Obama Isn’t a Muslim.Mutesa 1 was a ”modern” King but he Never died a Muslim.
16 Sep 2011 1 Comment
This picture of Barack Hussein Obama in Muslim garb was released during the 2008 campaign.
Yes, Under Kabaka Muteesa 1, Islam was spread in Buganda such that he used to execute some people who did not embrace it. So basically, some ‘pagans’ also became martyrs because they refused to convert to Islam, the religion Muteesa1 favoured for some time.
It is difficult to know whether king Muteesa 1 had genuinely converted to Islam or he believed in foreign religions at all but all indications are that he was just an a survivor and an opportunist. He was a man open to new ideas, like I have already said, but he would drop those new ideas the moment he realised that there are a threat to his hold on to power. Therefore, the kabaka’s interest in Islam, clocks, and the written word can all be understood as an interest in modernity rather than genuine belief in Islam or any of the modern religions.
Kabaka Muteesa 1
At some point, Muteesa 1 attempted to return to traditional forms of worship, but he found it difficult because other religions had already taken hold in Buganda- according to S.R.Karugire in his book: ‘’A Political History of Uganda’’.
As for Obama, he came out during the presidential campaigns and publicly said that he was not a Muslim despite keeping the name ‘Hussein’ but Allah knows better why he put him in the most powerful office of the land.Obama is one hell of a clever man and this is displayed in the way he announced his presidential candidature on February 10, 2007, where he never acknowledged the historic nature of his candidacy as an African American or someone with an Islamic background. He knew how controversial such subjects can drag any candidate such that one ends up having no time to explain any policy in their manifesto. It is like if, for instance, I stand for presidency now and one of the Muslim brothers or Sisters comes up to me to publicly appeal for the Muslim votes, I just drop that person like a pack of cards on the table, because Uganda is a country dominated by non-Muslims and a Muslim cannot become a president without their support. This does not mean that I don’t love Muslims but it means that I know how to separate sugar and salt when preparing a meal.
At the moment, it may prove to be difficult for any Muslim to win an election in Uganda because Uganda is so deeply divided along religious lines. In USA, since the publication of the book: ’Beyond Black and White in 1995’’, public opinion has changed somewhat, showing that whites today are more open-minded than in the past about the race of a candidate, and this somehow helped Obama’s candidature.
May be Muslims in Uganda also need to write a lot of books, open up radio stations, news magazines, and inter-faith projects that may help those non-Muslims who perceive them as a threatening force to their beliefs or ventures. Obama’s presented himself as non- threatening to anybody’s race or religion and it worked. He says in his book:’’ Dreams from My Father’’ as he describes the tactic he learned to use as a teenager: ‘‘People were satisfied so long as you were courteous and smiled and made no sudden moves. They were more than satisfied; they were relieved— such a pleasant surprise to find a well-mannered young black man who didn’t seem angry all the time.’’The man knew what he wanted from the beginning and Islam was not part of the equation.
Because Obama spent several years of his childhood in Indonesia, the home of his mother’s second husband and home to Muslim majority, we could say that this helped him to learn a lot about Islam. But Islam was not such a major factor in his candidature as the issue of his outspoken pastor, Jeremiah Wright, whose church people viewed as radical. Obama first started attending this church while he was working as a community organiser. He got married in this church and the good pastor also baptised his two children. So why would anyone continue to call Obama a Muslim?
Obama publicly rejected and denounced the support he had earlier got from Louis Farrakhan, the controversial leader of the Nation of Islam. He did this on live TV in his debates with Hilary Clinton. There is no doubt in my mind that Obama knows a lot about Islam but this does not make him a Muslim.In any case, he would not have become US president if he was known to be a Muslim. Polls showed that most Americans would not vote for a Muslim president.
If Obama is still confused about his religion, we shall get to know more about it after his presidency in case he comes out and say that he is a Muslim. In his memoir,’’ Dreams from My Father’’, Obama describes his struggle with identity, growing up biracial while raised by a single white mother.
Like I said, only Allah knows why he chose Obama to become the first Black-American president, just like he chose him to become first African-American editor of the Harvard Law Review when he joined Harvard Law School in the late 1980s. May be he is on a mission bestowed on him by God. Who knows! May be one day, Ugandans will also vote for the first Muslim president.
Abbey Kibirige Semuwemba
UPC is Falling apart as Chris Rwakasisi Unsurprisingly joins Museveni as presidential advisor
22 Aug 2011 7 Comments
in history, Obote and UPC, Religion
Guys,
The appointment of Chris Rwakasisi as one of Museveni’s presidential advisors should not come as a surprise to anyone but it has greater implications for UPC as a political party. Museveni has somehow succeeded in ‘finishing off’ UPC, a mission he started as soon as he got power in 1986. And if UPC make a terrible mistake and hand over the leadership of the party to Obote’s son, then they will be dead and buried because they are constant rumors in Kampala now that all Obote’s sons might have also been bought off before the elections. Jimmy Akena himself did not do himself any favours when he recently tried to punch Dr.Otunu at a press conference in Kampala.
UPC should leave the party in the hands of Dr.Otunu though he should also be watched 24/7. Otunu’s determination to seek a meeting with Museveni at some point last year made him look like a great loser. Generally speaking, UPC seems to be finished if one looks at how desperate some of their leaders have become.
But what has caused all this? UPC was a party built on tribalism and religion contrary to what some people are saying. It was a protestant led and dominated party. Its top leadership was dominated by tribes from the north. Before independence, Shaban Opolot and Iddil Amin were on top of things in the army with the later deputising. The army was dominated by northerners throughout Obote’s leadership, and he never made any attempts to change what the British had started when he became the prime minister in 1962.
After the attempts on his life in 1969 at Nakivubo, Obote replaced Iddil Amin with an Acholi in Brigadier Okoya. After the murder of Okoya, some of Amin’s responsibilities were given again to two northerners (both Kakwas though fellow Muslims).
The Oyite Ojoks, Tito Okello, Bazilio Okello, e.t.c formed the nucleus of the army during Obote 2. The Obote 2 government fell mainly because of the rivalry between Acholis and Langis. The current UPC is falling before us because of the same rivalry. Apart from the fact that Rwakasisi owes his life now to president Museveni who gave him a presidential pardon after being in prison with a death sentence hanging over his head, the Rwakasisis no longer feel like they could be part of this anymore and Museveni has taken advantage of this. Anyway, Rwakasisi is an old man and he wants to make a few bucks for his family before he meets his creator. I’m sure the book is reportedly writing is going to make Museveni look like a Uganda ‘messiah’. May be he would have gone back to UPC if the Langis and Acholis had put their houses in order.
Rwakasisi knows that Museveni is using him. Moses Ali was appointed to Museveni cabinet in 1986 as Minister of Tourism despite looking like ‘Iddil Amin’ in so many ways. Museveni kept him for some years, used him, dumped him for a while and now he has brought him back. Rwakasisisi will go through the same drain, if he is lucky, till when he meets his creator.
The domination of northerners in UPC is unfortunately very true and the British were partly to blame. The British formulated the new Uganda in 1962 along two bases of power- economic and military. Economic power was concentrated in the south while the military was left in the hands of northerners. The Baganda, particularly, were more involved in a lot of economic adventures with the help of the British before any other region in the country. For instance, they were the first to start growing coffee in the 1920s before any region in the country.
When Obote came to power, he continued with this divide between the north and south instead of changing it. When you look at UPC of 1960s, it was mainly dominated by northerners and Protestants. Don’t be deceived by the names of some people from other tribes who were recruited in the party (especially from DP between 1964 and 1970) but the real people with power were northerners. They were running the show and they were the one that brought it to an end in 1985 because of infighting amongst themselves.
Iddil Amin( a former UPC) tried to sort out this division or imbalance between the south and north but the world either never gave him a chance or he did not also help himself in the long run. For instance, when he expelled the Asians, most of the northerners benefited from it and somehow became so rich. But Amin also never recruited a lot of southerners in the army which I think helped people like Museveni to find a way of forming an army dominated by southerners too.
Amin did some things to bridge the gap between the north and south. I don’t know whether some of the things were intentional or not. He summoned an inter-religious conference to establish a dialogue between catholic, protestant and Muslim leaders. I think this conference was held in Kabale. He even claimed two of his own sons were to be trained as catholic priests though it never happened.
He released Ben Kiwanuka from the detention Obote had put him in earlieron, something which kind of brought both the Bganda and catholics closer to the northerners. He actually later appointed Ben as chief justice.
He brought the body of Sir Edward Mutesa who had died in exile in London, for a state funeral. This made an impression on southerners especially the Baganda.
He united Muslims and also initially tried to empower the Kakwas economically, something that created some form of balance economically between the north and south. The Kakwas, however, later tried to bring down their own tribes mate in March 1974 in the abortive coup attempt by Amins’ chief of staff, late Brigadier Charles Arube.
Political parties in Uganda tend to be directly linked to the army. That is why im not even mentioning the real organs of the UPC party. From 1966, Uganda politics have been shaped by the military and it has remained so up to now.
One of the factors that may help UPC to survive the current onslaught by its enemies will be the big recruitment of membership from other tribes, particularly from the south, into responsible positions in the party. To be fair to Otunu, I think he is exactly doing that. If he can find a way of sustaining this, then UPC’s image will change forever. Any party that wants to remain popular in Uganda must have a support base in the south of Uganda because the north has always been less populated and it is likely to remain so.
So UPC members should give Otunu a chance; help to guide him instead of fighting him, and then assess his performance at the end of his term. The Langis and Acholis should also stop looking at UPC as their party, and just let the party change itself for the better depending on the demands in the country.
Abbey Kibirige Semuwemba
Congratulations Jose Chameleon for Seeing the ”Light”. Just stick in there, Mate
13 Aug 2011 6 Comments
in Religion
Jose Chameleon at Kibuli Mosque yesterday
Friends,
The news that one of Uganda’s top musician, Jose Chameleon, has converted to Islam, has been received with mixed emotions among Ugandans. It has received more reaction than when former vice president, Dr.Specioza Kazibwe, Jeje Odongo, and others converted to Islam. Jose is now called Gaddafi Chameleon. One Ugandan based in London called Richard Mukasa wrote on Ugandans at heart forum after receiving this news:’’ Religion is a kind of technology or invention which has been used to spellbind and captivate the minds of African people. As such, African people have been made to be dependent on the thinking and creativity of Arabs and Europeans.’’
