Mumbere tour triggers fresh tensions in Kasese

Ethnic tensions are brewing in Kasese as Rwenzururu King Charles Wesley Mumbere visits Katwe K’abatooro, an area where some locals reportedly do not recognise his cultural leadership.

The Omusinga is today expected in the town on the final leg of a cross-kingdom tour, but the visit has been opposed by a group claiming he is infringing on the cultural rights of the Basongora community.

Local state officials, however, say the group should be ignored as they seem to be trying to provoke an “overreaction” from the government.

Six days ago on December 6, a Mr Festo Kajura Nkwatsibwe, identifying himself as acting coordinator of the Ethnic Minority Rights Initiative, wrote to the Ministry of Gender, Labour, and Social Development declaring the visit unlawful.

Under current law, cultural leaders fall under the ambit of the ministry. Mr Kajura informed the minister, Ms Betty Amongi, that the Omusinga is distorting cultural history.

“I am writing to bring to your attention a matter of significant concern involving the unlawful encroachment on the cultural space of the Basongora people by Mr Mumbere Wesley Kisembo, the cultural leader of the Obusinga Bwa Rwenzururu-OBR, a Bakonzo-only cultural institution in Uganda,” Mr Kajura wrote. 

He told the minister that “despite OBR being for only the Bakonzo ethnicity, it operates in a district that is home to various ethnicities including Basongora and Banyabindi”.

“Mumbere has designated the whole low land region of Kasese as his chiefdom, announcing his intention to visit Katwe K’abatooro Town Council on Tuesday (12th), and deliberately distorting historical and sentimental names like Katwe (calling it Katswebwemi chiefdom). It is these recent actions that are clear violations of Uganda’s law, the Institution of Traditional or Cultural Leaders Act-2011,” the petition reads in part.

Calling for swift government action, Mr Kajura warned that such a visit could inflame ethnic tensions.

“Such visits, as they were before the Kilhumiramutima of 2014, can be perceived as staking a claim on the low land, its indigenous and migrant communities and risk inciting them against each other…

“…I wish to highlight the historical context of the tragic events of July 5, 2014, where a Bakonzo militia group at the instigation of OBR targeted and killed 11 innocent Basongora pastoralists solely based on their ethnicity, as a stark reminder of the catastrophic consequences such disputes can have. It is therefore crucial that the government restrains Mumbere to prevent further tensions,” Mr Kajura added.

Hours to the visit, there have been incredulous reactions to the petition from kingdom subjects.

One Neckson Mbayahi, a resident of Kisinga, said Kajura’s reasoning revealed a lack of an understanding of the law.

“His level of reasoning is that cultural institutions have geographical boundaries. He is an attention seeker because for over 100 years, the Bakonzo and Banyabindi have lived in harmony,” Mr Mbayahi told Daily Monitor.

He added: “How about the Bakingwe, Bagabo, and the Bambuba? Do they share cultures with Basongora? Why is he trying to recruit them into this senseless conflict?”

Rwenzururu Kingdom acting prime minister, Mr Selevest Masereka agreed with Mbayahi’s opinion, saying the king’s visit would go ahead.

“That letter was addressed to the government. I haven’t also received my copy although I am copied in… However, its contents indicate a clear lack of knowledge about the law since it creates an impression that the kingdom has boundaries,” he said.

“OBR is a recognised cultural institution. It has traditional names attached to certain places. That has nothing to do with the government names. Katswabwemi as a chiefdom has always been known as such [by] the kingdom,” Mr Masereka added.

In an interview, Kasese deputy Resident District Commissioner, Lt Maate Magwara advised locals to ignore the letter, observing that the author intended to provoke an overreaction which his office will not give him.

“We have also not received our copy of the letter. However, as far as we are concerned, it is better to assume that the letter was never written since it was not necessary,” he said.

“Every community has its extremists and Kajura could be one of the extremists from that community, so it’s better not to accord him the attention he was looking for,” he added.