Minority Rights at Risk

This book is an outcome of a study that was carried out on the Batwa in Kanungu District, South Western Uganda. The study specifically examines the socio –economic relationship between the Batwa and their natural environment. The book explores the causes and effects of the eviction of the Batwa from the forests and analyses the success of Kitariro pygmies’ resettlement project in meeting the needs of the Batwa people. The analysis reveals that Batwa are used to the lifestyle of the forest and their main activities include pottery, hunting, fishing and gathering fruits, plants and honey from the forest. The major cause of eviction from Bwindi forest among others was the Government policy of turning the forest into a National Park in 1992. The eviction greatly undermined the rights of Batwa people. The Kitariro Pygmies Project started by Kinkizi Church of Uganda has made interventions aimed at protecting the rights of Batwa. This empirical study serves as a basis for policy formulation and change as well as programme design and intervention. Insights from this book are relevant to Countries that have minority groups and Non-State Actors working for minority rights.

Mwesigwa Albert - Senior Human Resource Officer at Local Government Finance Commission, Kampala-Uganda&Ahimbisibwe Frank - PhD Fellow & Lecturer at Mbarara University of Science and Technology & Ndejje University in Uganda