Ugandan leader Mr Yoweri Kaguta Museveni officially opened the Commonwealth Peoples Forum at Hotel Africana in uptown Kampala, making a bold call for better working relations between politicians and civil society.
He was conscious about the often acrimonious and warring relations between these two key social change actors insisting that “we need each other.” In a speech laced with humour, Mr Museveni urged the gathering of hundreds of civil society delegates representing 1.8 billion citizens from the 53 commonwealth countries, to focus on environmental protection as a priority in their discussions which formally open on Monday 18th.
Environment and natural resources is a key civil society issue up for discussion.
Mr Museveni said “primitive agriculture” and the use of “biomass for cooking as firewood” are Africa’s biggest threats on the environment. And to avert that threat, third world governments must industrialise and “massively” embrace electrification, he said. “Environmentalists must be a bigger supporter of industrialisation,” he said. “To do otherwise would just be a waste of time.”
Is the world not facing the brunt of greenhouse emission courtesy of industrialisation?
The Ugandan leader said companies that produce greenhouse gases, are inspired by “greed” (not a noble way to destroy the environment), suggesting that in Africa, it would be acceptable if the environment is destroyed “out of the necessity” to develop “but not greed.”
After his speech, it wasn’t in doubt that the civil society delegates Mr Museveni described as “philanthropists” were certain that the environment, (an issue often given little priority) would be top on the agenda for the discussions at the CPF.
That the environment will receive the attention we all hope it does is a matter only time will tell.
Here is a sense of what happened at the opening ceremony. A few pictures and some audio.
SERVING THE NATION: A Ugandan policewoman struggles to hoist the flag of the Commonwealth Secretariat in the moments that preceded the opening of the Commonwealth People Forum at Hotel Africana yesterday. The country is basking in activity as it opens its doors to representatives of a third of the world’s population. Ugandan President, Mr Yoweri Museveni, has urged Ugandans to contribute to the success of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting taking place this week in Kampala by being hospitable.
The crowd listens to opening statements
President Museveni addresses the audience
ACHOLI DANCERS: CPF delegates were treated to a pulsating performance by the Acholi Cultural Foundation, a group of talented folk song and traditional dancers from northern Uganda. The group staged a renowned dance presentation, one that greets the installation of a new cultural chief or one only performed when an important person visits the Acholi people.
Download a low bandwidth audio clip of the Acholi dancers here, or press play below:
Two years of preparations and discussions of whether or not Uganda as a country will be able to host the biggest event so far in its history, the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM), the event is finally here.
The city is gripped with the CHOGM fever. Heavy security, sirens of police escort vehicles receiving delegates from outside, newly patched-up roads, flags hanging on trees and roadside poles, and so on, and the city is ready to host the biggest event ever in Uganda’s history. Another event of such a magnitude was the OAU meeting that was hosted by President Amin, the late Ugandan dictator in the 1970s.
Back then the media was not as developed as it is today and the civil society was almost dead. In contrast, today, the two are very active. The media in particular has grown in leaps and bounds and has curved itself as a strong critical voice of the excesses of the Museveni government.
Museveni himself realises the power the media wields in his country and will not hesitate to call in a talk-show or go to a studio to air out his views.
It is along this thinking that President Yoweri Museveni came out during a press conference this afternoon shortly before he opened the Commonwealth People’s Forum, to appeal to the media to support the big meeting through a positive coverage of the events. He said the biggest advantage of the event is in terms of the economic opportunities that CHOGM will bring to Uganda.
But even as he appealed to journalists, both international and the local media here for a positive coverage of the event, the journalists seemed a lot more concerned about the inconvenience of road closures and diversion of traffic flow within the Kampala city centre. They asked Museveni whether the big meeting means any relevance to the ordinary Ugandan who will be inconvenienced by the heavy security in the centre of town, being sent away from the roadside kiosks and booths where they have been doing their petty businesses for years, and some arrested by police for looking suspicious especially at night, and so on and so forth.
The President said he would cross-check to see if there were some people who are being arrested innocently.
But he defended measures taken by security during the meeting. Museveni, who will for the next two years be chairman of the meeting, said it is okay for some roads and streets to be closed and diverted to avoid inconveniencing the visitors and schoolchildren. He said he was in agreement with the two days of public holiday announced for 22 and 23 November.
