Africa-Press – Uganda. Communities surrounding the Ajai Wildlife Reserve in Madi-Okollo District are protesting the expansion of the game reserve, claiming it has encroached on their ancestral lands.
They allege that the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) has forcefully evicted residents without compensation, violating the law. The affected villages include Madali, Degia, Ayavu, and Yach.
The communities, under the Ogoko Clan Land Association, have petitioned the President to revisit and maintain the original boundaries of the reserve.
They argue that the population in Ogoko and neighbouring areas has grown, and the expansion has failed to provide alternative settlements for the displaced communities.
Speaking Tuesday, 82-year-old Esau Arami said he has suffered at the hands of game rangers since 2014, for questioning the expansion, which led to two jail terms without a proper hearing.
“I have been arrested twice since 2015, ever since these pillars were forcefully placed on this land. I was first arrested around Gazi Bridge on my way to organize my sister’s funeral, my bicycle and 60kg of cassava disappeared up to now,” Arami said.
Ms Edisa Anguko, 87, a widow, said: “I have been left with nothing. How shall we survive without land which we have used for many decades? We the people of Olali use the land as the only source of income for agriculture and we planted papyrus in the swampy areas to earn a living.”
She added: “But now our land has been carved inside the reserve yet this land was left to us by our ancestors.”
Mr Isaac Dubo, the chairperson of Ogoko Sub-county, criticised the district officials for hijacking the issue.
“We tried to address it locally, but it didn’t materialise. UWA summoned those settled inside the reserve, and the district leaders took over the consultation process. We only learned about it when our community was called to the UWA office,” Mr Dubo explained.
In response, Mr Bashir Hangi, the public relations officer for UWA, denied the accusations
“If we find you inside the protected area and help you out, we do not compensate you because you are in the protected area illegally. The community members are lucky we haven’t prosecuted them. If we take your land, we compensate you,” Mr Hangi said
He further clarified that settlers were not entitled to compensation due to their illegitimate presence in the reserve.
“We gave notices before evicting them, but the locals claim these areas as ancestral lands existing before the reserve,” he said. He added that UWA has no interest in extending the reserve’s boundaries and only manages what the government allocates.
Ms Dorothy Anguparu, the district communications officer, stated that all stakeholders, including the Ogoko Sub-county leadership, have been involved in the process, and compensation is pending. She insisted that the district is not at fault.
Background
The Ajai Wildlife Reserve was established in 1937 by Sultan Ajai of the Madi people, named after the powerful traditional chief.
The reserve had 60 rhinos in 1967, seven in 1978, four in 1979, and two in 1980. By the late 1980s, no rhinos remained.
The disagreements threaten UWA’s plans to reintroduce white rhinos, previously poached for meat in the reserve. UWA has already introduced some animals to acclimate them to the reserve conditions.
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