The Sequence of Disarmament Operations in Karamoja, Northeastern Uganda

In Karamoja, northeastern Uganda, which borders Sudan and Kenya, the infl ow of automatic rifl es from neighboring Sudan and from Ugandan government troops began in the 1970s, through exchange and raiding. The pastoral Karimojong, Jie, Dodoth, Tepes, and Pokot have a history of shifting alliances and low-intensity confl ict (LIC) revolving around cattle raiding using guns. The Ugandan government has disarmed the pastoral peoples in the past, and it began a new disarmament program, which these people call 'harvesting guns,' in 2001. This has resulted in an arms imbalance among groups, an increase in raids by groups that still possess guns, and many refugees from the disarmed groups. In addition, the forcible disarmament involves cordon and search tactics and torture in the army barracks. This paper examines the sequence involved in implementing the disarmament program in Karamoja and describes the essentialist frame that justifi es the state dominating the pastoral peoples of the Karamoja, using physical violence combined with politics, administrative measures, and the military, and how their cooperation tragically leads the local people to a critical predicament. It also describes the history of the infl ow of automatic rifl es and their current use in the society. It is elucidated how "othering" poses an unjust threat to the daily lives of the pastoral peoples and has existential effects, and proposes recommendations to improve the disarmament sequence