Looking relaxed, the President said that “up to 10,000 visitors will come and spend their money in Uganda during the big meeting. If each of the 10,000 can spend even 1,000 dollars, then we shall get a lot of money as a country”.
He added, “A country is like a body. When the mouth takes tea, the good effect is felt by the entire body, including the legs and the back and yet the back and the legs may not even get involved or even know that the mouth is taking tea.” Journalists laughed.
The message: that even if we, as journalists, criticize government for spending huge amounts of money on the event, the revenue that direct beneficiaries are getting will trickle down indirectly to benefit all Ugandans. He said that the holding of the meeting is just a practice for doing bigger things in the future.
On democracy, good governance, the rule of law and human rights, Museveni said that these are issues that the country has already handled. He talked more about the need to do trade with the delegates from different countries and their people.
He dodged discussing at length questions about the Pakistani leader General Pervez Musharaf, who will not attend the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Kampala. Museveni, himself an army-general like Musharaf, though now retired, said that the Pakistani leader had been asked to “correct certain things” which he hasn’t.
But it is left to be seen how Museveni with his colleagues in the ‘Commonwealth Club’ will discuss the critical issues of good governance, democracy, the rule of law and how he can practice a common value and respect for human rights like his colleagues in the club do. We wait to see that by Friday and in the days following.
Museveni told the journalists that the emphasis of his government is power and energy. He said the country needs cheap and more efficient electricity and rail transport to develop fast.
Without mentioning anybody, he said that “hecklers” should stop criticizing government plans.
The opposition is worried and has already expressed fears that after the meeting, Museveni will revert back to a militant way of handling descent and opposition. As CHOGM gets underway with all the excitement, let’s wait to see how the ordinary Ugandan benefits from the meeting.
With Uganda hosting the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in not so long a while, preparations are in higher gear than ever before. Lots of facelifts, road repairs, security deployment, dry runs and much more are going on to ensure the meeting is a success.
As one of the pre-CHOGM meetings, the Commonwealth People’s Forum, (CPF) has caught the public eye. The five-day event officially opens Sunday, 18 November 2007 and the opening is to be presided over by HE Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, the host President of CHOGM 2007.
A lot is underway to ensure the forum is a big success. Notable in the CPF is the People’s Space, where the general public are invited to freely participate and be a part of CHOGM, something that has not happened before in any of the previous CHOGM events. To sugar-coat the CPF, blogging is to be covered by a group of five individuals dressed in maroon t-shirts with name tags, inscriptions about the blog and the blog web address.
At a glance, one can tell it’s going to be a great and fulfilling event which ought not to be missed by any Ugandan. Owing to the fact that entrance is not restricted and is also free, people from all walks of life are expected to come and be a part of this coveted event as they discuss issues pertaining to:
My name is Charles Odongtho, a Ugandan trained journalist with eight years of practice. I hold a Bachelor Degree in Mass Communication from Makerere University and a Diploma in Journalism from the Uganda Management Institute-UMI.
I am interested in issues of human rights, environment, governance, media and development, peace and corruption.
My interest in journalism goes beyond just the coverage of events and issues as they unfold.
I am an ardent believer in justice, peace, exposing issues of corruption and generally working to see that there is fairness in every sector of society. I joined journalism to get a channel through which I can be able to put politicians and other news makers under the spotlight to explain why they cannot provide social justice to their society.
As a journalist I am amazed at the gap that exists between the rich and the poor in our society to the extent that within the urban centres, you can find hundreds of people who are excessively rich and have everything going right for them. They can send their children to the best foreign schools, give them the best health care, and yet I have travelled extensively through Uganda and I have met thousands who cannot even afford a meal a day. Millions of Ugandans live on less than a dollar a day and we are all within the same country. Many of the poor in the countryside cannot even send their pregnant wives to the health care centres for ante-natal care.
As a journalist I have the opportunity to bring all these issues to a public discussion for possible solutions.
Here’s a short piece of audio created by me about my involvement in the event:
My name is Elizabeth Kameo. I am a 28 year old freelance journalist based in Uganda. I am currently working on a web publication that will cover women’s health issues in the East African region and which in time will be extended to the whole of Sub-Saharan Africa.
