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WITNESS RADIO MILESTONES

Urban poor eviction: Poverty and Profit in Kampala

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By Witnessradio.org Team

The agony of being evicted twice in less than 8 years might sound like a myth to many ears but Rashid Kasumba, 30, this is real life experience; Kasumba was first evicted off their ancestral land plus his siblings and little did he know that the same would follow him eight (8) years later.

The anguish befell onto Kasumba on 27th February 2017 when a businessman Hamis Kiggundu in his early 30s erased an open space Nakivubo Park Yard market that provided a livelihood to Kasumba and over ten thousand other traders with majority being youths from poor families who have been surviving on this market since 1980s. The market was sitting on three and half acres of land where traders there would deal in second hand commodities like shoes, clothes, and bags among others.

The market has been very popular among average Ugandans who would visit it regularly to buy cheaper stuff as poverty levels continue to skyrocket and bite citizens.

Kasumba says, the market was invaded during the wee hours of February 27th by hooligans under the protection of Uganda police and brought it down without any prior notice to traders. During the eviction, hooligans and police stole traders’ merchandises worth billions of shillings. “I lost my entire business worth over eight (8) million shillings equivalent to USD 2,254 and guess what…more than 80% of my fellow traders did not recover anything and there’s no one to account” said Kasumba.

Nakivubo Park Yard market being stationed in the central business district was accommodating majority of its traders as youths both graduates who had failed get formal employment and semi illiterate youths.

According to Uganda National Bureau of Statists (UNBS) 2014 census report indicates that Uganda’s unemployed population stands at over 70% of Uganda’s working category. Uganda has one of the youngest and fastest growing population rates in the world with its fertility rate of 3% one of the highest in Sub Saharan Africa.

Nakivubo Park Yard market is not the first market to be erased and traders are left to fight for their livelihood. Lately, land in the capital, which hosts informal businesses is becoming a target by businessmen. Markets that have been erased before include Kisseka market, New Taxi Park and Kalitunsi lorries’ park evicting thousands of traders without provision of resettlement.

Uganda is witnessing an increasing demand for land in urban areas especially in the capital Kampala by mushrooming middle class whose business records cannot be traced.

Before erasing the market on the orders of the minister for Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) Hon. Betty Olive Namisango Kamya Turwomwe, traders under their umbrella organization “the New Agenda Traders’ Development Association” and the management of Nakivubo War Memorial Stadium (the landlord) had entered into a Memorandum of Understanding to jointly develop the land. The understanding was that traders would remain on the land even after redevelopment of the land.

Under the Hamis Kiggundu re-development plan, which is expected to be a shopping mall, there’s no evidence to resettle traders even after losing their businesses in billions of Uganda shillings.

Government programs; its estimated that over 1000 youths running small businesses in the Nakivubo Park Yard Market received loans through the government Youth Fund which they hadn’t been repaid by the time the market was erased.

Kasumba says, he got a loan of four million Uganda Shillings equivalent to about USD 1300. He said he offered his house and a small plot of land he bought from his small savings for years as a collateral to secure a bank loan. “The demolition of our market left me with nothing and the bank expects me to pay back the loan in the next four months” Said Kasumba. He said his stall of second hand shoes was able to feed his family of two children and a wife, pay school fees for his siblings and make monthly saving of UGX 200,000 equivalent to about USD 57 after deducting a loan’s monthly settlement fees.

He said, since the demolition of his stall, he cannot meet his previous family obligations and all his children and siblings cannot afford going to school.

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WITNESS RADIO MILESTONES

Uganda: Land-grab victim communities will join counterparts in commemorating the 2024 International Day of Struggle Against Industrial Plantations.

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By Witness Radio team.

On September 21, 2024, land-grabs communities under their group, the Informal Alliance for communities affected by irresponsible land-based investments in Uganda for the first will join fellow victims in commemorating the International Day of Struggle Against Industrial Plantations, highlighting the growing threat posed by large-scale monoculture plantations.

These industrial plantations have led to the forced eviction of millions of people across Uganda, displacing indigenous communities and stripping them of their land rights and livelihoods. Driven by multinational companies and government-backed investors, with the support of government and private security entities, these evictions prioritize profits over people.

Among the many Ugandan communities still suffering the devastating impact of monoculture plantations are over 30,000 people who were violently displaced from the Namwasa and Luwunga forest reserves between 2006 and 2010 to make way for the New Forests Company’s pine and eucalyptus plantations. In addition, thousands of local and indigenous communities were illegally evicted to make way for palm oil plantations in Kalangala district. Nearly 4,000 people had their land grabbed by the Formosa tree planting company in the Mubende district, and over 35,000 were displaced in Kiryandongo to make way for industrial agriculture to grow maize, soybean, and sugarcane plantations, among others. These and other affected communities united and formed the Informal Alliance for Victims affected by irresponsible land-based investments to defend their rights in early 2019.

