As the world celebrated the World Environment Day yesterday, civil society organizations in Uganda led by Wemnet Uganda re-echoed the call to protect Bugoma Central Forest Reserve.
In a statement, Godfrey Twesigye the director of Wemnet Uganda said the day should be used to reflect on the activists who continue to be threatened by those in authority and those in illegal possession of forest land.
He said: “As a result of this, many of our colleagues especially those in Kikuube and Hoima District have since opted to remain silent and watch as the forest reserve is being destroyed for fear of being implicated and/or face flimsy charges of criminal trespassing and incitement to violence. Because of the threats, accessing the forest to ascertain its status is almost impossible due to the presence of armed security personnel guarding the investments of the forest degraders and grabbers.”
Twesigye called for the cancellation of all illegal and fraudulent land titles in Bugoma forest and other protected reserves like Namanve, Nonve and Kitubulu among others; verification of the Bugoma CFR area and to stop intimidating activists challenging the illegal giveaway of forest land with trumped-up charges to silence them.
He called upon the government to ensure that all land on which Bugoma CFR sits and other protected areas such as Namanve CFR, are urgently restored to their previous states including, evicting all encroachers, re-planting trees, and protecting the said forests.
