Museveni’s jets could soon hit Rwanda, DRC, or Sudan
By Sam Akaki
23rd May 2011: The physical dust may have already settled at Kololo Airstrip where the NRA guerrilla leader General Museveni, not the President, was purportedly inaugurated last week. But the political dust generated on May 12th 2011 will take decades, if ever at all, to dissipate. There are several reasons for this.
Museveni's Russian made Su-30MK2s Fighter Jets
High on the list is the fact that unlike President Jonathan Goodluck of Nigeria who came all the way from the west coast of Africa, Rwanda’s Paul Kagame, and Sudan’s Omar Bashir, both literally from next-door, were conspicuous by their absence. Bashir’s boycott is even more remarkable considering that he had, only a week earlier, travelled to distant Djibouti for the inauguration of President Ismail Omar Guelleh.
In most African cultures, it speaks volumes if your next-door neighbour fails to turn up for a special family occasion like a child’s baptism, wedding or graduation. But Museveni’s fifth “Coronation” as the “un-elected King of Uganda” was far more important to him than any of these mundane events. He desperately wanted some serious world leaders legitimize his journey towards his 31st in power; a journey that I doubt he will finish!
Whatever important “prior commitments” prevented Kagame and Bashir from attending Museveni’s party, I think they have sent a loud and clear message to Museveni that they boycotted [if it was a boycott) the event “not because they love Museveni less, but because they love the ordinary Ugandans more”, as Marcus Brutus once explained the slaying of his best friend Julius Caesar.
Jonathan Goodluck brought Bad-luck to Uganda
According the Director of Uganda Media Centre Mr Fred Opolot whose comments were later corroborated by Museveni, Uganda’s Apartheid-like army and police shot and killed one protester who had pelted Jonathan Goodluck’s official car with stones as the Nigerian President travelled to Entebbe to catch his flight back home.
It is hard to tell why Mr Goodluck decided to travel to Uganda. There is no other obvious and compelling reason other than the possibility that Mr Goodluck himself had become accustomed to bloodshed, having seen thousands of Nigerians killed during and in the aftermath of his own election last month.
Kagame and Bashir are Uganda’s real friends
Ugandans who know that a distant stick cannot kill a snake should be consoled that they have two special neighbours who have noticed their unspeakable suffering under Museveni’s brutal police and military. Presidents Paul Kagame and Omar Bashir will also feel vindicated by the fact that the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Ms Navi Pillay said she was, and I quote, “…appalled by the excessive use of force by Uganda’s police force”.
Compelling national interests at play
Besides their commendable concern for the suffering Ugandans, Paul Kagame and Omar Bashir must also have considered their countries’ strategic national interests, which ultimately compelled them to boycott Museveni’s “Coronation”. For Omar Bashir, it was the painful memories of General Museveni’s past and present efforts to undermine the Sudan that could have forced him to boycott Museveni’s party.
In August 1998 for example, Museveni was the only African leader who congratulated the United State for their cruise missile attack on the Al-Shifa pharmaceutical factory which used to produce badly needed malaria tablets for use our entire region; Uganda inclusive!
On 23rd May 2002, it was the same Museveni who sent 10,000 troops into Sudan under the so-called ‘Operation Iron Fist’, ostensibly to search and destroy the Lords’ Resistance Army (LRA) rebels. Curiously however, while the UPDF remained in Southern Sudan for three years, the LRA slipped back into Uganda where they occupied most of northern and eastern Uganda; killing thousands and forcing millions into IDP camps.
And it was Museveni who became the mouthpiece for US-led propaganda campaign that the war in Southern Sudan was necessary because the Arab Muslim north was oppressing the African Christian South. Strangely enough, war has been raging between Christian tribes in the south ever since they voted for secession.
When “the Rwandese boys” returned the compliment
If Museveni has been bad to Sudan, he has been even worse to Rwanda, a country he once contemptuously said was ruled by mere boys!
On 2nd August 1998, Museveni ordered his army to launch vicious military attacks against Rwandan troops in what became known as the “Kisangani War Clashes”. The surprise attack by Museveni was reported to have claimed hundreds of Rwandese lives and destroyed military equipment worth millions of dollars.
According to Dr Kizza Besigye’s treason charge sheet, Uganda also alleged that it was Rwanda that had financed, trained, and armed the mythical People’s Redemption Army [PRA] “rebels” to topple Museveni’s government. Had Besigye been convicted, Kagame and other senior Rwandese leaders would have been accused of collaborating with terrorists.
After all, UN Resolution 373 of 28th September 2001 among other things says that all State parties agreed to “…refrain from providing any form of support, active or passive, to entities or persons involved in terrorist acts, by suppressing recruitment of members of terrorist groups and eliminating the supply of weapons to terrorists”.
Politically bankrupt, armed and dangerous!
Against such a background littered with sustained efforts to undermine Rwanda and Sudan, Museveni has recently announced that Uganda was buying six jet fighters at a cost of $730 million to defend Uganda against aggressors intent on disrupting Uganda’s oil industry. According to the ‘Diplomat’s Dictionary’ by Chas Freeman however, “…there is no nation on earth so dangerous as a nation fully armed, and bankrupt at home. Aggressors [as has always been] usually disguise their aggressions as self defence”, Mr Freeman concludes.
Kabila and Kibaki appeasing a dangerous crocodile
Former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill once said, “…an appeaser is one who feeds a crocodile hoping it will eat him last”. How true of Joseph Kabila and Mwai Kibaki who attended Museveni “Coronation” simply to appease him. Haven’t they learnt their lessons? In the case of DRC, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ordered Uganda on 19th December 2005 to pay the DRC $6-10 billion as compensation for Uganda’s war crimes, crimes against humanity, and the illegal exploitation of DRC’s natural resources.
As far as Kibaki, and indeed Kenyans are concerned, I think they should look no further than the dispute over Migingo Island between the two countries. Rwanda, Sudan, and Kenya have already suffered countless destabilisation activities from Museveni’s Uganda.
They shouldn’t therefore wait for a rocket scientist to tell them that Museveni’s new jets will be heading their way soon. END. Please login to www.ugandacorrespondent.com every Monday to read our top stories and anytime mid-week for our news updates.
The writer is FDC’s International Envoy to the UK and European Union
