UGANDA: Since you can't stop kidnaps, kilings, at least tell Ugandans motive behind these murders

SINCE YOU CANT STOP THE KIDNAPS AND KILLINGS; ATLEAST TELL UGANDANS THE MOTIVE BEHIND

CHANGE OF GUARDS - In criminology, motive is that cause that moves offenders to induce a prohibited action. It is the moving power which impels one to action for a definite result. It is motive that explains why a person cares or refused to act in a certain way thus commission or ommission that amounts to a crime.

A criminal incident usually raises questions of where, When, who, what, which and why that must be answered by investigations. MOTIVE is the WHY of a crime as opposed to INTENT which tends to establish WHETHER or NOT the accused committed the alleged crime. Intent denotes the particular method used to effect an unlawful act which results in a criminal act. Intent is technically referred to as the mens rea (mental purpose) at the time of commission of the crime and it is a vital legal element in a criminal trial. That is why suspected offenders in serious crime are subjected to medical checks to establish their mental capacity to perform the act prohibited by law or crime.

While motive is relied on by police in criminal profiling and detecting motivations in crime, Judges use it to determine the weight of the sentence. While an accused person can raise lack of motive as a defence, he can also use it to prove malicious prosecution. In civil matters, the defendant must prove, in part, that the plaintiff was motivated by malice in subjecting the defendant to a civil suit.

The crime of kidnapping involves the taking away or transportation of a person against his or her will. The victim is usually held in a false imprisonment or a confinement without legal authority. Kidnapping is usually carried out for ransom, or in furtherance of another crime or in connection with child custody dispute or revenge-based in estranged couples. A parent who has been denied custody of a child, driven by emotion and revenge may resort to kidnapping. This category of kidnapping is usually driven by financial gain (ransom or extortion) and emotional disturbance.

Extremists and terrorists target victims based on nationality, ethnicity, religion, social status or affiliation to a specific organisation (employees of specific companies or political organization). Since the primary aim in this category of kidnapping is to create sensationalism, be visible or to make a statement, the percentage of hostages killed is very high.

Kidnappers usually develop a profile of the likely target before making an abduction. In the event that the kidnapping is motivated by financial gain, the kidnapper will first gather information about the financial position of the target. Such information can be knowingly or unconsciously by someone who knows the victim intimately - family member, employee, bank teller/cashier, bar or hotel waitress at the victim's favourite club, restaurant or lodge. In some instances, the target is simply bumped into basing on outward appearance.

In most cases the kidnapper will first develop a profile of the target by studying and carrying out surveillance on his/her routine and other predictable patterns of daily activities before choosing where and when to effect the kidnap.

The 32 years military dictatorship of Gen. Museveni in Uganda is currently characterized by a new phenomenon of rampant kidnapping and gruesome killings of citizens. State sponsored kidnappings by unidentified security agents is as old as the regime and continues unabated. Victims end up in ungazetted detention facilities dubbed Safe Houses where they are subjected to gruesome physical torture. Sometimes they end up being held without trial in military camps. In some cases security officers are hired by private individuals to kidnap and illegally detain business rivals, estranged couples and victims of land grabbing.

Foreign governments have also been paying out Uganda's security officers to kidnap and informally send back dissidents, asylum seekers and refugees back to the countries they fled. It is also a common practice for armed plain clothed security officers using civilian registered cars to abduct and kidnap citizens who have been set free by courts of law before they leave court premises.

The mysterious killings and kidnappings started with the shooting dead of leading Muslim clerics in the central and mid eastern region. Without stating the motive, the regime has repeatedly linked it to the alleged "Congo based rebel ADF". The excuse has been and continues to be used to persecute the Muslim community in the country. It was until the Muslims threatened to take care of their own security that the killing of their clerics subsided.

Greater Masaka region was hit and continues to suffer from marauding armed gangs that attack and pillage entire villages at night. They break into peoples homes, hark, injure and sometimes kill their victims. Interestingly the perpetrators give prior notice of their coming with time and date and indeed they do comply with the pledge un-dettered. It is over one year now and the vice continues unabated.