There are a lot of people that feel like him about religion because of either what is happening around the world or their past experiences. For example, I met a guy here in the UK and he was from Zimbabwe who told me almost the same stuff as Mr.Mukasa wrote, and for him he is devoted to our traditional African religion rather than the bible or the Quran. Personally, I thought he’s just doing this as a peaceful demonstration against the whites in his country- because he is a pro-Mugabe guy.
Jose Chameleon interacting with fellow Muslims
But let’s put these Ibrahimic religions (Islam, Buddhism, Protestantism, e.t.c) into a perspective. In Islam, for instance, there are a lot of things you read in the Quran and you just wonder how an illiterate man in Muhammad (SAW) would have made them up. Let me give you an example of stem-cell and embryo research that has become an issue in Christian dominated countries yet it is ok in Islamic countries such as Iran, Egypt, Turkey, Malaysia and elsewhere. The reason why Muslims are not resistant to this kind of research is because of the Islamic medical ethics and some verses that were revealed in the Quran during the time of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him).
In Arabic, embryo is called janin, pl. ajinna. This is also the word for a fetus developing in the womb. The Quran identifies four stages of the development of the embryo. The first is called nutfa [a drop of seed or sperm—the zygote] and lasts 40 days; the second is called ‘alaqa [a blood clot], and this lasts an additional 40 days; and the third is called mudgha [a piece of flesh], which also lasts 40 days. After 120 days, the fetus legally becomes a human being and this is where issues of abortion come in. These things are in the Quran yet Muhammad was an illiterate man (he could not read and write). I first learnt of these stages when I was doing my O’ level biology at Kibuli S.S in Kampala but when I later opened to teach myself some bits of the Quran, I found some of this stuff there. It was not in details as the stuff we learnt in biology but it was a revelation to me. It just strengthened my faith in Islam a bit more.
Scientists are making headway in embryo research to discover cures for hereditary diseases, cancer, AIDS, Pankison’s, e.t.c. and word on street is that they are consulting this book called the Quran on a regular basis.
So why would some people think that because Islam was brought to Uganda by some Arab slave traders, it does not mean anything more than the African traditional religions we had before? It has got to mean something to a lot of people who are not Arabs and that is why it has got over a billion followers all over the world. The same goes with Christianity and other religions. Christianity came after Islam in Uganda and it was spread by Christian missionaries.
In any case, when those Arabs and missionaries first came to Buganda, they also brought some other things with them, like watches, coats ( koti), Padlocks( kufuru in Arabic and Baganda now call them Kufulu), and we have all come to fully adopt them. We are not complaining as we do with their religion. It is only the Karamajongo in Uganda who have decided to continue putting on ‘’Adam and Eve’s suites even during the day. At least, we would have called them ‘night dancers, if they only did it during the night but they do it any time to make a strong point.
Please, let’s pick up the good points in these Ibrahimic religions and probably embrace one. Like Napoleon Bonaparte said: ” a state without religion is like a ship without a compass”. Religion gives people a sense of direction.
I think religion, the way I understand it, has always been part of mankind though in a different format. Men have always believed in something supernatural, and that is why some of them used to worship trees.
In Buganda, people had their own religions before the ‘religions of the book’. Islam was the first Ibrahimic religion to come to Buganda that later became Uganda. The first recorded visit by an Arab trader to Buganda was in 1844, by Shaykh Ahmed ibn Ibrahim, a Wahabite who related the events of his visit to Emin Pasha, the extraordinary German Muslim governor of Equatorial province in the Sudan in 1876. It was during the reign of Mutesa 1. Mutesa converted to Islam but still kept his ‘jaja Mukasas’ on the side, a reason that explains why he again later dropped Islam for catholism.
In Saudi Arabia or Middle East where prophet Muhamad hailed from, they also had their own religions before Islam.
I think what is disturbing Africans at the moment is the dominance of the western civilization over ours yet it is claimed civilization started from Africa. But then again, what is civilization or modernization? On the surface, it looks like western civilization has taken over the world including in the Asia countries such as Japan and China that resisted it initially. So, Africans are now trying to rediscover themselves, hence, having these kinds of discussions. But overall, I congratulate Jose Chameleon for embracing Islam. Hope others see the light and follow him.
Abbey Kibirige Semuwemba
Uganda Muslims Got A Raw Deal From President Museveni
15 Jun 2011 Leave a Comment
in Museveni and NRM, Politics, Religion
Dear friends,
As I have been saying all along, I’m not against the old Muslim brothers who never had formal education. These people are themselves educated in some way –through various experiences they have gone through in their lives, and of which they can pass on to everybody around them.Actually, I respect them so much and I would love to see them in more positions of responsibility both politically and religiously that are suiting to them. For instance, I believe there is a lot to learn from the likes of Hajji Nasser Ssebagala, Hajji Kibirige( BMK) ,Hajji Mbabali, Mustapha Kafeero, e.t.c. despite lack of formal education. These guys form some of the cream of the richest people in the country yet they never had serious formal education.
The ‘’BANAMASAKAs’’ are some of the richest owners of buildings in Kampala but most of them are just primary school leavers. So it would be good if we find a way of bringing them on board on various issues without necessarily making them our role models. Since Muslims were not historically into formal education, I would love the few educated Muslims now to remain at the forefront of almost everything as a way of inspiring other the new generation to value education.
Some Muslims look at old guards as stumbling blocks to changing the outlook of the Muslim Ummar. The young ones believe that Muslims can achieve so much if the old guards don’t interfere so much and the vice versa is true. The problem is that the old guards are not reasonably ready to let go though I think it would be better for everybody if we kind of strike a balance between the old and new. Most of the young Muslim leaders are kind of ‘spiritually broken’ and ‘morally adrift’ compared to the old guards. So we need at least a system that keeps everybody in check, and I believe it can be built basing on the ‘KASAVU- KANYAMA’( fat- meat) theory. In other words, we need almost everybody on board if we are to move forward.
With the ‘fat-meat’ theory, it will be easy to calm things down between the ‘progressive’ collectivist forces, and those trying to uphold the stabilizing traditions of the Muslims in Uganda. For instance, I think this theory has started working perfectly at Mengo Kingdom as we have seen the Kabaka over the last few years coming up with a cabinet and Lukiiko that have got both the youths and old guards in them. The Kabaka brought a smile on my face when I saw some of my UAH friends especially Kalundi Sserumaga as one of the members in Lukiiko.
MUSLIM REPRESENTATIVE
On the issue of Muslim representatives, Yes, Muslims are less in numbers than both the Catholics and Protestants in the country but this does not mean that they should be under looked when the president is appointing people in government positions. Nobody should deceive you that religion and tribe never comes to mind when the president is appointing people in cabinet positions or anywhere in public service. For instance, it is widely known that both Bukenya and Ssekandi were appointed VP as a way of getting both the Catholics and Baganda on the president’s side. Did it work? We gonna have to ask the president this because I don’t know, but the appointment was made. So Muslims have not been happy for a while because they have never had a Muslim: VP, PM, Chief justice, Speaker of parliament, Katikiro, URA boss, Minister of Oil, or any of the powerful positions in government. Apart from the EC chairman docket, there is really nothing in Museveni’s government for Muslims to proudly speak of. They also need political role models, don’t they??
This issue is not talked about in Uganda alone, for instance, in 2007, USA’s Minnesota Congressman Keith Ellison, was sworn into office using the Quran instead of the traditional bible, but this issue raised eyebrows among some people. The guy had converted to Islam and therefore saw no need to swear on bible anymore but I guess some voters didn’t know it before they voted for him.
Secondly, all governments all over the world encourage religious organizations to have Muslim representatives they can deal with. For instance, in France, a Muslim national advisory body was purposely created to address issues like the training of clerics and to act as the Muslim representative in dealing with the government. Unfortunately, Muslims are divided into more than three sects in Uganda but fortunately, the president recognizes and deals with one of the sects that are based at Old Kampala. So, some Muslims are fairly asking if he consulted with Mufti Mubajje( leader of the Muslim Sect at Old Kampala) before he nominated some Muslims into his cabinet, because it is believed that the president sometimes consults some Catholics leaders before he comes up with a name for presidency.
I also think we should go slowly on separating religion from politics because I think this is what is replicated in the people questioning this approach. Some people tend to say that religions are by definitions ‘cults’ thus these irrational and unscientific belief systems pollute any political process with absurdity and mental numbness. So they believe to solve problems and get along with each other, we need a clear mind that can reason and calculate with facts, not made up myths. They want someone to be appointed in any cabinet or job because they qualify for it not because they are Catholics or Muslims.
However, I have seen enough under president Museveni and NRM to now see that politics can become a supernatural cult, complete with a belief in miracles. So, every reason some people against religion being mixed with politics say- can fit exactly into politics. So for now, politics and religion do mix just fine and dandy. When one becomes a leader anywhere in Uganda, one must put into consideration people’s religious, cultural and tribal considerations till when the society will eventually change itself to something different.
What, therefore, presidents: Museveni and late Obote, have been doing when it comes to cabinet appointments is unfair to Muslims. Obote never gave us a good deal when he was president and Museveni is doing the same. We have got a lot of capable Muslims that can be effective as Vice presidents, Prime ministers, speakers; you name it, even better than the Bukenyas and Mbabazis. I can put my money on that! Muslims are now hoping that the president will consider them when appointing his new ambassadors, permanent secretaries or anywhere in public service.
