Turkana accused of raids on Karamoja

Kotido District Administrator Gabriel Lotiang on Tuesday warned of the upheaval being caused by raiding in Karamoja subregion, northeastern Uganda, which has been attributed to Turkana tribesmen from neighbouring Kenya. Lotiang said in the latest incident, suspected Turkana had raided Loyoro in Dodoth County, killing a 14 year-old boy; this followed earlier raids by the Turkana in Kalapata, Kapath and Lapedo, 'The New Vision' government-owned newspaper on Wednesday quoted him as saying. Those Turkana who grazed their animals in Jie sub-county lived peacefully and often returned to Kenya during the rains, but it was becoming increasingly difficult for local populations to keep hosting them when their fellow-Turkana were hostile in Dodoth, he said. The Kenyan tribesmen had shunned a meeting he had called to resolve the emerging problem, Lotiang added.

The Karamojong themselves have been widely criticised for raiding by some of their number, particularly in Katakwi District, eastern Uganda. The Ugandan government, which initially provided small groups of "home guards" within Karamoja with arms to enable the population defend itself against raids from other pastoralist groups in the region, notably from the Pokot in Kenya, has been criticised by MPs for failing to disarm them as the problem of violent raiding has worsened. Katakwi District, where over 80,000 people are forced to remain in displacement camps as a result of the raids, was declared a state of emergency on 6 August.

President Yoweri Museveni recently directed the Ugandan army to control the operations of Local Defence Units (LDUs) and vigilante groups operating in Katakwi District and Karamoja subregion. Humanitarian sources told IRIN that many camps for internally displacement persons (IDPs) in northern and eastern Uganda had been constructed around LDU posts, meaning that IDPs were acting as a shield against attacks, rather than the LDUs protecting IDPs. Museveni directed the Ugandan army in Katakwi to ensure that LDU posts were located at least 500 metres from IDP settlements, 'New Vision' reported. [For Related Stories click here]