in background (AP Photo)
"When I became a man, I put away my toy gun," writes Charles Onyango-Obbo in The East African. He's commenting on a picture worth a thousand words:
A picture of Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni visiting mudslide victims in military uniform and an AK-47 strapped across his chest has created quite a buzz in the blogsphere.
The thing is, Musevni offers a good representation of what much of the world has experienced when it practices the goals of those who would ban private ownership of guns, and limit their keeping and bearing to the state and its representatives. You know, the "Only Ones."
We saw how that worked out during Idi Amin's reign of terror. How's it working in more recent history?
David B. Kopel, Paul Gallant and Joanne D. Eisen offer us some clues:
[I]n its effort to "disarm," the Ugandan army, supported by tanks and helicopter gunships, is burning down villages, sexually torturing men, raping women, and plundering what few possessions the tribespeople own. Tens of thousands of victims have been turned into refugees. Human rights scholar Ben Knighton has used the term “ethnocide” to describe the army's campaign.
But there's scant mention of such methods if we rely on the United Nations for information on the "programme":
Some 3,500 pieces of small arms and light weapons were destroyed on October 5, 2009, part of activities marking the tenth anniversary of the East African Community held in Speke Resort in Kampala. The destruction was carried out by the National Focal Point on Small Arms and Light Weapons (SALW), the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Uganda Peoples Defence Forces (UPDF), Uganda Police Force (UPF), and the Ministry for East African Affairs, with support from UNDP.
The destruction of the weapons, mainly AK-47 machine guns and semi-automatic rifles, was initiated by President Yoweri Museveni of Uganda and witnessed by the prime minister of Rwanda and dignitaries including ministers from the East African community and the UNDP Resident Representative.
Quite a success story, eh, these fruits of the United Nations Programs of Action, the Bamako Declaration and the Nairobi Declaration and Nairobi Protocol on SALW (small arms and light weapons)? Hey, I'll bet all those refugees who survived feel a lot safer now that "cattle rustlers" and other "non state actors" have been disarmed. Not that it has stopped those pesky rebels.
One group that shouldn't feel safer, though, is Ugandan gays:
Same-sex relationships are already illegal in the country under sections 140, 141 and 143, with sentences running from five years to life imprisonment...[T]he Anti-Homosexuality Bill increases in scope both the definition of 'homosexual acts' and the punishment with the death penalty for repeated offences, those who are HIV-positive and for same-sex acts with anyone under 18 years.
So, what do the "human rights progressives" who demand total citizen disarmament offer in the way of choice for those who might not want to be imprisoned or killed? Somehow, I don't see a Ugandan chapter of Pink Pistols being one of the options.
IANSA's Rebecca Peters will no doubt tell them to "get another hobby."
Comments
David,
We have all seen the lists of the number of people killed by oppressive (or is that progressive) governments during the past century due to gun control. In order to put a face on those millions, Examiner readers should search out JPFO's "Innocents Betrayed" on JPFO.org or youtube.
Russia does not allow private ownership of any kind of handgun and requires a special license to be allowed to own a rifle or shotgun.
Yet Russia has a murder rate that is 5 TIMES greater than the US.
In fact, the top 10 countries in terms of highest murder rates ALL have strict gun control laws. What they really di is ban self-defense!
I generally find t vexing when someone who has lived n the U.S. most f their lives with little understanding of Uganda starts commenting on what is going on in Uganda. Cattle rustling is a major problem which affects both Uganda and Kenya.
And in this case the guns have made the problem worse. Generally one group that due to some hardship is low on cattle decides to go steal some from the other group using their guns. This back and forth goes on. In some cases both group have guns but it is not a huge deterrent.
Granted the Ugandan Army may be somewhat heavy handed, but I am not very surprised especially when looking at the behavior of various armies around the world in similar situations.
I find it somewhat sad that one would need to resort to this sort of justification to support the cause of gun rights.
p.s. I am not in favor of gun control in the U.S. other countries its a different story.
Ciceroji said, "I find it somewhat sad that one would need to resort to this sort of justification to support the cause of gun rights."
You can substitute Uganda with Rwanda, Russia, England, Australia, Germany, China, Chicago or any city or country throughout history which has actively enforced citizen disarmament in the form of gun bans. Just take your pick, the list is long.
The moment citizens are disarmed governments now have a free hand to intimidate the citizens and impose whatever draconian rule or whim they desire.
Our "gun culture", as Europeans like to say, may largely explain why the United States has never been conquered by a foreign power or subjugated by despot politicians in our 234 year history and why we have enjoyed one single Constitution since its inception.
It is a reminder to those who harbor nefarious intension's for the U.S. that any hostile acts against U.S. sovereignty will by met with very capable and considerable resistance by The People.
Yevgeni WROTE: "I generally find t vexing when someone who has lived n the U.S. most f their lives with little understanding of Uganda starts commenting on what is going on in Uganda. Cattle rustling is a major problem which affects Uganda..." and: "I find it somewhat sad that one would need to resort to this sort of justification to support the cause of gun rights."
So - disarming the ranchers is a good idea, because the military and police are going to be there to stop the rustling. Right, Yevgeni? Right?
I bet disarming civilians has reduced crime. Am I correct, Yevgeni?
So - who murdered more people in the last 110 years: Government actors, or cattle rustlers?
I guess you answered your own question, eh, Yevgeni?
Yevgeni WROTE: "I generally find t vexing when someone who has lived n the U.S. most f their lives with little understanding of Uganda starts commenting on what is going on in Uganda. Cattle rustling is a major problem which affects Uganda..." and: "I find it somewhat sad that one would need to resort to this sort of justification to support the cause of gun rights."
So - disarming the ranchers is a good idea, because the military and police are going to be there to stop the rustling. Right, Yevgeni? Right?
I bet disarming civilians has reduced crime. Am I correct, Yevgeni?
So - who murdered more people in the last 110 years: Government actors, or cattle rustlers?
I guess you answered your own question, eh, Yevgeni?
OOPS. Sorry - double post, and I substituted for Yevgeni for Ciceroji. My bad, and apologies to Yevgeni.
I feel sorry for the people of Uganda who experience government sponsored violence and torture. There seems to be an image of good ole Che in the picture of Museveni. Hope no one thinks the Ugandan people's salvation lies in a Marxist revolutionary who hated blacks...doh!
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