About week ago, armed men suspected to be soldiers from the Democratic Republic of Congo shot dead three Uganda police officers on Lake Albert in Ntoroko District. The deceased officers were reported to be responding to an illegal fishing incident at Mulango on the Ugandan border. The Congolese gunmen took the bodies of the officers to DRC side, detained one officer and confiscated the Uganda Police Force speed boat and guns.
In response, the Uganda government threatened to use military force against DRC if attacks on its citizens re-occur. While the bodies of the deceased officers have since been released by DRC authorities, the incident is far from resolved. It should be noted that this incident is one of the many attacks by Congolese gunmen on Lake Albert over the years, in total disregard of the 2007 Ngurdoto Agreement between Uganda and DRC aimed at peaceful resolution of border conflicts. In May 2013, for instance, Congolese soldiers arrested five Ugandans – two police constables and three fisheries officers on Lake Albert – and detained them in DRC for nine months until President Museveni intervened to secure their release.
The latest Lake Albert attack is not an isolated case, for it came a few days after unknown gunmen abducted 20 people from the West Nile district of Yumbe, which borders South Sudan. The Yumbe incident sparked fears in the sub-region given the frequency of such attacks at various points of the South Sudan border.
The gunmen who carried out the Yumbe raid are suspected to be the same group that earlier invaded another village in Moyo District and looted goats and food stuff. By last weekend, the whereabouts of the abductees, who were suspected to have been taken to South Sudan, remained unknown as security teams continue the search around the border areas.
The border wrangles between Uganda and DRC deserve more attention. The resolution of the disputes in West Nile, which shares borderline with South Sudan and DRC, is particularly long overdue. Last year, another border quarrel between Uganda and DRC in Arua District led to clashes and closure of the border for some time. The two countries have since made great strides in resolving that dispute.
We recognise government efforts to tighten border security at disputed territories, especially by deploying more marine boats and police officers on lake Albert; and the joint border patrols in Moyo District in 2014 following clashes with South Sudan over a disputed area.
However, given the recurrent raids, these efforts are too random and inadequate. We propose a sustained border security monitoring, including motorised and foot patrols until relative security is restored. Ugandan citizens deserve to leave peacefully in their own country.
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