Farmers in Apaa village, Pabbo Sub County in Amuru district are accusing Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) of blocking them from accessing their land; a move they fear might cause famine.

Farmers also say that due to the continuous harassment and attacks by UWA and the Police over the disputed land, majority of them have not been able to open up their land for cultivation this rainy season, despite President Yoweri Museveni’s order “for the evictions to be halted,”.

 

Josinto Okot, the LC I Apaa Village said that security operatives have continued to terrorize the residents by forcefully confiscating their tools whenever they tried to access their land and in some cases razed down their huts as well as vandalised other property causing fear among the residents.

 

He says that he is afraid the community will not avoid famine this year because they are being denied access to their land, with the claims from UWA that the land in question is part of East Madi game reserve in Adjumani. 

 

He accused one Julius Obwona, the in charge of East Madi game reserve for destroying their huts, shops and crop.

 

Angela Abur, a widow who claims to have leased her land in 1973 and obtained land title from Gulu district land board says that before her eviction, she had buried 5 for her children including her husband in the land that UWA is claiming it is rightfully theirs.

 

UWA maintains that the area in Apaa village which is under contention is within East Madi Game Reserve in Adjumani district and they will continue to evict any “encroacher” who returns there.

In a May 2011 press statement, UWA Conservation Area Manager, Tom Obong Okello said that the area was gazetted in 2001 by Parliament and the area’s boundary description is clearly spelt out in the statutory instrument which is available for verification.

 

UWA’s action has since attracted a lot of condemnations from both civil society organizations as well as local leaders.