Byebyo ebyange
Abbey Kibirige Semuwemba
HIJAB DOES NOT MEAN OPPRESSION OF WOMEN
16 Apr 2011 7 Comments
in culture, cultures, Religion
Dear friends,
I have come to notice that a lot of people are ignorant about the meaning of the veil or Hijab in Islam especially considering that our neighbours in Britain, the French, have started arresting women dressed in Burqa in public. I don’t wish to turn this into a quranic based debate because even if there was evidence in the Quran that things like polygamy or wearing hijab or Burqa are supported by certain verses, there are people with power in this world who are determined not to listen. They see Islam as walking anachronism, as something against liberty, freedom, and progress. When somebody is seeing Islam in this sense, it leads to ‘islamphobia’. However, for the sake of this debate, I wish to say that there is a body of evidence in the Quran that supports Hijab. For example, in the following Qur’anic verses addressing women’s clothing, it is stated:
And say to the believing women that they should avert their gaze and guard their modesty, and they should not display their adornment except what is apparent thereof, and they should throw their veils over their bosoms, and not display their adornment except to their husbands or fathers. (Holy Qur’an 24:31)
O Prophet, tell your wives and the women of the believers that they should bring some of their cloaks closer/nearer to themselves, that is a minimum [measure] so that they would be recognized as such and hence not molested.(Holy Qur’an 33:59)
Before these verses were revealed, Arab women used to wear something called Khimar(a long headscarf that flowed loosely around their shoulders) but the breasts were a bit exposed. As far as I know, there are no sanctions in the Quran for not covering but obviously this is based on different interpretation of different scholars. There is lack of consensus among the scholars on whether the whole face should be covered or not, but my personal view is that we should encourage and respect those women who at least take the initiative to cover up or dress decently.
When a Muslim woman puts on a hijab, head scarf, or whatever, people tend to look at them in the west as ‘oppressed’, ‘backward’ and ‘uneducated’, something I find so absurd. Actually, what some people don’t know is that historically, the veil or Hijab was the marker of a free woman versus a slave or concubine and set certain social and sexual parameters for the engagement of men with these different social and class based categories of women. But as a result of this ignorance of cultural and religious values in the west, Muslim women have been discriminated against especially in terms of jobs or what we call ‘ being picked upon’ here in the UK. For instance, Muslim girls in schools in France, Turkey and Quebec have been exiled from public schools because of their Hijabs. It even makes it worse when some states such as France, Belgium and Netherlands come out with laws that are targeting the minority of women that are putting on ‘Burqa’ . This has only increased further discrimination of Muslim women in the society; something I believe should not be engineered by any responsible state.
France has banned the Burqa but it looks like they are also not tolerant with ‘Hijab’. For instance, in 1989 three Muslim adolescent girls were denied access to public school because they wore the hijab or headscarf, an act that defies a 1937 French law prohibiting the wearing of conspicuous religious symbols in government run schools.
I sometimes wonder why the Catholic Church does not come out to support Muslims on this because the Catholic churches used to require women to wear scarves. Why they abandoned it, I don’t know yet. During the 1900s, the head covering gradually disappeared from many Protestant churches, which dropped their requirement that women cover their heads during the church service. The Roman Catholic Church omitted it in the 1983 Code of Canon Law. But, all the same, it becomes an infringement on individual human rights when we start supporting laws in schools and public life that are targeting women who dress according to their religious norms. Here in the UK, People shave their heads, wear rings through their noses, and private parts and dye their hair, but society is not bothered with them because it’s their right but why would it be necessary to target a woman who decide to cover almost all her body when outside her house?.
Different styles of Hijab at http://www.hijabstyle.co.uk/
In any case, a lot of Muslims are immigrating to the west, and some are individually abandoning their religious and cultural norms for western way of living. This is something that is happening without any law in place necessitating them to change for western life. While it takes two, three, or four generations, it has shown that 99.9% of immigrants fully adapt to the Western lifestyle no matter where they are from. New immigrants settle in their own little towns, continue to speak their own language, and practice their own culture, but history has shown that after a few generations their children, grand children, great-grand children, and great-great-grand children and each following generation finds it easier to fully adapt to the country as they slowly lose the old cultural practices. They become English only speakers and they fully or most fully adapt to western values. You will always find some exceptions to this, but this what history has proven.
I think women should be allowed to put on anything they want as long as they are not bothering anyone. Obviously, factors such as decency, culture and religion should always be put into consideration.
Byebyo ebyange
Abbey Kibirige Semuwemba
UK
The Catholic Church Should Openly Support Condom Use and Contraception
29 Nov 2010 1 Comment
in cultures, health, luwero war after 1980 'theft', Museveni and NRM, Religion, science
Pope Benedict XVI
The Catholic Church has done a lot of immeasurable good things in Africa and elsewhere in the world but I still cannot understand why they cannot openly support the use of condoms to reduce Sexually Transmitted Diseases(STDs), and the use of contraception methods. The church has played a crucial role in educating; treating and bringing hope to a lot of Africans. It has quietly worked against evil systems, such as South Africa’s apartheid and African dictatorships, as was the case, for instance, when one cardinal was allegedly used to support Yoweri Museveni’s NRA rebels against Obote and Iddil Amin regimes in Uganda. Pope John Paul II also worked against communism and strongly opposed the war in Iraq, calling it a defeat for humanity which could not be morally or legally justified.
Nonetheless, recently, Pope Benedict XVI seems to have done a simple but not a ‘sharp’ u-turn on use of condoms when he said that people should use them which were a bit better than his April, 2009 message on his trip in Africa when he said that the use of condoms worsens the HIV problem. Benedict was born in 1927 and he has seen how the world has been changing since. So we expect him to see a lot of things differently though we expect him to review the abstinence message too. The church has been preaching abstinence outside married life and faithfulness within it and probably it would be effective if it was followed, but the truth is that people don’t do so.
There’s a lot of disinformation on the internet about regarding the safety of condoms. I suspect that the Catholic Church or religious leaders have something to do with it. The main problem with condoms is that they may break, or fall off when using them. I just don’t see how an HIV virus would get through these pores when water doesn’t. It’s physically impossible. Unless the condom is damaged, the risk to HIV is very low.
Therefore, the Vatican and other religious groups’ claims about permeable condoms are wrong. The World Health Organisation has already advised people to disregard messages from the church about this issue. The message of “abstinence” and “high-risk partners” should be preached alongside the use of condoms. There are some people who cannot abstain from knocking on certain ‘HIV addresses’ even if they are not landlords or tenants. They may just go there just to drop ‘letters’ or ‘leaflets’ or ‘ just delivering take-aways’, and we need to find a way to protect them. So postmen, ambulance people, take-away people and marketers all need to be protected from the dogs in the houses.
Several organisations including Lancet, a UK Medical journal, have been criticising the church over their condom message and I think the criticism has started bearing some fruits going by the pope’s recent message. We just hope that the rest of the church takes this message seriously, after all, condoms have already been proven as effective, in most African countries and beyond a doubt that they help in reducing the spread of HIV-AIDS and other STDs.
The Church’s prohibition of contraception is also wrong since it does not seem to have any Biblical foundation, apart from the story of Onan spilling his seed on the ground, which is a special case. It seems more likely to have come from Aristotle, the source of much bad doctrine. The Pope has continually forced his own views on how women may control their own fertility but I think it is wrong.
The pope’s U-turn in just a year’s time is a confirmation that merely because one is famous (or wealthy) doesn’t make one intellectually or morally superior to the rest of humanity. In reality, most of the so called famous people have a very limited understanding about how the rest of the world works, and are more interested in feeding their own fragile egos than examining the consequences of their actions. Many of them access no information, and base opinions solely on what is fashionably correct. They aren’t reviewing abstracts in the journals looking for relevant articles, reading up on epidemiological studies, or picking up a calculator to crunch some numbers to do a basic sanity check before publicly uttering inanities like some statements that have come to be associated with the Catholic Church over the years. Most of the time, they are merely regurgitating the same message they have heard over and over again, from the usual drones. So people following these leaders should use common sense before they take everything they say on board. We all love our religions but we also accept that very few people confess to their sins in public. So we need to find a way of protecting most especially the silent sinners because they may turn out to be useful some day.
Abbey Kibirige Semuwemba
NRM has not given enough political cake to Muslims
22 May 2010 4 Comments
in 2010-2011 elections, Buganda, kingdoms, Obote and UPC, Religion, Uncategorized
Becoming a politician is not inborn or prophetic as in like Jesus or Muhammad(saw) born with unique features of prophecy. Anybody can become a politician if the situation warrants one to become one.General Kazini was teacher by profession but he died a military officer. Late Dr.Kiggundu Sulaiman was a banker and researcher but he died a politician.The current chairman of the electoral commission,Dr.Badru Kiggundu was an academician in USA and later in Makerere university but now he is fully in politics. But Let me go back to the gist of my message which is Muslims and how we have been marginalised politically in Uganda.
The Muslims have got no viable Muslim in the current NRM government apart from the Electoral Commission Chairman,Dr.Badru Kiggundu, and Hajji Kirunda Kivenjinja, yet the both the catholics and protestants are well represented. This has been the case since 1996 where no Muslim occupies a constitutional office anywhere in Museveni’s government. Muslims were well represented in the first 10 years of Museveni’s reign but not anymore.
During Obote 2, there was no Muslim in his cabinet. There was one Muslim ntege Lubwama who had been named a minister but Oyite Ojok and Chris Rwakasisi plotted his death and he had to go into exile.UNLF under Godfrey Binaisa, there was only Ntege Lubwama and Bidandi Ssali.UNLF under Lule, there was none although Lule was once upon a time a Muslim. Obote 1 had only two Muslim ninisters:Adoko Nekyon and Shaban Nkutu (from Busoga).
During Iddil Amin,Uganda was admited as an islamic country at a conference in Lahore, pakistan in 1974 and Amin tried a lot to help Muslims during his reign. Nevertheless, Amin had only one Mulsim in first cabinet though this later changed as years progressed.
According to the 1958 consensus, i think muslims were not more than 5%. Because we are a minority, we have always needed catholics and protestants at our side when making political decisons.This means that a muslim president or Vice president can act as a bridge between different religions in Uganda and does not need to turn Uganda into an Islamic state which was somehow the dream of Iddil Amin. Non-Muslims can vote for a Muslim president looking at him as a bridge to unite everybody despite whatever happened under Iddil Amin.
Muslims in general do not discriminate people based on religions. In Senegal, there was a catholic president called Leopold Senghol but the majority of the population that voted for him were Muslims.In Tanzania, Julius Nyerere was a catholic but muslims loved him in big numbers. Museveni1(1986-1998) was also loved and supported by majority of Muslims before he came to power.