Museveni and his top security chiefs have severally and persionally acted as Scene Of Crime Officers (SOCO) in some of such incidents but nothing has changed. On several occasions some suspected criminals have come out to publicly state that they work with and are facilitated by the police but the regime just sweeps such assertions under the carpet. Instead they continue to carry out massive arrests and detention without trial. Even when two of the said suspects escaped from detention, upon recapture they are summarily killed immediately. Why not secure them for interrogation in order to establish motive. Otherwise, Ugandans think the summary execution is a cover-up something fishy.

Then the kidnappings and killings shifted to women. Within a short spate of time over twenty five women were mysteriously killed and their mutilated bodies dumped in different parts of greater Kampala and in particular, Entebbe. The regime couldn't give a definite answer other than carrying out the usual indiscriminate arrests, torture and detention without trial. The motive has never been disclosed.

Most recent is the phenomenon of kidnapping for ransom and what looks like revenge. First was the Case Clinic Accountant whose body was burnt beyond recognition. His car was later recovered from top regime functionaries but up to this day the regime has never disclosed what the motive was. Then came the infamous kidnap and gruesome murder of a young lady, Susan Magara. The kidnappers demanded and got the ransom money before gruesomely killing her. Museveni had personally been involved in the botched rescue mission. Interestingly, for 22 days the kidnappers were not only in constant communication with the family but were also very much informed and seriously warned against the involvement of security agencies. Since then the regime has been chasing the wind in trying to identify the perpetrators. It now looks like every citizen was involved in the kidnap and murder of Susan Magara. Recently the murder was linked to the usual "terrorist Islamic ADF militants". However the regime has not told Ugandans the motive. The alleged key suspect, Ayoub Byensi that was allegedly pursued to USAFI Mosque is reported to have sneaked away; so who is the suspect that was reportedly arrested from the mosque and also who are the two victims who were shot dead during the said raid!!!!

Hardly two months after the Magara incident, a young lady, Edrine Nalule was kidnapped from the city centre. In demanding for the ransom, the kidnappers kept constant direct communication with the family. The family reported the kidnap to the police but shortly after the kidnappers blamed the family for involving the police and abandoned the ransom demand by killing the young girl. The notorious Police Flying squad concedes that it electronically tracked the mobile phone of the girl and located it as being around the Old Tax Park (same spot from where she was kidnapped) but that they could not locate the exact spot. What about the much cherished multibillion worth CCTV cameras!!! Its only the victim's boyfriend who has been arrested so far. The victims father accuses the suspect who is the area local of having " disorganized " his home by first falling in love with the victim's mother and then the daughter. No one seems to be following this important lead that points to possible jealously by the mother, if true that the suspect befriended both the mother and daughter. The regime has not told Ugandans the motive for the kidnap.

Instead the regime continues to express gross insensitivity to the increase of what seems like organized crime. In druming up the allocation of huge funding to the security docket, he cadre Minister of Security has just stated that he was "glad to say that the security of Uganda has never been better than it is now and that overall we shall work tirelessly to keep it." During the same occasion at the Media Centre he went ahead to admit that some security personnel were involved in conniving with criminals. He said; "Some of our security officers have been collaborating with criminals more especially in police, intelligence services and a few soldiers". He went ahead to
downplay the kidnappings thus ".......it is done by small criminal gangs with the aim of putting the country on tension and getting money."

The police ICT department has launched a "situation awareness mobile App" for the public to report kidnapped people. They forget that the public has lost trust in the institution of security and police in particular. It is now a fact that whenever the families of the kidnap victims involve security agencies, the kidnappers get to know of it with dire consequences. To put it plainly, and as Museveni and now the Security Minister have asserted, the public highly suspects that the perpetrators have infiltrated the security agencies. Therefore, we may see people reluctant to share such information with security agencies. On the other hand how does an ordinary citizen distinguish between kidnap by unidentified gun wielding security goons and the other category of ordinary criminal kidnappet???

The overall goal or MOTIVE of kidnapping falls in one of the three categories; FINANCIAL GAIN, EXTREMISM/TERRORISM or EMOTIONAL DISTURBANCE. Once any of these motives is accurately established, security forces will be able to not only come up with an informed strategy to deal with the vice but to also meaningfully advise citizens on how to guard against it. Otherwise, kidnappings continue in different parts of the country and Ugandans much not rely on the Museveni regime for security.

INFORMATION IS POWER AND THE PRIBLEM OF UGANDA IS MUSEVENISM