Uganda ‘Martyrs’ would be called ‘terrorist’ today
By Abbey K. Semuwemba
6th June 2011: From the moment a member of Ugandans-at-Heart raised the issue, I have been thinking about the Uganda Christian ‘Martyrs’ issue and its significance to Uganda as a country. I asked myself: Do the Uganda ‘Martyrs’ really deserve to be called martyrs or not? Could Catholics killed for their faith also be called martyrs? Why did kabaka Mwanga take that decision when he did?
Uganda Martyrs Shrine at Namugongo
It is my understanding that within Buganda culture, the execution of the Namugongo Martyrs was both political and religious. It is Buganda Kingdom which invited the first Missionaries who arrived in 1877. Buganda benefited tremendously from that; particularly with developmental projects like schools.
I am still puzzled that we continue to call these people ‘Martyrs’ when they actually challenged the power structures of Buganda because of their faith. If we are to go with the example of Muslims who keep challenging the power and social structures of Western countries on the strength of their faith, then the word ‘Martyr’ is not applicable to the Namugongo Martyrs.
Muslims or Christians who attempt to do what these ‘Martyrs’ did during Kabaka Mwanga’s reign will today feel the wrath of the law and some may even be branded terrorists. That said we shouldn’t also forget that those who die in such circumstances in places like the Middle East are still branded ‘martyrs’ by some Islamic factions.
In Buganda culture, the Kabaka ruled with great authority and to refuse anything he asked did not only to offend the Kabaka but it dishonoured the entire Buganda Kingdom. Mwanga therefore perceived that the Christians were posing a challenge to his political power. If we are going to continue calling these Christians killed at Namugongo Martyrs, then we should admit that we have got a lot of martyrs in Uganda now.
Secondly, it is important to realize from the outset that the persecution of Christians in Uganda was not the norm. There were relatively few Christians killed for religious reasons compared to the number of Baganda. So I don’t think Kabaka Mwanga set out to kill Christians.
Thirdly, all the martyrs were Buganda natives. Their lives and deaths were therefore embedded from start to finish in a culture they were familiar with and understood. A man like Joseph Mukasa was the personal servant of the kabaka who oversaw all of the Kabaka’s pages. He therefore knew what he was getting himself into by confronting Kabaka Mwanga over the murder of Anglican Bishop Hannington.
Mukasa told Mwanga “bluntly” that ordering of the death of Hannington was wrong. This angered Mwanga and he took Mukasa’s outbursts as a form of treason. To disagree with the Kabaka was not uncommon in Buganda but Mukasa’s assertive confrontation with Mwanga was unique.
Lastly, Mwanga chose Namugongo as a spot to execute these people because to die at Namugongo made one an enemy of the Buganda. Namugongo was the equivalent of the England’s Tower Hill. Before these ‘Martyrs’ were killed, some people working under Kabaka Mwanga offered them a chance to run away but they refused because they wanted to die for Christ.
If we still want to remember these political rebels as ‘Martyrs’, then let us do what Robert Royal did when he published a book which he called “The Catholic Martyrs of the Twentieth Century: A Comprehensive World History”, instead of flocking to Namugongo every year. With due respect to my Christian friends, I don’t think we should continue calling religious people 1886 Namugongo ‘Martyrs’.
I certainly don’t think they deserve a national bank holiday. However, I am happy to say that Buganda Kingdom has changed greatly since that time. There is a lot of religious freedom for everybody.
Catholics, Protestants, Christians and Muslims can all interact within the Kingship of Buganda without any problem. I even have a feeling that we shall see a Muslim becoming the Katikiro of Buganda in future; a post that has historically been dominated by people of other faith. It is more reason for Ugandans to support this Kingdom that is not afraid of changes that make it stronger.
What Kabaka Mwanga did at that time is inexcusable; but at least we all learnt from it! Most importantly however, we understand why he did it. END. Please login to www.ugandacorrespondent.com every Monday to read our top stories and anytime mid-week for our news updates.