I chose to set up a web publication simply because media is fast embracing the world wide space. Further still, women’s health issues are not given enough coverage in the mainstream media in Uganda and many other African countries, yet they need to be addressed if we are to achieve development in Sub-Saharan Africa.
My journalism career began seven years ago at the New Vision, a government owned daily newspaper in Uganda where I worked for close to two years before moving on to the Daily Monitor an independent daily.
In 2004, ten journalist colleagues and I set up the Weekly Observer Newspaper. I was a Director and editor for two years before I moved on to freelance journalism.
Being a part of the people’s forum blog is a great opportunity for me to further explore blogging as a way of information provision and not just fun. I hope that at the end of this event, I will be able to use experience gained and incorporate it into my work as a journalist. I am glad to be a part of something that is a first in Uganda and also during the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting. It is always an honour for me to provide information to people who would otherwise not have been able to get access to it; that is why I am a journalist.
Here’s a short piece of audio created by me about my involvement in the event:
My name is Emmanuel Gyezaho. I am a 27 year old political journalist based in Kampala, Uganda. I work with the only independent daily, The Daily Monitor.
I grew up in uptown Kampala and I am the second of five children. I have two brothers and two sisters.
Growing up in a country where political corruption has stifled human development through bad governance, just as it has across the developing world, I studied journalism at university so that I could expose the excesses of our political class.
I am blogging with the British Council because it offers me and the rest of the Commonwealth people, a platform to interact, share experiences and exchange ideas on how best we as people, individually and collectively, can deal with the problems we face in our lives.
It is a privilege, I must admit, to be part of an ingenious idea to participate in the People’s Space this year, as my country hosts fifty three heads of state and government representing a third of the world’s population.
I am relishing the prospect of interacting with millions of people, in conversation on issues that affect their day to day lives. I hope that in the process, we can all learn from each other and make the best out of our lives by making the world we live in a better place.
In the end, I hope you guys can teach me how to be a better person, by sharing your culture and knowledge, and in turn you can learn from my own experiences.
My name is Joel Besekezi, I work with UBC-TV as a news anchor and talk show host. I am the first born in a family of four. I reside in Kisaasi, one of the most outstanding suburbs in Kampala City.
Currently I am also pursuing a business course at Makerere University, the best there is in East Africa and South of the Sahara. I am a multi-talented young man with a go-getter attitude. I can sing quite well, which explains my moving voice because when I sing, people move out!
I like several things, among which are sports, public presentations, politics, to mention but a few. The latter explains my great ambitions of becoming President of this gallant nation Uganda. I am a born-again Christian who loves the Lord with a great passion.
I like to face challenges head on, no wonder I killed a dog (read rat) with my bare hands when I was six years of age. I have travelled to several parts of Uganda and elsewhere in the world including Kenya and United Kingdom. I therefore have no doubt that if I asked to become the next Commonwealth Secretary-General, I would be given the green light.
Here’s a short piece of audio created by me about my involvement in the event:
My name is Naomi Kabarungi, 26 years old. I graduated from Makerere University with a Bachelor of Mass Communication early this year but had long before discovered, and exploited an interest in communicating with people.
I believe that everybody has a story to tell, whether politician, peasant, street kid or beauty queen! Actually all the stories I have had published in the local newspapers are human-interest personality profiles.
There has been a lot of hype about the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Kampala. I figured that the Commonwealth People’s Forum was one place that would be easily and largely accessible to me as a common person; and to share what other people outside the political sphere think of the whole event.
I hope to publish a blog and keep it going even after CHOGM is over. I am looking forward to conversations with people all over the world, about topics that they are passionate about. I also hope to learn new skills in audio and video recording, and definitely blogging, which is a whole new experience for me.
Here’s a short piece of audio created by me about my involvement in the event.
One thing I didn’t mention yet. This blog is being run by a local team of Ugandans. The following posts have all been composed by the core of five writers.
These people will be working hard, using their own voices to bring you ideas and opinions on events as they unfold.
Ugandan leader Mr Yoweri Kaguta Museveni officially opened the Commonwealth Peoples Forum at Hotel Africana in uptown Kampala, making a bold call for better working relations between politicians and civil society.