Religion, culture and politics are like three brothers competing with one another.The link between religion and politics in Uganda can be explained in the earlier relationship between Sudan and Uganda during the rise of the Mahdi, a force that overpowered the British and Egyptians and later led to what we call ‘NUBIANS’ in Uganda. When the Acholi, Lugabara, Kakwa, banyoro and others were converted to Islam, they became BANUBI. Amin was a kakwa muslim which makes him a Nubian is some way.
In the 1950s, religion played apart in party membership and formation. DP was mainly dominated by catholics and it had a catholic Lawyer in Kiwanuka as its first leader.DP was originally supposed to be called christian Democratic party before the word christain was omitted.It also used people like archbisjop of Lubaga, Joseph Kiwanuka, to tap into Baganda and catholic support during the elections. I think Kiwanuka died in 1966, the same year Obote abolished kingdoms.
Uganda National Congress(UNC) and later UPC were dominated by protestants. 75% of the UNC central committee came from King’s College Budo School, a protestant school.74% of their branch chairman were protestants.Islam was not an influence but it once acted as a unifying factor for protestants and catholics when the British and Arabs were fighthing for influence in Buganda. The British later sided with protestants as the formal ascendasy or official religion for Buganda.
For UPC, it benefited from the 1961 elections because of its protestant base. The greater the precentage of protestants in adistrict, the higher the vote for UPC though DP benifited from this more than UPC. Nevertherless,UPC tried to move away from religion in the 1962 elections.
Unlike Muslims, protestants have produced national and traditional leaders that have helped to unite them. Most of the Kabakas have been protestants including the current one. Obote was a protestant and presided over cabinets dominated by protestants in Obote and Obote 2. Catholics have also continued to be atleast well representated because they are the majority in Uganda.Muslims were also united when Amin was in power but it was short lived because since then we have not been having strong national characters to unite us. That’s why, atleast, we need a strong Muslim Vice president or prime minister as things stand and it could benefit all of us if we get a good candidate. The current NRM governnment should think about this as no Muslim is occupying any of the biggest posts in the government. Buganda’s Mengo administration should also think about appointing a Muslim Katikiro soon for the sake of creating balance in political appointees in the kingdom.
AbbeyKibirige Semuwemba
United Kingdom
BIBLE,HOMOSEXUALITY,WOMEN RIGHTS AND POLYGAMY
13 Feb 2010 15 Comments
in 2010-2011 elections, culture, cultures, international, Religion
A man surrounded by two wives
Dear Friends,
It is very wrong for people to portray polygamy as only as Muslim thing yet it is well known that the Bible is pro-polygamy.Polygamy is one of the grand Bible based values they don’t like to talk about .You will find nothing in the Bible, Old or New Testament, that discredits polygamy.Actually, the Bible does not restrict how many wives a man can have, Only that he must be married to whoever he has sex with. In the Bible, King Solomon, who was one of the “good guys” , had 1000 wives and concubines. According to the bible, a man may have sex with any woman who is legally his property. This means polygamy is acceptable under biblical morality; if you’ll recall, almost all of the biblical greats had multiple wives and concubines (David, Solomen, Isaac, Abraham, Gideon, Machir, Manasseh, Esau, Isreal, Jacob…….).For instance, in Exodus 21:10, a man can marry an infinite amount of women without any limits to how many he can marry. In 2 Samuel 5:13; 1 Chronicles 3:1-9, 14:3, King David had six wives and numerous concubines. In 1 Kings 11:3, King Solomon had 700 wives and 300 concubines. In 2 Chronicles 11:21, King Solomon’s son Rehoboam had 18 wives and 60 concubines. In Deuteronomy 21:15 “If a man has two wives, and he loves one but not the other, and both bear him sons….”. In Deuteronomy 25:5 if a woman’s husband dies, and she didn’t have any kids from him, then she must marry his brother regardless whether he had a wife or not.
Polygamy has been practiced for thousands of years.Polygamy stretches back at least thousands of years to the Babylonian empire.In Sweden, there is now a movement for legalized polyamory and the abolition of marriage.In Canada,two out of four reports on polygamy commissioned by the Canadian government recommended decriminalization and regulation of the practice. In USA,Polygamy is supported in principle by the American Civil Liberties Union.There are also Mormons living in suburban Utah who are polygamous anyway despite the fact that Polygamy is banned in the Utah Constitution and is a felony offense.While polygamy is technically illegal in Utah,tens of thousands of devout Christians there still practice it (Some husbands have as many as seven wives).The law isn’t enforced much, like laws against other victim less crimes.While Bill Clinton also condemned polygamy and its prior practice by his Mormon church,when campaigning to be president and targeting for women votes , his great-grandfather had five wives and at least one of his great-great grandfathers had 12.
homosexuality and polygamy
It’s also wrong to start comparing polygamy to gay marriage or homosexuality.Gay marriage and polygamy are like apples and oranges. Polygamy would only be a fair comparison if the attempt was to have gays be able to have multiple spouses. There is more of a precedent in human history for polygamous marriage, than for “same sex marriage.Same-sex “marriage” used to be only legal in Massachussetts in 2004.
I believe that supporters of homosexuality normally sneak in this issue because they are confusing “zoning laws” with rules and regulations that are set up for no other reason than to specifically protect and preserve the prevailing moral values of the community. These are the same types of regulations that keep me from dancing nude in my front yard.The government has the right to restrict and regulate those things in public that the majority of society feels is inappropriate, as homosexuality is the case in Africa.The government has a compelling reason to control this behavior for no other reason than it goes against the prevailing moral values of the community.
Polygamy laws have always been difficult to prosecute anywhere it’s in the world because the men generally obtain marriage licenses for only their first wives. Subsequent marriages are performed secretly, and the additional wives often present themselves to society as single women with children.As a result,there are threfore several polygamists in the UK, USA and other developed nations, and there is nothing the governments can do about it.
Women rights
I support women rights and I would love my sisters to get married to single men but I will never stand in their way if they go for a polygamous marriage. Polygamy only violates women rights as long as it is non consensual. I don’t believe in the notion that love divided up means less love per share ,as every woman has got something special about her.Even if we give women a choice now, it could make more sense for them to be the second wife of a rich man than the first wife of a poor one.The anthropologist Laura Betzig is quoted as saying, “Which woman would not rather be John Kennedy’s third wife than Bozo the Clown’s first?”.Some suggest that the end of polygamy will come through the empowerment of women but I think it has instead created a lot of problems in developed nations where women are so much empowered- since few men want to marry them.
So please let us not legislate against polygamy in Uganda but instead put more effort in fighting problems women face such as: female circumcision, domestic violance, girls education, unequal employment oppoertunities, pregnant discrimination at work and the right to inherit their fathers.
Abbey Kibirige Semuwemba
UK
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Blogs:
http://ugandansatheart.wordpress.com/
http://semuwemba.wordpress.com/
http://ekitibwakyabuganda.wordpress.com/
Islam and Prophet Muhammad videos
24 Jan 2010 Leave a Comment
in Religion Tags: Abbey Kibirige Semuwemba
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http://freedocumentaries.org/theatre.php?filmid=56&id=879&wh=1000×720
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m] Battle of Uhud
n] Battle of Badr
o] Prophet’s last sermon before his death
MARRIAGE AND OLARA OTUNNU GAY RUMOURS
06 Jan 2010 12 Comments
in culture, Politics, Religion
People,
I have been reading opinions about Olara Otunnu’s delay to get married up to now yet he is in his 50s which has allegedly been attributed by some people to being gay or sexually dysfunctional. Then Prince Kassimu Nakibinge’s recent marriage to sister Haniffa who is a Munyarwanda by tribe. Before this, we have been exposed to regular reports in the Bukedde newspaper about Billionaire lady Babirye’s pending divorce to Mr.Mugerwa and how the husband want more from her wealth before they go separate ways. The question bogging my head is:’ what happened to marriage in Uganda?’
olara otunnu
Historically,marriage was a civil, contractual event for the purposes of property and inheritance clarification purposes, and to cement family and dynastic connections. It was primarily limited to the few in the upper classes. It existed long before Judaism,Islam in all civilized cultures, and certainly long before Christianity. For example,in all of the old testament, the words for “marriage” or “wedding” (or their equivalent) do not appear. There is no description of a wedding ceremony. There seem to have been no word for “marriage” or “wedding” in Hebrew. “Marriage” and “wedding” are mentioned only indirectly in the new Testament.
Basing on what is happening in Uganda today and elsewhere in the world, it is now obvious that “Marriage” has changed more in form, purpose, method, intent, and significance than any almost any other institution. The only thing that has remained the same is that it is a civil, non-religious instituition even though religions and cultures have interjected themselves into it with a good aim of saving it altogether.
All religions believe that marriage is supposed to be a sacred contract between a man and a woman, and their god. It should be governed by the religion’s rules: (Catholic=no divorce, just annulment, Baptist=divorce, Islam= divorce is allowed but after 40 days of trial to patch things up, etc..) .Those who dont believe in religion take marriage to be just a personal partnership agreement and therefore it can obviously be dissolved by the consenting parties any time they feel like moving on. The children will still be the shared responsibility of the parents, no getting out of that, ever.
African cultures make it mandatory for men and women to marry after adolescence and whoever reaches in their mid 40s without a wife or husband will be looked at in a different way. That’s why some people are now openly accusing UPC’s Olara Otunnu of having a sexual problem because they have not seen him hanging out with any woman publicly. Some people are saying that he is not fit to be either a party president or president of the country if he is not yet married.
As if culture and religion are not enough, government has also butted in by being involved in divorce because the state believes that marriage is a contract, a partnership,just like any business relationship, and therefore they have got the mandate to interfere in it any time they want. This is what has pissed many youths in nations like UK and USA and therefore decided to stay single, since everybody has made it their business to interfere in marriage.
Personally, I believe that the Government should have no say as to the persons that make the contract, or even how many personal partnership contracts an individual can have at one time.Let’s leave marriage to be a religious and cultural issue. If a muslim wants to marry more than one woman then the state shouldn’t interfere. If a catholic is commanded to be stuck with one woman then that their business.
