The Council for Abavandimwe, an umbrella association representing the interests of Banyarwanda who were born and raised in Uganda, has petitioned the Speaker of Parliament, Rt. Hon. Anita Annet Among, citing gross human rights violations by the authorities.
In their petition on Thursday, they, led by the Chairman of the Council for Abavandimwe, Frank Gashumba, and their Vice Chairman, Dr. Lawrence Muganga, who also doubles as the Vice Chancellor of Victoria University, raised three major concerns:
Firstly, it has become a norm for citizens of Uganda belonging to the Banyarwanda tribe to be denied identification documents such as National Identity Cards and passports. Gashumba summarized their plight, stating that even those with documents have had them confiscated by Immigration officials at Border Points such as Katuna and Kagitumba whenever they attempt to travel out of the country Uganda for study or business purposes.
“Our people, day in day out, thousands of Ugandans are being denied National Identification Cards, they are being denied passports, and those who have old passports, if they go to the Ministry of Internal Affairs for renewal, they are denied passports. Rt. Hon Speaker, when you are denied a national ID, you are economically crippled,” said Gashumba.
Gashumba further decried to the Speaker that there is a new scenario now where a person can be in possession of a hard copy of the national ID but when he or she goes to register for a company or simcard, upon verification, they are informed that they are no longer registered on the National Identification Registration Authority-NIRA system.
“When you go to NIRA, they will tell you that you are not a Ugandan. They say if u want to become a Ugandan you have to apply for naturalization. Madam Speaker, the people I represent here are 100 percent Ugandans, they don’t have any attachment to the country called Rwanda,” said Gashumba.
“Now, where it is more contradictory and ironic is that the victims of the ongoing denial of national IDs and passports are however issued voters slips every five years to vote during general elections. How is it that they are Ugandans during elections but dismissed as non-Ugandans when they apply for national IDs and passports?” Gashumba further stated.
The Kiboga District Woman MP, Christine Nakimwero Kaaya, who attended the meeting, appealed to the Speaker to direct the Immigration officials to refund monies for unsuccessful applicants for passports, saying that the youth out there are complaining about losing both an opportunity to get a passport as well as cash.
In response to the group’s concerns, the Speaker, Rt. Hon. Anita Among, condemned all forms of discrimination, saying whether one is attached to Rwanda or not, one still remains a citizen of the government of Uganda with all the freedom of speech to associate and to do anything.
Among said she is a proud Itesot and therefore, everyone should be proud of their tribe and of course with a sense of belonging (State).
She stated that what is happening is not the right thing if at all it’s true and that she is happy the Council for Abavandimwe has taken an initiative of bringing the petition to Parliament.
She said they are going to write to the line ministries and ask them to bring a petition on the floor of parliament such that the issues are addressed.
“Because when you don’t have a national ID, you cannot even open a company, you cannot operate a bank account, you cannot do business, and you can’t enjoy anything. It is very important for you to be recognized. If we can recognize a child born in Uganda, why can’t we recognize our own?” said Among.
The Speaker also tasked the head of the Council to compile a list of the people who have faced difficulties in accessing the documents and submit it to her office.
She pledged that they will be called to the Committee of Parliament so as to ably discuss their concerns in detail.
According to Among, their matter will also be discussed by the August House next week. She added that she has a Member of Parliament, Sewungu, who is a Munyarwanda.
In response, the MP for Kalungu County West, Sewungu Gonzaga, said there are many Banyarwanda MPs and promised to furnish a list to the Speaker. He suggested a constitutional amendment to incorporate all the issues related to the Bavandimwe so as to have the issues solved at once.
One of the Commissioners of Parliament, Solomon Silwany, who is the MP for Bukooli Central, is one of the senior parliamentary officials who have attended the meeting.
There are over 11 million Banyarwanda known as Abavandimwe who are now Citizens of Uganda. The 1995 Constitution recognizes them as one of the indigenous tribes.