The International Day of Struggle Against Industrial Plantations was first celebrated on September 21, 2004, during a community network meeting fighting against industrial tree plantations in Brazil. Since then, it has become a day when organizations, communities, and movements worldwide come together to celebrate resistance and raise their voices, demanding an end to the relentless expansion of industrial tree plantations.

In Uganda, on Saturday, September 21, the 2024 commemoration will start with a radio program in a local dilect (Luganda) purposely to highlight weird experiences faced by communities displaced by large-scale monoculture plantations, struggles for justice, and holding companies and financiers accountable. A one-hour radio program starting at 10 a.m. EAT will feature leaders of the loose alliance. Listen to the radio program on Witness Radio platforms on the website www.witnessradio.org or download the Witness Radio App on playstore.

Later, land-grab victims in Uganda will join their colleagues from Africa and other countries around the globe in a webinar meeting aimed at fostering organizations’ and rural communities’ connection across member countries and communities to build confidence, share experiences, strengthen our campaign to reignite hopes and forge a bond of understanding between the Informal Alliance and victim communities shattered by destructive plantations as well as deterring future plantations expansion.

The Webinar will start at 3PM EAT and will be aired live on Witness Radio platforms on the website www.witnessradio.org or download the Witness Radio App on playstore.

Please note: Both the radio show and Webinar will be live on Witness Radio on www.witnessradio.org or download the witness radio app on playstore to listen live.

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WITNESS RADIO MILESTONES

Uganda: CSOs claim Agilis Partners forcibly evicting local communities to pave way for agribusiness; company did not respond

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Witness Radio and its partners have alleged that thousands of people from local and Indigenous communities have been forcefully evicted from their land to make way for Agilis Partners Limited’s large-scale farming operations, in violation of international human rights law.

They have raised concerns about severe human rights abuses including forced evictions and lack of prompt, fair, and adequate compensation; violations of Indigenous peoples’ right to free, prior, and informed consent; abduction, arrest, torture, and judicial harassment of human rights defenders, and alleged sexual violence against women and girls, as well as other negative social and environmental impacts.

Witness Radio and its partners representing PAPs have written to Agilis Partners on several occasions seeking a dialogue between the company and people who have been harmed however, the company has not responded to their communications.

In a letter to Agilis Partners in June 2024, 36 civil society organizations called on Agilis Partners and its financial backers to take immediate action to stop the human rights abuses and harassment committed against community members, engage in dialogue with the communities, and restore the lands to the people that have been displaced.

We invited Agilis Partners to respond to the letter, the company did not respond.

Company Responses

Agilis Partners. No Response.

Source: business-humanrights.org

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DEFENDING LAND AND ENVIRONMENTAL RIGHTS

Breaking: Witness Radio and Partners to Launch Human Rights Monitoring, Documentation, and Advocacy Project Tomorrow.

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By Witness Radio Team.

Witness Radio, in collaboration with Dan Church Aid (DCA) and the National Coalition for Human Rights Defenders (NCHRD), is set to launch the Monitoring, Documentation, and Advocacy for Human Rights in Uganda (MDA-HRU) project tomorrow, 22nd February 2024, at Kabalega Resort Hotel in Hoima District.

The project, funded by the European Union, aims to promote the protection and respect for human rights, and enable access to remedy where violations occur especially in the Mid-Western and Karamoja sub-regions where private sector actors are increasingly involved in land-based investments (LBIs) through improved documentation, and evidence-based advocacy.

The three-year project, which commenced in October 2023, focuses its activities in the Mid-Western sub-region, covering Bulisa, Hoima, Masindi, Kiryandongo, Kikuube, Kagadi, Kibale, and Mubende districts, and Karamoja sub-region, covering Moroto, Napak, Nakapiripirit, Amudat, Nabilatuk, Abim, Kaabong, Kotido, and Karenga districts.

The project targets individuals and groups at high risk of human rights violations, including Human Rights Defenders (HRDs) and Land and Environmental Defenders (LEDs). It also engages government duty bearers such as policymakers and implementers in relevant ministries and local governments, recognizing their crucial role in securing land and environmental rights. Additionally, the project involves officials from institutional duty bearers including the Uganda Human Rights Commission (UHRC), Equal Opportunities Commission, and courts, among others.

Representatives from the international community, faith leaders, and business actors are also included in the project’s scope, particularly those involved in land-based investments (LBIs) impacting the environment.

The project was initially launched in Moroto for the Karamoja region on the 19th of this month with the leadership of the National Coalition for Human Rights Defenders (NCHRD).

According to the project implementors,  the action is organized into four activity packages aimed at; enhancing the capacity and skills of Human Rights Defenders (HRDs) and Land and Environmental Defenders (LEDs) in monitoring, documentation, reporting (MDR), and protection, establishing and reinforcing reporting and documentation mechanisms for advocacy and demand for corporate and government accountability;  providing response and support to HRDs and marginalized communities; and lastly facilitating collaboration and multi-stakeholder engagements that link local and national issues to national and international frameworks and spaces.

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