Divorce should also be discouraged and I believe most African cultures and religions do so. In Buganda, women stay in miserable marriages forever for the sake of kids and I think this is a good thing.The children of divorce make up a huge portion of the drug culture, the prison population and add to the fuel of anger that so many feel.People also divorcing should stop telling everyone around them every detail of their pain. If Mugerwa and Babirye cannot be reconciled by religious and cultural groups then they should say ‘see you later’ to each other quietly.Divorce comes about, often, because one of the partners decides that it is more important to be free, to be independent than to deal with the reality of dealing with people.
Therefore, for the sake of strengthening both the religious and cultural institutions, I second those who say that Otunnu should not be our president if he is not yet married. Homosexuality and divorce should also be discouraged in our societies for the sake of continuity in human race and protecting the already produced human race respectively.
Thank you
Abbey Kibirige Semuwemba
United Kingdom
Mr.Kasirye Gwanga wrongly made a good point
29 Dec 2009 1 Comment
in Religion
Dear Ugandans,
The Brigadier Kasirye Gwanga case is very interesting since the rights of people’s expression of religion are conflicting with other people’s right to privacy. Of course a person’s right to privacy extends to controlling the noise level measured in decibels that can be heard within the vicinity of a person’s property.As far I know, according to current Uganda laws, freedom of speech and religion have some restrictions. Unfortunately, there is an active effort by the some people to suppress religion in the society in every respect and I suspect Kasirye may fall in this category because he could have used other means to make a point other than firing bullets in the air.It made him look uncivilized with a proper display of a fragile character. I hope the UPDF condemns this act and distances itself from his behavior completely.
Uganda should remain a great country that respects everyone’s right to practice their religion but in practicing their religion it is not appropriate to trample on the rights of others. The prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) never used a loud speaker to call the Muslims to prayer. I believe he would have if there was one available but the facts of history stand. The decibel level around these resident’s home (those complaining) should be measured and compared to the local ordinance regarding noise. Personally, I always feel bad whenever I go to Kampala and there are people on the streets holding a bible in one hand while shouting or rather preaching to bypassers. These people should be got off the streets because they are invading our space.
There are also those who complain about loudspeakers used by Muslims to call people for prayers but I think we need to strike a balance here and this goes to the media in Uganda. Muslims don’t get enough coverage of their prayers on TV and radio stations and probably depend on these loudspeakers to make their presence known and also reach out to fellow Muslims. When we watch television on Sunday, even here in the UK, we are bombarded by Christian church programs and during the Christmas season we are forced to hear the multitude of Christmas carols. Muslims also believe in Jesus (peace be upon him) but his birthday is not celebrated as such. Also, Jesus’s Sabbath was on Saturday not Sunday.
As far as the loudspeakers are concerned, this is an invasion of privacy for the residents who do not accept Islam or christianity, and probably something needs to be done about it. Nevertheless,if this becomes a law as I expect soon,the same laws should apply to a Christian that is blasting Christmas carols.
In USA,Muslims apply for a licence to use these speakers while calling Azan.For instance,the City Council of Hamtramck, Michigan, gave its preliminary approval to the Bangladeshi al-Islah mosque to carry the Arabic call to prayer five times a day through a loudspeaker though some residents in Michigan again complained.I dont know what happened after several complains. In the UK, both mosques and churches cannot use loudspeakers that interfere with the privacy of the neighbourhood.
Nevertheless,In any city which permits the use of bells by churches, equally there should be permission for the Islamic muezzin to use amplification, or for that matter, for the cantor of a synagogue to call Sabbath. We just need common sense on this issue to move forward.Please keep in mind that I stand for religious freedom, and for freedom from religion, in equal measure.In any case, the truly faithful know when are their religious services, and need not be called to worship. Regardless of the calling, the faithless will not come.
Byebyo ebyange
Abbey Kibirige Semuwemba
United Kingdom
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Blogs:
http://ugandansatheart.wordpress.com/
http://semuwemba.wordpress.com/
http://ekitibwakyabuganda.wordpress.com/
Congratulations prince kassimu Nakibinge
13 Dec 2009 1 Comment
Good people,
First of all, I congratulate brother Kasimu Nakibinge for getting ‘OMUFUMBI WETTOKE’( Wife). Hope Allah blesses this marriage for the good of Islam. There is nothing wrong with marrying a munyarwanda woman whom we have added to the Muslim ummah in the process.
Apparently the whole thing about prince Kassimu Nakibinje’s marriage to a Munyarwanda lady , went over some people’s head. I’m particularly concerned with a gentleman who wrote that Uganda men go for Banyarwanda/ western women because they are better in bed than other tribes. This is all just talk and pure nonsense. It’s like some times when you meet some Ugandans here in the UK who engage in debates like ‘ white women are better than blacks in bed’. It’s all in our heads and that’s all.
Hispanic women, Asian women and black women, banyarwanda women, Baganda women, banyankole, bakiiga, and whatever, they are all the same when it comes to sex. It’s the attitude that differs. Actually, Mr. Henry Ford Mirima can quote me on this in his sex book if he wants. Black women are the craziest. Hispanic women and Bakyotala are the most passionate. White women are adventurous and Asian women or Bakyotala ladies, as we call them in Uganda, are submissive. Balugwala women, I don’t know but I hear they are strong, hardworking and very serious.
So I wouldn’t say that Banyarwnda or Baganda women are better. They are different with respect to attitude. But built the same and respond the same as any other women.
It doesn’t change the fact that Baganda/Muslims are better for UAH’s sister Rehema because she prefers them. It just means that her like MOST other Muslim females they are genetically and religiously programmed to prefer their own tribe and religion. And western women aren’t “better” just because a muganda man likes them. We need to get away from this “we are better” crap. It’s just plain tribalism.
As a nation, most of our sexual attitudes today would be shocking to earlier generations. Gay relationships, marrying without parental guidance, marrying without religious consideration, just marrying because you think you are in love with some one, marrying purely for money…………….. are now “morally acceptable” to everybody today.
Nubians are my Muslim brothers
16 Nov 2009 1 Comment
Dear readers,
I would like to make a few comments and probably my last about this issue.
- Please I would like those who are Banubi by tribe to explain to the members what they understand by a Ugandan Nubian since this is just a debate. Brother Ahmed Katerega and I have heard our say on the issue and I think it will only be fair if they give us their version about this issue.
- Like I said, up to now I don’t know why the colonialists settled on calling the Sudanese who migrated to Uganda, under the watchful eye of captain Lugard,Nubians, because the whole term meant a mixture of different tribes that went through a certain procedure to become abanubi as I explained earlier on. Again, how can we compare the Nubians in Uganda with the true Nubians of upper Egypt, northern Sudan and the people residing in Nuba Hills in sudan.
- Hate-Love relationship between Nubians or Sudanese as they were called then and Buganda:
- In 1893 when the Baganda Muslims were dissatisfied with the British, the Sudanese or Nubians supported the former( Muslims) out of Muslim brotherhood. But the British acted swiftly to break this alliance by disarming all the Sudanese in Buganda and also deported their leader back to Sudan.
- Nubians initially did not want to be part of Buganda.They wanted to be independent of Buganda yet Bombo where the majority were staying had become part of Buganda’s crown land.For instance, at one time 50 Nubians refused to pay tax to the king of Buganda and as a result 4 of their leaders were arrested.The fact was that the Nubians did not want to go back to Sudan but at the same time they wanted to be independent of Buganda.BUT In the end, they accepted to be part of Buganda
- OLUNUBI spoken by the Banubi in Uganda as a language is some kind of modified Arabic and all the original speakers served under Gordon, Samuel Baker and Emin Pasha.The numerals are in Arabic.
- A muganda Muslim is not a Nubian and i think i explained this already. Just read the following links to follow all the details so far discussed on this issue:
http://semuwemba.wordpress.com/2009/11/14/who-is-a-nubian/
http://ugandansatheart.wordpress.com/2009/11/16/where-did-the-nubians-in-uganda-come-from/
6. Ahmed Katerega was also right about some Nubians in Kenya. The first Kenyan police was composed of mostly Nubians.In Uganda, the British intergrated them into the army after using them to fight in Bunyoro.
7. It is also a fact that most of the Nubians came to permanently stay in Uganda under Lugard Fredrick in 1891. Ahmed Katerega is also right that the original Nubians and their true ancestors may all be dead. What we have got now in Uganda is ‘diluted Banubi’ following the Nubian culture, religion(Islam) and dress.
I think the true or ‘CONCENTRATED Nubians’ lived in the north of Khartoum, up to the border with Egypt. While Nubian males here spoke Nubian languages at home, they tended to have a strong command of Arabic since they came from communities in which economically motivated migration to Egypt, and later to Khartoum and other Sudanese towns, was common. Most of the tribes in northern sudan(Darfurians, Nubians, Beja and Beni Amer) are all Muslims: the majority of Nuba are Muslims though their predescors were christians. The last Christian king of Nubia came to the throne early in the fourteenth century and was succeeded by a series of Moslem puppet kings imposed by the Mamluk Sultans of Egypt. They(xtian nubians) used to put black crosses on their foreheads.Nubian king Silko was the first Christian king.
For the sake of unity and promoting the spirit of feeling ‘Ugandan’, i suggest that we bury all this historical nonsense and tribal pride and accept the way things are. Having a Nubian as a Muslim brother is more important to me than how he or she came to be called a Nubian.
Byebyo ebyange
Abbey Semuwemba
NRM has not given enough political cake to Muslims
14 Nov 2009 Leave a Comment
in Obote and UPC, Politics, Religion
Becoming a politician is not inborn or prophetic as in like Jesus or Muhammad born with unique features of prophecy. Anybody can become a politician if the situation warrants one to become one. Kazini was teacher but he has died a military officer. Late Kiggundu Sulaiman was a banker and researcher but he died a politician.The current chairman of the electoral commission,Dr.Badru Kiggundu was an academician in USA and later in Makerere university but now he is fully in politics.
