Milton Obote
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Obote pictured at the beginning of his second regime in 1980 |
Apollo Milton Obote (
December 28 1924 –
October 10 2005),
Prime Minister of Uganda 1962-
1966 and
President of Uganda 1966-
1971/
1980-
1985, was a Ugandan political leader who led Uganda to independence from the
British colonial administration in
1962. He was overthrown by
Idi Amin in
1971, but gained power again in
1980. His second rule was marred by repression, and the death of many civilians during a
civil war.
Milton Obote was born at Akokoro village in
Apac district in northern Uganda. He was the son of a local chief of the
Lango ethnic group. He began his education in
1940 at the Protestant Missionary School in
Lira,
Gulu Junior Secondary School,
Busoga College and later
Makerere College, where he honed his natural oratorial skills but was expelled for participating in a student strike (Obote claimed he left Makerere voluntarily
[I come from royal ancestry, Published in The Monitor]). He worked in
Buganda in southern Uganda before he went to
Kenya, where he worked as a construction worker for an engineering firm. While in Kenya he became involved in the local independence movement. Upon returning to Uganda, he joined
Uganda National Congress (UNC) in
1955 and was elected to the colonial
Legislative Council in
1958[1]. In
1959, the UNC split, and Obote became head of the newly formed
Uganda People's Congress (UPC). After several years as head of the opposition, Obote formed a coalition with the
Buganda royalist party,
Kabaka Yekka, and was elected prime minister in
1961. He assumed the post on
April 25,
1962, with Sir
Walter Coutts as
Governor-General of Uganda. The following year, he deposed
Queen Elizabeth II as Ugandan head of state, and
Edward Mutesa II, the
kabaka (king) of Buganda, became the ceremonial president, with Obote as executive prime Minister.
As prime minister, Obote was implicated in a
gold smuggling plot, together with
Idi Amin, then deputy commander of the Ugandan armed forces. When the
Parliament demanded an investigation of Obote and the ousting of Amin, he suspended the
constitution, abolishing the roles of leaders of Uganda's five tribal kingdoms and giving himself almost unlimited power under state-of-emergency rulings; he had several members of his
cabinet arrested. Obote's judiciary cleared him of the gold-smuggling charges, but the episode created tensions between him and Mutesa, who was critical of Obote for suspending the constitution. Obote staged a coup against Mutesa and had himself declared president on
March 2,
1966. His nominally socialist rule made him unpopular with the Western powers, particularly Britain, and his regime was greatly destabilized by the military. In
1971 he was deposed by his army chief,
Idi Amin, after which he fled to
Tanzania. The British government of
Edward Heath is known to have given at least tacit approval for the coup.[
2]
After Idi Amin was ousted in
1979 by Tanzanian forces aided by Ugandan exiles, Uganda was governed by an interim
Presidential Commission before elections. The elections in
1980 were won by Obote's
UPC party. However, the other political parties believed the elections were rigged, leading to
guerrilla rebellion by
Yoweri Museveni's National Resistance Army and several other military groups.
It has been estimated that 100,000 to 300,000 people died as a result of fighting between Obote's
UNLA and the guerrillas.
Obote was deposed again, on
27 July 1985, by his own army commanders Brigadier
Bazilio Olara-Okello and General
Tito Okello in a military
coup. Okello and Okello briefly ruled the country through a Military Council, but after a few months of near anarchy,
Museveni's National Resistance Army (NRA) took control of
Uganda.
After his second downfall, Obote fled to
Tanzania and later to
Zambia. For some years it was rumoured that he would return to Ugandan politics. In August
2005, however, he announced his intention to step down as leader of the UPC.[
3] In
September 2005, it was reported that Obote would return to Uganda before the end of
2005.[
4]
On
10 October, Obote died of
kidney failure in a hospital in
Johannesburg,
South Africa.[
5]
Milton Obote was given a
state funeral, attended by president Museveni in the Ugandan capital Kampala in October 2005, to the surprise and appreciation of many Ugandans, since he and Museveni were bitter rivals. Other groups, such as the
Baganda survivors of the "
Luwero Triangle" massacres, were bitter that Obote was given a state funeral. He was survived by his wife and five children.
On
November 28, his wife
Miria Obote was elected UPC party president.[
6]
*
Uganda*
President of Uganda*
Politics of Uganda*
History of Uganda*
Political parties of UgandaNew York Times,
October 11 2005. Obituary
Uganda's First Prime Minister Dies,
The Guardian,
11 October 2005Uganda's President Museveni Mourns Foe,
The Guardian,
20 October 2005 Thousands Attend Obote Funeral in Uganda,
The Guardian,
21 October 2005*
List of Dictators*
Obote Series - a series of articles and interviews published in The Monitor *
Amnesty International report on Uganda.*
Former Ugandan leader Obote dies,
BBC News,
10 October 2005*
A founding father adored, dreaded in equal measure,
The Monitor
