By Andrew M. Mwenda Why South Korea succeeded where Uganda failed A common argument to explain (the better term would be to “caricature”) post independence failures in Africa is always in comparison to East Asia. It is often argued, for example, that by 1960, Ghana and South Korea had the …

By Andrew M. Mwenda What the leaders of South Sudan need to avoid as they begin the task of building a state and moulding a nation Last week I was in Juba, South Sudan on the invitation by friends from the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM). It is an invitation …

By Andrew M. Mwenda How Khartoum is using South Sudan to hide a rebellion by its own people The low intensity conflict between the new state of South Sudan and the Republic of Sudan has escalated into a near full-scale war. On Monday April 9, the Sudanese Peoples’ Liberation Army …

By Haggai Matsiko As the dispute between Sudan and South Sudan over oil transportation dues deteriorates into full-fledged war, The Independent reports of an intense rhetoric that could see Kenya and Uganda sucked in. Following separation, most of the oil fields fell in South Sudan’s territory but Sudan remains the …

By Jocelyn Edwards Harassment, beatings for Ugandan migrants in South Sudan Okello (not his real name), a 19-year-old orphan from Uganda, came to South Sudan in search of a better life. Having lost both of his parents and without a job in his own country, he hoped to cash in …

By Andrew M. Mwenda How government politically miscalculated the threat in spite of activists having lost strategic positioning in their struggle for change As fate would have it, last week the Uganda government banned the civil society advocacy group, Activists for Change (or A4C as it is popularly known). Ironically, …

By Eriasa Mukiibi Sserunjogi Makes violent revolution inevitable, say experts In 1962, the year Uganda became independent, former US President John F. Kennedy made the following quote; “Those who make peaceful revolution impossible make violent revolution inevitable”. Makerere University political scientist Yasin Olum says as Uganda edges towards its golden …

By Andrew M. Mwenda How human rights groups exploit Rwanda’s positive brand to build their own and what can be done about it There has been an intense contest over “Brand Rwanda” in the international sphere. Many visitors to Rwanda are impressed by what they see. Physical observations – clean …

By Haggai Matsiko Uganda outspends Kenya on military for the first time Uganda’s expenditure on arms surpassed Kenya’s for the first time in 2011, a new global arms expert report shows. Uganda spent US$1.02 billion; about double Kenya’s US$735 million. Details show that Uganda spent US$270 million on its usual …

By Andrew M. Mwenda President should not jump from one arbitrary position to another in service of popular sentiment Since The Independent broke the story of businessman Hassan Basajabalaba’s Shs 169 billion “compensation” last year, two ministers have resigned and three members of staff at State House have been fired. …