Let me go back to the gist of this debate which is Muslims and how we have been marginalised politically in Uganda.During Iddil Amin,Uganda was admited as an islamic country at a conference in Lahore, pakistan in 1974 but Amin was just day dreaming. According to the 1958 consensus, i think muslims were not more than 5%. Because we are a minority, we need catholics and protestants at our side when making political decisons.This means that a muslim president or Vice president can act as a bridge between different religions in Uganda and does not need to turn Uganda into an Islamic state.Obviously Amin later messed this up but it makes sense.
Muslims in general do not discriminate people based on religions. In Senegal, there was a catholic president called Leopold Senghol but the majority of the population that voted for him were Muslims.In Tanzania, Nyerere was a catholic but muslims loved him in big numbers. Museveni1(1986-1998) was also loved by majority of Muslims.
Religion, culture and politics are like three brothers competing with one another.The link between religion and politics in Uganda can be explained in the earlier relationship between Sudan and Uganda during the rise of the Mahdi, a force that overpowered the British and Egyptians and later led to what we call ‘NUBIANS’ in Uganda. When the Acholi, Lugabara, Kakwa, banyoro and others were converted to Islam, they became BANUBI. Amin was a kakwa muslim which makes him a Nubian is some way.
In the 1950s, religion played apart in party membership and formation. DP was mainly dominated by catholics and it had a catholic Lawyer in Kiwanuka as its first leader.DP was originally supposed to be called christian Democratic party before the word christain was omitted.It also used people like archbisjop of Lubaga, Joseph Kiwanuka, to tap into Baganda and catholic support during the elections. I think Kiwanuka died in 1966, the same year Obote abolished kingdoms.
Uganda National Congress(UNC) and later UPC were dominated by protestants. 75% of the UNC central committee came from King’s College Budo School, a protestant school.74% of their branch chairman were protestants.Islam was not an influence but it once acted as a unifying factor for protestants and catholics when the British and Arabs were fighthing for influence in Buganda. The British later sided with protestants as the formal ascendasy or official religion for Buganda.
For UPC, it benefited from the 1961 elections because of its protestant base. The greater the precentage of protestants in adistrict, the higher the vote for UPC though DP benifited from this more than UPC. Nevertherless,UPC tried to move away from religion in the 1962 elections.
Unlike Muslims, protestants have produced national and traditional leaders that have helped to unite them. Most of the Kabakas have been protestants including the current one. Obote was a protestant and presided over cabinets dominated by protestants. Catholics have also continued to be atleast well representated because they are the majority in Uganda.Muslims were also united when Amin was in power but it was short lived because since then we have not been having strong national charcaters to unite us. That’s why atleast we need a strong Muslim Vice president or prime minister as things stand and it could benefit all of us if we get a good candidate.
AbbeyKibirige Semuwemba
Kabaka Mwanga Vs Bajulizi
13 Jun 2009 Leave a Comment
It is generally accepted that a martyr is a person who sacrifices his or her life or their personal freedom in order to further a cause or belief for many. This cause or belief may be political, cultural or religious. Some of the historical political martyrs include the Manouchian Group (a group of foreign communists, heroes and martyrs of the Resistance in France 1940-44) and probably even recently Mr.Tom Jjulunga if what is being rumoured about him dying as a result of his affiliation with the opposition party, FDC, is true. If we all agree that martyrdom is not limited to Christianity, then it would not be appropriate for: Muslims or other religious factions to have a bank holiday for those who die for their faith or for FDC to come to power and have a ‘Jjulunga’ national holiday.
mukono cathedral
All I’m saying is that the word ‘martyrdom’ is used biasely by some people to fit their situations. There is no difference between Muslims that have died for their religion and the Christians that sacrificed their lives at Namugongo (because their religion conflicted with the demands of the then Kabaka of Buganda) since all religions encourage martyrdom or ‘rebelling’ to be precise. So, can we say that people who say ‘no’ to the laws of the land because of their religion qualify to be named ‘martyrs’ in the real sense of the word and they need a national holiday in case anything like death happens to them? What is again more disturbing is how these Baganda natives who converted to Christianity ended up dying on the same fire for the cause of Christ in the midst of the Christian factions of Buganda. The church was divided at the time and it needed these people more alive than dead at the time. Before these ‘martyrs’ were killed, some people working under Kabaka Mwanga offered them a chance to run away but these guys decided not to -basically because they wanted to die for Christ.
Furthermore, a total of 32 baganda including the leader of the Christian ‘rebels’ called Charles Lwanga were killed- 13 of those were Catholics, 9 were protestants and 10 were unbelievers (who had been awaiting execution for non-religious crimes) but even the non-believers killed the day are counted as martyrs. In addition, historically, Protestants and Catholics refused to recognise each other as ‘martyrs’. So why was it so important for these two religious sects to agree on the title ‘martyr’ at that moment in time? Don’t you think that this happened as a result of the fact that this tragedy had happened to both of them at the same time and therefore, they both saw it as convenient to grant ‘martyrdom’ to the Namugongo ‘political rebels’. Don’t you think that this was also done as an act to forge unity between the Christians and protestant rather than the self belief to grant ‘martyrdom’ to the namugongo ‘political rebels’?
The important issue at stake here is that Catholics and Protestants did not recognise each other as martyrs. In the 16th century, both protestants and Catholics affirmed that it was not the punishment, but the cause that made one a martyr. Could Protestants killed for faith be called ‘martyrs’? The Catholics answered,’ No”. On the other side, could Catholics killed for faith be called ‘martyrs’? The Protestants said,’ No’. An example is when Puritan minister Giles Wigginton told catholic Margaret Clitherow, on trial for treason, that she was deceived if she thought that dying for catholic faith counted as martyrdom. What makes it worse is that even protestants did not affirm other protestants as martyrs as evidenced during the time of Luther. Luther thought the deaths of Zwingli’s followers should not be compared to the ‘holy martyrs’ and condemned people for making such a comparison.
Given the above history and facts how can anyone attempt to call the protestant and Catholic victims at Namugongo to be ‘martyrs’? It was only during the reign of pope John Paul 11,particulary in 2001, when in Ukraine, that he tried to address this issue of division in opinion between Catholics and protestants- in regard to ‘martyrs’, when he gave an address to bless 27 Greek catholic martyrs. The wise pope recognised both sides as ‘joint’ martyrs. He was doing the same thing that was done at Namugongo: to forge unity between the two sects (Catholics and protestants). The pope knew the use of ‘Unity’ in everything human beings want do and that’s why some of us keep pushing for the unity or cooperation among opposition political parties before 2011. Like the baganda say:’agali awamu gegaluma enyama’.
If we really still want to remember these political rebels as ‘martyrs’, let us do what Robert Royal did by publishing a remarkable new book in 2000 called The Catholic Martyrs of the Twentieth Century: A Comprehensive World History, instead of people flocking to Namugongo every year. Much of Royal’s research is new. The project began with a sentence in one of Pope John Paul II’s encyclicals. He said that the martyrs of our century “should not be forgotten.” A group of parishioners at Saint Aloysius Parish in New Canaan, Conn, took the words seriously, and began to accumulate materials. The word spread and materials started coming in from around the world. What began as a simple list became an amazing archive. With the help of his brother who is a priest, Royal began the work of putting the results in book form.
Abbey Kibirige Semuwemba
Asians have not changed their ways up to now
27 Apr 2009 2 Comments
Dear readers,
With due respect to our Asian friends and Ugandan nationals, I think they have not changed their ways wherever they live. I really thought that the Amin example would have given them a few bits on how to live in the society but wapi. Here in the UK, I thought being a Muslim can easily make one intergrate with Asian Muslims like Pakistanis but they still look at us differently which is a shame. It is alleged that Amin wanted to marry an Asian woman and he was denied this chance and this is one of the reasons why he expelled them from Uganda. But this kind of marriage segregation has not changed up to now:
1. An Asian Muslim woman is not allowed to marry a black Muslim man which is against the Islamic principles and rules
2. An Asian Muslim man or woman is not allowed to marry outside the family. So they end up marrying first cousins to each other
3. an Asian Muslim woman or man is not allowed to marry a siqh or non-Muslim despite Islam allowing men to marry non- Muslim women
It still baffles me why human beings are so segregating of each other so much. For me, if a man is a Muslim, educated enough and working, I will allow him to marry any of my sisters. I’m insisting with being a Muslim because I believe in my religion so much. But I think cultures should not remain indefinitely conservative since they were created by human beings themselves. Society should be allowed to change in a good way by accepting certain good modern things.
Abbey.K.Semuwemba
Namugongo Martyrs day should not be celebrated
05 Feb 2009 5 Comments
All I’m saying that the word ‘martyrdom’ is used biasly by people to fit their situations. What is the difference between Muslims that have died for their religion and the Christians that sacrificed their lives at Namugongo because their religion conflicted with the demands of the then Kabaka of Buganda. Can we say that people who say ‘no’ to the laws of the land because of their religion qualify to be named ‘martyrs’ in the real sense of the word? What is again more disturbing is how these Baganda natives who converted to Christianity ended up dying on the same fire for the cause of Christ in the midst of the Christian factions of Buganda. The church was divided at the time and it needed these people alive than dead at the time. Before these guys were killed, some people offered them a chance to run away. Actually there were people willing to help them to run away within the kingdom itself but these guys decided not to -basically because they wanted to die for Christ. Honestly, if people who die for what they believe in are to be called ‘martyrs’, then all that died in Luwero and other political wars that have happened in Uganda deserve to be called martyrs. Don’t you think it’s high time to stop celebrating June 3rd as ‘martyrs day’ because it is an insult to other people that have died for what they believe in but have got no national holiday to recognise them.
With due respect to my Christian friends all over the world, I think we should stop celebrating Namugongo ‘martyrs’ day. It is not fitting to the present world. It reflects some form of double standards politically and religiously.
Abbey
Uganda Martys were not really martyrs(part 2)
05 Feb 2009 1 Comment
Please do not take definitions in the dictionary as giving all the answers you are looking for in words and life. That’s why we have got thesaurus aside within the dictionary. Please don’t take words at face value. Let me try to put more beef and bones on this issue once again and see if it makes sense to you.
