments. According to him, youths tend to be more energetic than other groups, making them more likely to be involved in election-related violence.

"When an election is expected to be violent, it's often the youth who are at the forefront," he explains.

"Older individuals are less likely to engage in physical confrontations. Instead, the youths are often used as pawns to carry out violent actions," he adds.

Mr Rusoke attributes the youths’ vulnerability to manipulation to their age.

"It's much easier to manipulate a 21-year-old than a 50-year-old. When recruiting people for violent acts, the youth are often the first targets because of their susceptibility and, at times, gullibility," he notes.

Mr Rusoke also points out that some young people are influenced by substances during elections.

"In many instances of election violence, you'll find that the youths involved have been exposed to intoxicants and other enhancement substances," he says.

He adds that politicians often provide these substances, particularly alcohol, leading to the arrest of many intoxicated youths by the police. "These substances give them the momentum and courage to engage in very destructive behaviour," he says.

Furthermore, Mr Rusoke highlights a new trend of online violence, which causes emotional harm. He says young people, who are the most active on social media, are often the main drivers of this form of violence.

When accused of disguising in civilian attire to beat up young people, Mr Rusoke defends the police by explaining that officers can be deployed in either uniform or civilian clothes.

"You may have encountered CID officers in your life who do not wear uniform. This is not unique. We need to sit down with these young people and discuss whether their allegations are based on the facts and circumstances at the time," he concludes.

Even though money and indolence are big driving forces to election violence, other factors cannot be overlooked. Anger and fear are the emotions most commonly associated with youth engaging in election violence.

Psychological factors

Mr Wilson Kazooba, a psychologist at Heart to Heart spaces, breaks down these emotions, which, he says, are often fuelled by uncertainty and can be significantly manipulated by political leaders, who may falsely claim election victories to rally young supporters.

"If the leader says, ‘we won the election’, even if it's not true, because the young people, who do not know, who are far from that, accept that and believe it for what it is,” Mr Kazooba said.

“This manipulation creates a misrepresentation of true emotions, as young people, unaware of the reality, react strongly to these claims. The result is increased anxiety, as uncertainty about the political situation feeds into their fears and anger,” he adds.

Mr Kazooba, however, explains that young people can be easily swayed by their leaders, saying it's not necessarily about ideology.

“Instead, the susceptibility arises from the influence that can turn into manipulation. Young people often feel disappointed and dissatisfied when their needs aren't met, which can trigger violent behaviour,” he says.

Youth participation in election violence can often be traced back to the dynamics within groups and the influence of peer pressure.

Mr Kazooba notes that group dynamics and peer pressure play a role in shaping the behaviour and decisions of young people.

“People who move in groups are likely to be influenced by one particular person. If they believe in a cause, even if it's a wrong one, and trust the person leading them, they tend to follow,” he says.

Moreover, belief in a particular political party can further solidify group dynamics. 

Mr Kazooba adds: “Ugandan political parties may not always have a clear democratic theme, but they can provoke strong alignments through influential leadership and addressing selfish interests.”

While the influence of alcohol and drugs shouldn't be dismissed entirely, he states that even those under such influence might be fighting for a cause they believe in although they can be more easily manipulated, sometimes fighting without understanding the cause. The psychologist emphasises that it is not fair to solely blame substance abuse, as it can undermine the awareness and agency of those involved.

The psychologist highlights the effect of such violence on the youth.

"Participation in election violence can affect future political engagement and mental health. It sets a dangerous precedent, making violence seem like the only way to achieve change and overshadowing peaceful methods,” Mr Kazooba said.

“The trauma associated with violence ranging from death to severe injuries leaves young people anxious, depressed, and psychologically stressed causing long-term grief and loss, and often affects their ability to engage positively in their communities," he adds.

As Busiro East Member of Parliament Medard Lubega Ssegona puts it, there are two sides in politics; the protagonists and antagonists.

