Ugandan Security Forces clash with rioters

UGANDA: Ugandan security forces fired tear gas and live bullets in Kampala on Thursday during running battles with rioters that killed at least three people, local media and witnesses said.

Military police in armoured personnel carriers along with riot police and other security officers fought scores of rioters who were tossing stones and burning tyres in Kampala’s business district, according to a Reuters witness.

The violence was sparked by a disagreement between police and a senior official from Buganda, one of the east African country’s four ancient kingdoms, in a town east of the capital.

“They are rioting because (the official) was stopped by police from entering into Kayunga,” police spokeswoman Judith Nabakoba told Reuters by telephone. Analysts say the row is about a power dispute between the government and the kingdom, which is largely restricted to a cultural and tribal role. The Buganda is one of four ancient kingdoms abolished by a former leader Milton Obote in 1966 and restored by current President Yoweri Museveni in the early 1990s.

Kingdoms have historically had tensions with the central government. The Bugandan king is expected to travel to Kayunga on Saturday, making it likely that there will be more violence in the coming days. KAMPALA, Friday, Reuters