A total of 32 baganda including the leader of the Christian ‘rebels’ called Charles Lwanga were killed. 13 of those were Catholics, 9 were protestants and 10 were unbelievers (who had been awaiting execution for non-religious crimes).Historically, protestants and Catholics refused to recognise each other as ‘martyrs’. So why was it so important for these two religious sects to agree on the title ‘martyr’ at that moment in time? Don’t you think that this happened as a result of the fact that this tragedy had happened to both of them at the same time and therefore, they both saw it as convenient to grant ‘martyrdom’ to the Namugongo ‘political rebels’. Don’t you think that this was also done as an act to forge unity between the Christians and protestant rather than the self belief to grant martyrdom to the namugongo ‘political rebels’?
The important issue at stake here is that Catholics and Protestants did not recognise each other as martyrs. In the 16th century, both protestants and Catholics affirmed that it was not the punishment, but the cause that made one a martyr. Could Protestants killed for faith be called ‘martyrs’? The Catholics answered,’ No’’. On the other side, could Catholics killed for faith be called ‘martyrs’? The Protestants said,’ No’. An example is when Puritan minister Giles Wigginton told catholic Margaret Clitherow, on trail for treason, that she was deceived if she thought that dying for catholic faith counted as martyrdom. What makes it worse is that even protestants did not affirm other protestants as martyrs as evidenced during the time of Luther. Luther thought the deaths of Zwingli’s followers should not be compared to the ‘holy martyrs’ and condemned people for making such a comparison. Try to teach yourself this religious and political history when you get a chance because it is interesting.
Given the above history and facts how can any one attempt to name the protestant and Catholic victims at Namugongo to be ‘martyrs’. It was only during the reign of pope John Paul 11,particulary in 2001, when in Ukraine, that he tried to address this issue of division in opinion between Catholics and protestants- in regard to ‘martyrs’, when he gave an address to bless 27 Greek catholic martyrs. The wise pope recognised both sides as ‘joint’ martyrs. He was doing the same thing that was done at Namugongo: to forge unity between the two sects (Catholics and protestants). The pope knew the use of ‘Unity’ in everything human beings wanna do and that’s why some of us keep pushing for the union between opposition political parties before 2011. Like the baganda say:’agali awamu gegaluma enyama’.
Like I said, I don’t think we should recognise June 3 as a national holiday in Uganda. I also highly doubt that the people that died in Namugongo were really ‘martyrs’ as we were made to believe. If there were really martyrs,, then we have got a lot of martyrs in Uganda that deserve recognition and, therefore, we need a lot of national holidays in Uganda, because so many people have died for what they believe in the country.
Byebyo Ebyange.
Muslim solidarity and brotherhood will help muslims achieve alot
05 Feb 2009 Leave a Comment
Muslim brotherhood is mandatory in Islam. All Muslims are obligated to feel the pain of another Muslim being tortured anywhere in the world. That is why I can understand why Muslims are demonstrating against Israel in so many African countries. By the way, a certain Muslim brother called me to say that he is disappointed in our Arab brothers in the Dubai who have ruthlessly decided to spend more than £100 million to buy footballer Kaka from AC Milan to Manchester City. He told me that what Arabs don’t know is that the oil money is supposed to be for all Muslims all over the world and not their personal wealth. He told me that the sheiks behind this deal can use this money to build another Muslim based university or hospital in Uganda other than splashing it on one Brazilian player.
Back to the Israel issue, I’m definitely saddened by what is going on in that part of the Middle East. Israel is committing state terrorism and nobody can stop it apart from the Americans. Terrorism committed against civilians for political or other ideological goals by deliberately targeting non- combatants, is a boldface, cold blood murder and therefore whoever is involved should be punished by the law.
The USA is the boss of Israel. When the USA tells Israel to withdraw, they will do so immediately. I guess they have already done so today not to antagonise the inauguration of Barack Obama as the president of the USA which is taking place on Tuesday this week. Israel in particular and Jews in general do not abide by UN resolutions. One can conclude that Jews operate subversively within the United States of America.
The UN has become a useless organisation because it cannot touch the Americans. The UN has got to promote peace and to address humanitarian crisis as it is mandated and that’s why the UN enjoys the benefits of international legitimacy, diplomatic immunity, and a twenty billion dollar per year, 25% of which is funded by the US. The US pulls the strings at the UN. By the way, who pulls the strings at the African Union? Do we have an African ‘super power’ yet or not? Uganda is already the ‘superpower’ in the Great Lakes region considering what we have done in Rwanda, Zaire and Sudan.
All in all, Muslim brotherhood is good and it was encouraged by our prophet. That’s why what sheikh Mubajje is doing right now in Uganda is not good for the Muslim community. If he had Islam at heart, he would have vacated the mufti chair as soon as he lost the trust of the majority of Muslims.
Abbey
Witchcraft or ‘Obulaguzi’ in Uganda
14 Dec 2008 Leave a Comment
in culture, cultures, history, Religion Tags: Abbey Kibirige Semuwemba
Dear readers,
Witchcraft and Satanism are two totally different beliefs though they are both unacceptable in x-tianity and Islam. Witchcraft or Wicca worships the old pagan god/dess deities. There’s also no Satan in Witchcraft. Satan is a Judeo-Christian/Islam thing. Wicca and Witchcraft, while often related, are not necessarily the same thing. Again, Witches and Wiccans are not necessarily the same thing. It’s possible to be a Wiccan and not be a witch, basically paying tribute to the God and Goddess, but not practicing Witchcraft.
Something else you should know about Wicca and Witchcraft. It’s not an evangelical religion like Islam or x-tianity….there’s no religious mandate to “spread the word of the Goddess”. As a matter of fact, it’s a core belief that there is no ONE path to enlightenment, but rather each person chooses his own path. People who have got shrines like the one Vice president of Uganda,Bukenya, visited in Masaka are witches but we have got wiccans in England. They have their own club in the city where I live and dress totally in black with weird hair styles on Saturday or Friday nights. I have seen them outside their clubs. Nevertheless, Witchcraft, Satanism or Wicannism are not all allowed in both x-tainity and Islam. It’s very important that we don’t just mix up words for the sake of a good debate. It’s like using decentralisation to define federalism would cause chaos in debates, because these are two totally different words.
Witchcraft that is verbal are just mere words which cannot hurt any one. Witchcraft or Satanism that is physical like: child sacrifice, putting human hair or other stuff in our food, or women putting fish soup in their co-wives bath- has already got laws to deal with it. Child sacrifice is a murder case and is already punishable by law. Putting human hair or silly things in some body’s food breaks food hygiene rules and therefore calls for punishment within the existing laws. In other words, we don’t need specific laws for witchcraft as it will give it legal recognition and make people think that it truly has supernatural connotations attached to it. Witchcraft should be allowed to die a natural death in the society and it will. We mainly need to further promote evangelical religions like Islam and x-tianity in schools.
When AIDS/HIV surfaced in Uganda, people used to think it was witchcraft- which led to the death of several of our people. People used to attribute AIDS like they are still doing by attributing several diseases to ancestral influence, witchcraft, evil spirits and/or bad luck. Bunyoro and Tooro were the biggest culprits during the AIDS times. In the Tooro areas of Kyarusozi and Kijura, AIDS was treated as an epidemic of witches and cannibals eating up bodies of people. If president Museveni as our leader comes out and spreads the anti-witchcraft evangelism like he did with AIDS, this may also help reduce stuff like child sacrifice in the country. Why he and other public leaders are sitting back about this, I don’t know.
However, it’s important that the ‘emiti emito’ or young kids are told through the school curriculum from day one that Satanism and witchcraft are ideals which only create enemity between relatives , friends and the general society. That’s why religious studies like Islam and CRE need to be strengthened in schools as much as possible.
Witchcraft did not start in Africa or Uganda. What we must know is that witchcraft was and still is part of the western community but because of the enlightenment and economic development of the population, it is not a strong influence as it is in developing countries like Uganda. Otherwise crimes such as using evil spirits in order to find the whereabouts of hidden treasure were fairly common in England. Haven’t you heard of Edmund Hunt case in 1590 who was prosecuted for witchcraft? There was also a lot of witchcraft among the Welsh communities. In other words, to reduce on the influence of witchcraft, you need to have a better economy and good educational background as it is in Europe. If Ugandans are still poor, then this problem will keep hanging over our heads. People will still go into L.Victoria to look for money. I don’t think designing witchcraft laws as some people have suggested can help a lot if Uganda is still in this state. Those who are already rich mainly go into witchcraft to protect themselves against the poor.
Witchcraft as words or slander cases is difficult to prosecute in courts of law and that’s I proposed that we don’t need any laws for them, while witchcraft as premeditated harming like child sacrifice can easily be prosecuted. In other words, punishment and execution for charges associated with witchcraft as words is not an as easy as we think. The ‘devil’ reference is difficult to contextualize, other than as a standard early modern legal phrase; there are no proper witness statements attached ;statement from the person accused are not taken seriously by the court and this puts the accused at the mercy of the court. Just look at Kajubi case(the man who sacrificed a young girl before a building was constructed) right now and the way the public court influenced the real court before he(Kajubi) was formerly charged with anything.
It is true that some evangelical religious leaders have turned to witchcraft to make themselves popular among their subordinates and it is the responsibility of every x-tian and Muslim to criticise these fake bawalimu, fake sheiks, fake pastors,….. who claim to have the powers individually to get rid of evils. The truth is that most witches use the media and witchcraft itself is managed by the institution of the market in a similar way to New Age religions. Here in the UK, some institutions not primarily driven by the profit motive are important to contemporary Witchcraft, such as the Pagan Federation in the UK and the web site witchvox.com in the US. However, in comparison to other new religious movements, such as the Jehovah’s Witnesses or Scientology, the contemporary Witchcraft movement has relatively little organised control over the content and dissemination of information about the movement. With this in mind, a good foundation for the spread or promotion of evangelical religions can play a very big part in reducing Satanism and witchcraft in the society.
For more information, please watch the following videos:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eg30ecZTH20&feature=related
2.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yhz5cSO3xOQ&feature=related
3.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YvIyXabPpg8&feature=related
4.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9qNDhaAQO9s&feature=related
5. witchcraft laws
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j3BS8SeSyzo&feature=related
6.Wicca
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AkoZH7V3jbs&feature=related
7. Satanism documentary
Abbey Kibirige Semuwemba
United Kingdom
Will Greenland Bank ever ressurect from the dead?