Those who want to stay view violence as a means of survival and it becomes a do-or-die for them while those that are opposed to the system upon whom violence is mated, resort to violence to defend the little they can with the little they have.

“So if somebody starts throwing teargas canisters and bullets, a man who has no bullets has no option. There are two options; one is running away and the other one is fighting back using the little that you may have,” he says.

As a victim of election violence, Mr Ssegona also agrees that political actors use youths as a climbing ladder to attain their own political ambitions through electoral violence.

Mr Frank Bwambale, a political activist, says many young people turn to violence when they feel marginalised from governance. He reveals that as young people, they prefer peaceful means to express their dissent but the conduct of security forces turns the demonstrations violent.

Dr Solomon Winyi, a lecturer of Political Science at Makerere University, states that political candidates and parties have created and facilitated extremist electoral behaviour, which has been fuelled by youth groups that are formed to ‘protect against vote rigging’ and mobilise party loyalists.

“Political parties have developed a norm of creating pockets of youth groups and militias who are progressively becoming the major instigators of electoral violence in Uganda,” Dr Winyi said.

Instigators of youth violence

Mr Bwambale on the other hand reveals that youth do not have a leader.

“When NUP president Kyagulanyi was arrested in Luuka on November 18, 2020, the violence spread without a leader. Young people simply draw motivation from iconic opposition figures such as Col Dr (Rtd) Kizza Besigye whose ideology of defiance is well rooted in the community,” he says.

“Therefore when a man like Besigye or Kyagulanyi speaks about issues in the country, their rhetoric resonates with the frustrated masses and they get charged and ready to rise,” he adds.

According to Dr Winyi, the political and economic marginalisation of the youth leads to frustrations and aggression.

Data from the National Labour Survey 2021 reveals that 41 percent of youth are unemployed.

“This has resulted in a grievance that is defined by historical and contemporary sense of unaddressed deprivations. It is basically about the non-representation, under-representation, and outright exclusion in decision-making processes in all spheres,” he says.

Youth unemployment has made the Ugandan youth redundant, restless, vulnerable, and frustrated, making them an easy target for manipulation by both negative and progressive forces.

The youth in Uganda, as Dr Winyi explains, see electoral violence as a last resort to create their own spaces within the political arena by using their creativity and agency to subvert authority and bypass the obstacles created by the state. As misinformation and propaganda escalates across social media platforms, their impact on youth engagement in election violence becomes increasingly evident. Dr Winyi notes that the spread of misinformation and propaganda on social media can significantly erode trust in the electoral process and democracy at large.

“When young people encounter false information, it undermines their confidence in fair elections, making them more susceptible to engaging in violence. Social media becomes a platform for psychological violence and harassment, with derogatory comments and threats,” he says.

“This environment not only affects voter turnout but also heightens the risk of actual electoral violence, as misinformation begins to legitimize and accelerate conflicts,” he adds.

Looking ahead, Dr Winyi provides an outlook on the future of youth engagement in Uganda's political process.

“Uganda is positioned as a predominantly young country. This demographic shift indicates that we will see increased youth involvement in both formal and informal political processes,” he says.

“These young individuals are highly tech-savvy, and as they leverage social media to voice their concerns, we can anticipate more protests in response to unmet needs or grievances,” he adds.

According to the Electoral Commission (EC) spokesperson, Mr Julius Mucunguzi, "Violence in the election has no place in our process... it doesn't matter who they are."

Mr Mucunguzi emphasises that elections are a constitutional and legitimate process for citizens to choose their leaders, and violence undermines this democratic process. He stresses that citizens, not foreigners, are responsible for perpetrating violence, which is illegal and criminal.

BACKGROUND

FINDINGS

A 2021 UNPF report titled “A Rapid Assessment Report on Youth and Peace building in Uganda” highlights Uganda's vulnerable political landscape, particularly during elections, leading to violence and conflicts. The central and Rwenzori regions are noted hotspots, with youth often at the centre of the unrest.