UGANDA: WHY MUSEVENI WILL BACK REBELS IN CAR

 

By CHANGE OF GUARDS

In 2001 an armed rebellion led by former President Andre Kolingba attempted to overthrow the President Felix Patasse but was reversed by Museveni's 19th Battalion that was based in Congo's northern town of  Gbadolite.  The 19th Bn led the Congolese rebel MLC militias of War Lord Jean Pierre Bemba for the intervention in the CAR capital Bangui.  Though they committed serious  atrocities, the uprising was suppressed and it's leader, Andre Kolingba taken hostage before being flown to Kampala for safe custody.  The excited Museveni flew to Gbadolite to morale boost his19th Bn for the 'good work' done in CAR.  In appreciation, he ordered for plane loads of meat to be flown to Gbadolite from Kampala for the troops.  

In Kampala, Andre Kolingba together with his son were kept in a CMI run Safe House in the Muyenga suburb.  His son who spoke English did the translation for his father who only spoke French.  On March 24, 2003 the government mouthpiece, The New Vision reported the then Minister of Regional Cooperation, Kahinda Otafiire denying the Presence of Andre Kolingba in Uganda.  With the help of Museveni and his Congolese MLC rebels, in October 2002 they intervened in CAR to suppress a rebellion by former Army Chief of Staff, Francois Bozize.  In the process the intervening forces committed heinous crimes against humanity that were later to lead to Bemba's indictment by the ICC.  The truth is that without the support of Museveni's army, his MLC militias had no capacity to suppress a mutiny in CAR.  In March 2003 Bozise overthrew Felix Patasse and assumed the presidency.  During the same year, Museveni secured Andre Kolingba safe return to CAR from Uganda.  

In 2007 Felix Bozize paid a two days state visit to Museveni in Kampala.  It was during Bozize's presidency in 2009 that Museveni deployed his 2,500 troops to CAR to hunt for the fugitive LRA rebels.  During the said fruitless expedition, his army was accused of sexual crimes and exploitation of natural resources.  Bozize's reign was ended in January 2013 by the mainly Muslim Seleka rebels of Michael Djotidia.  During the same period Bozise had hastily sent his Minister of Foreign Affairs to Museveni for military aid to no avail. He had formed a mainly Christian self defense militia called Anti-Balaka.  With only 200 troops from South Africa, he was defeated and fled to Cameroon.  Both militia groups committed serious war crimes and the country faced the danger of getting polarised along regional and  religious lines prompting the intervention of France who pushed back The Seleka rebels.  The UN had to deploy a 13,000 strong army and police peace keeping force comprised of troops from Rwanda, Burundi among others.  

In the 2016 general elections, Faustine Archange Touadera was elected president for a five year term.  In 2014 the UN slammed sanctions on Francois Bozize but using a South Sudan Diplomatic Passport secured with the help of Museveni he would easily traverse the works under the pseudo names of Samuel Peter Mudde.  That is how he had become resident in Uganda before returning to CAR in December 2019 with intentions of contesting in the December 2020 general elections.  However, his presidential bid was blocked by the highest court and instead he mobilized rebel groups into a coalition dubbed Coalition of Patriots for Change (CPC).  A week before the polls, the group advanced on the capital, Bangui with intentions of taking over the government. His militias targeted UN PeaceKeepers notably the Rwandan contingent.  This prompted Rwanda to deploy an extra protection force into CAR under the bilateral agreement. The late December 2020 general elections have taken place and Touadera has been re-elected President but Bozize's militias continue to wreck havoc. 

In April 2017, Museveni's troops withdrew from CAR without capturing the LRA and it is suspected that they are still in there.  Given his closeness to Bozize and moreso the ongoing diplomatic fallout with Kigali, Museveni will obviously side with Bozize.  Strategically, such an engagement would help to get Rwanda preoccupied in CAR while Museveni plots mischief across the border against Kigali.  In military terms that is called "creation of an obstruction or a diversion" against an adversary.  Operation Open Rwanda Border is the first priority after his re-election next week.

Watch the space.

INFORMATION IS POWER AND THE PROBLEM OF UGANDA IS MUSEVENISM