29 Nov 2008 Leave a Comment
in Corruption, Economics, Legal issues, Politics, Religion, Uncategorized
Late Dr.Sulaiman Kiggundu
Dr. Sulaiman Kiggundu died but there is still hope in some Islamic quarters for the revival of the Greenland bank one day in one way or the other- if what we read in the newspapers is true. I’m among the few Ugandans and muslims who are still confused as to why Greenland was closed abruptly like that.
My understanding is that General.Saleh secretly purchased UCB through Greenland bank. General Saleh himself announced that he took over the bid from the Malaysian investors to keep the bank under local hands and this was in December 1998.Immediately after General Saleh’s announcement, Greeenland bank was placed under state management. Greenland bank had subsidiaries in Tanzania and Kenya (commercial Bank and foreign exchange in Kenya respectively) which were also later closed. Nobody in the government has come out to give us a detailed explanation of why the Greenland Empire was closed. It is the kind of pain we have been carrying for ages and it became so much when the death of Dr.Kiggundu struck us.
Secondly, Greenland was closed when the country’s savings were improving. Before the emergency of Greenland, the savings stood at 3% of the GDP compared to 6% of GDP in 1998. At that time, Kenya had a savings rate of 22% compared to the now ill-managed Zimbabwe which had a savings rate of 32% by then. When the savings rate is higher it means there are more funds that can be borrowed for development. Ugandans can borrow money in great number to their things. All this went into decline after the closure of Greenland Bank because so many people were relying on that bank. Was the closure of Greenland an act of a president who loves rapid development in the country?
The only major management error I blame Dr. Kiggundu is the principle of disclosure in the banking sector and he was jailed for 6 months because of some of these errors. Disclosure is about providing information to the outsiders about the organization. This includes corporate social disclosure. This is where the society wants to know what it gets from the business for supporting it. It is when the society and other third parties see such benefits that they see the organization as legitimate. Whereas developed countries have disclosure measures, the developing countries like Uganda don’t have the culture of disclosure. No ends of year accounts are shown! Even banks that should display their financial statements don’t do so! That is why in 1998, Greenland Bank Ltd, and Cooperative Bank Ltd were closed by Bank of Uganda, without any sign of financial weakness being known by the customers. So this was wrong on the side of Dr. Kiggundu but still the state should not have closed the bank. The Gordon Brown government used all the means at its disposal to save the Northern Rock Bank despite the problems they were having because Gordon loves his country and he loves the common man on the ground in the UK.
Other reasons which were given by the economists in the country for the closure are all considered just schools of thought including: failure to meet the minimum capital requirements, insider lending, corruption and mismanagement as the causes. This is all nothing when you are a politician who loves your people.The root cause of commercial banks’ problems lies in their desire to increase profits by rapidly expanding their asset portfolio (by extending loans) for which there are no adequate provisions in the form of a capital buffer. Greenland bank did this by investing in a variety of businesses and lending to people without security, and it would have worked if they had been given a chance with time to rectify their mistakes. Remember, these were long term investments NOT short term investments. Yes, Dr.Kiggundu was running the risk of the inadequacy of minimum capital standards in accounting for the risk in banks’ asset portfolio but so many international banks run this risk. In the UK here, people access credit without any security and there was nothing weid that Greenland was doing in the banking sector. I also heard that a Saudi investor offered to fix the capital problems Greenland was experiencing at the time but still the government declined the offer. All they wanted was to close the damn Greenland Bank.
Lastly, Bank of Uganda (BoU) introduced new banking rules after the closure of Greenland to justify their act but why didn’t they give Greenland more time to operate under the new rules. According to the BoU new policy, all banks will be required to maintain sufficient capital, while those under-capitalised will not be bailed out. Under the revised minimum deposit requirements, all commercial banks – both local and foreign-owned – are required to maintain at least a minimum balance of USh1bn (US$750m). All banks are required to comply with all the provisions of the Financial Institutions Statute (FIS) of 1993. According to the BoU, they will only intervene in banks that either fail to meet the capital requirements or comply with the laws and regulations as stipulated in the FIS Act. ´Where a bank is intervened and closed, the BoU´s commitment to the depositors will be limited to USh3m per depositor, covered under the Deposit Insurance Scheme´, the bank stated. My question is how is a Ugandan in USA going to recover her money now if she wakes up one morning when one of the banks in Uganda is closed particularly if her savings exceed USh3m? Can anybody also convince voters in Uganda that Kiggundu’s Greenland had failed to raise the capital of USh1bn to keep itself in business? Can you also tell voters in Uganda of what the judicial inquiry commission found and recommended after the closure of different banks in Uganda that year? This was a commission set up by Finance Minister Gerald Sendaula. Why isn’t all this information made public up to now?
Abbey Semuwemba
Namugongo ‘martyrs’ were not really martyrs
25 Nov 2008 3 Comments
in Politics, Religion Tags: Abbey Kibirige Semuwemba
Ssekabaka Mwanga II (1884 1897) -photo on Buganda Kingdom website
I have been thinking about the Uganda Christian ‘martyrs’ prosecuted on June 3,1886 at Namugongo and its significance to Uganda as a country after one of the Ugandans raised it on the Ugandan At Heart(UAH) forum. So I asked myself questions like: ”were the Uganda martyrs really deserve to be called ‘martyrs’ or not?”, ” Could Catholics killed for faith be called “martyrs”?”, ” Why did kabaka Mwanga took this decision at the time?”.
Now it is my understanding that within the Buganda culture the execution of the Christian martyrs was both political and religious. It is the Buganda kingdom that invited the first missionaries who arrived in 1877 and the kingdom benefited tremendously from them particularly in developmental projects like schools. So we thank the insight Kabaka Mutesa 1 had at the time to invite these people.
Namugongo Martyrs shrine
Nevertheless, I’m still puzzled that we continue to call these people ‘martyrs’ due to the fact that they challenged the power structures of the Bugandan culture at the time because of their faith. If we are to go by the Muslims who keep challenging the power and social structure of the western countries because of their faith, then the word ‘martyr’ is not truly applicable to these people.
Muslims or Christians who attempt to do today what these ‘martyrs’ did during Kabaka Mwanga’s reign will feel the wrath of the law and some are even branded terrorists. However, we should not forget that those who die in this way in places like the Middle East are still branded as ‘martyrs’ by some Islamic factions. In Bugandan culture, which the kabaka (leader of Buganda) represents, the kabaka ruled with great authority, and to refuse anything he asked was not only to offend the kabaka but to dishonour the entire Bugandan kingdom. Mwanga perceived that Christians were a challenge to his political power, since Christian pages were not honouring and were taught not to honour their obligation to obey him. If we are to continue to call these Christians killed at Namugongo martyrs, then we have got a lot of martyrs now in Uganda.
Second, it is important at the outset to realize that the persecution of Christians in Uganda was not the norm. There were relatively few Christians actually killed for religious reasons compared to the large number of Christian Baganda. So I don’t think Kabaka Mwanga set out to kill Christians as in Christians or Protestants as in Protestants.
Third, all of the martyrs were Bugandan natives converted through the missionary efforts of British Anglicans and French Catholics. Thus, their lives and deaths were embedded from start to finish in a culture they were familiar with and understood; they were not killed due to a lack of cultural knowledge or a “foreigner’s mistake.” A man like Joseph Mukasa was the personal servant of the kabaka who oversaw all of the kabaka’s pages. He knew what he was getting himself into by confronting kabaka Mwanga over murder of Anglican Bishop Hannington. Mukasa told Mwanga “bluntly” that his ordering of the death of Hannington was wrong; this angered Mwanga, and Mwanga took Mukasa’s outbursts as a form of treason. Mukasa knew the drill about Buganda cultures at the time very well. To disagree with the Kabaka was not uncommon in Buganda but Mukasa’s assertive confronting of Mwanga was unique. The Kabakas used to allow passive forms of resistance and there were effective.
In addition, Mwanga chose Namugongo as a spot to execute these people because to die at Namugongo made one an enemy of the Buganda state. Namugongo was an equivalent of the England’s “Tower Hill.”
What is again more disturbing is how these Baganda natives who converted to Christianity ended up dying on the same fire for the cause of Christ in the midst of the Christian factions of Buganda. The church was divided at the time and it needed these people more alive than dead at the time. Before these ‘martyrs’ were killed, some people working under Kabaka Mwanga offered them a chance to run away but these guys decided not to -basically because they wanted to die for Christ.
Furthermore, a total of 32 baganda including the leader of the Christian ‘rebels’ called Charles Lwanga were killed- 13 of those were Catholics, 9 were protestants and 10 were unbelievers (who had been awaiting execution for non-religious crimes) but even the non-believers killed the day are counted as martyrs.
If we really still want to remember these political rebels as ‘martyrs’, let us do what Robert Royal did by publishing a remarkable new book in 2000 which he called ”The Catholic Martyrs of the Twentieth Century: A Comprehensive World History”, instead of people flocking to Namugongo every year. Much of Royal’s research is new. The project began with a sentence in one of Pope John Paul II’s encyclicals. He said that the martyrs of our century “should not be forgotten.” A group of parishioners at Saint Aloysius Parish in New Canaan, Conn, took the words seriously, and began to accumulate materials. The word spread and materials started coming in from around the world. What began as a simple list became an amazing archive. With the help of his brother who is a priest, Royal began the work of putting the results in book form.
With due respect to my non-Muslim friends, I don’t think we should continue to call the 1886 Namugongo religious people ‘martys’ in the sense of the word in relation to the present events happening in the world. However, I’m happy to say that Buganda kingdom has changed greatly since that time. There is a lot of religious freedom. Catholics, Protestants, Christians and Muslims can all interact within the kingship of Buganda without any problem. It is more reason for Ugandans to support this kingdom that is not afraid of changes that make it stronger. What Kabaka Mwanga did at that time is inexcusable but at least we all learnt from it but most importantly we understand why he did it.
Abbey Kibirige Semuwemba
United Kingdom
GOD BLESS
