By Witness Radio team
Sad! A ‘landlord’ and her husband murdered in a preventable bloodshed!
On Monday, the 31st of July, 2023, families in the Kiruma sub-county in Mubende district woke up to sad news of the killing of a couple (Naava Milly Namutebi and her husband, Abdallah Kayizzi) that was claiming ownership of 906.496 hectares. Naava and the husband were killed after they were allegedly found harvesting maize belonging to a kibanja holder, Kamanzi, not his real name, due to the sensitivity of this matter. Kamanzi is a bonafide kibanja holder born on that land in 1975. He has been in and out of prison for owning a Kibanja on a piece of land ‘owned’ by Naava’s family.
In Uganda, Kibanja ownership is defined under the Land Act Cap 227, (Section 29(1)(a)(i) as a lawful occupant falling within registered land particularly described as Mailo land tenure system, while a landlord kis referred to as a property owner (including their authorized agent) who rents or leases that property (such as land, houses, or apartments) to another party in exchange for rent payments according to the Landlord and Tenant Act, 2022.
According to sources, Naava Milly Namutebi, now the deceased, has been an ‘administrator’ of the family estate however, since she assumed that responsibility in 2011, she has never gotten to terms with families she found already owning bibanja on their land.
The land has over 4000 bibanja holders, and it covers 16 villages such as Kirwanyi Central, Kirwanyi East, Kirwanyi West, Nakasagazi, Kituule A, Kituule B, Kibalagazi A, Kibalagazi B, Kakkanembe, Bukyambuzi A, Bukyambuzi B, Kisende, Mulanda, Kituule central, Kirwanyi A, and Butayunja in Kirwanyi and Kituule parishes in Butoloogo Sub County in Mubende district.
Because of endless disagreements, the deceased, on several incidents, would hire police officers from Mubende district police, army offices at Kabamba Army Barracks based in Mubende district, and private security guards to carry out arbitrary arrests, and detention, imprisonment, to carry out forced land evictions and to provide security to her (Naava) while harvesting food crops with impunity belonging to bibanja holders such as maize. All this impunity has been exercised, under the watchful eyes of the police, officers at the Director of Public Prosecution in Mubende district, Judicial officers in Mubende district, and elected leaders.
On different occasions, the late Naava could be arrested under the orders of heads of several organs and agencies of government. For instance, the former Inspector general of police fired top heads of Mubende police for failing to restrain her (Late Naava) from harassing bibanja owners, and the commission of inquiry arrested her plus her accomplices for forging documents used to evict 3,000 people from a private mailo land in Mubende district and many other incidents. However, these arrests would not deter the late from continuing her conduct.
Due to the ongoing criminalization of activities of smallholder farmers in Uganda by individuals who are politically connected, on Friday, the 24th of June, 2022, Mubende district chief magistrate court set free six community land rights defenders (victims of late Naava) who were facing murder charges and had been on remand without trial since 2019. Their release came after the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) withdrew murder charges against the six defenders for several reasons.
With the high levels of impunity in Uganda, at around 6:00 am, late Naava, her late husband, and their casual laborers rounded up, roped Kamanzi inside his house, descended to his kibanja, and started harvesting his maize.
According to sources, news of roping Kamanzi circulated in many villages. It was estimated that between 7:00 am and 7:30 am local time, a group of unknown people, allegedly found late Naava and her group harvesting Kamanzi’s maize. Naava and her husband were attacked and hacked to death.
Witness Radio Uganda has monitored and documented instances of human rights violations and abuses committed against bibanja holders and community land rights defenders who were arbitrarily arrested and detained in ungazetted detention centers and tried under kangaroo court established by late Naava and her group, peasants farm field got slashed down, many got coerced to sign documents that would take away their rights as Bibanja holders.
Failures by ministries, government departments and agencies and state organs to restrain late Naava from exercising excessive authority targeting bibanja holders and community land rights defenders have cost lives.
Several years ago, Witness Radio – Uganda documented many land related murder cases because government offices were absent, and where they are present, majority of them take sides to protecting the rich.
Uganda is witnessing a widening gap of land inequality, and if not addressed, Uganda may experience a civil war resulting from land conflicts.
