Themes

The film introduces the interconnected dimensions of unsustainable developments in Karamoja and of the challenges to (semi)pastoralists living in the region.

Migrations

80% of the street children currently in Kampala are from Karamoja ; most of them and their relatives living in the slums of Kampala come from the Bokora tribe.

The film introduces the background of this phenomenon in the cities of Kampala and Mbale, as well as the forced resttlement in Karamoja, carried out by the Ugandan authorities.

Cattle Raids and forced disarmament

The vulnerability of the people of Karamoja is partly related to the outcomes of several decades of armament race among tribes and of increased cattle raiding and armed theft. Several phases of disarmament by the Ugandan military forces across the years 2000 have brought about a fragile and questionable decrease of raiding in recent months. Most often carried out forcefully, the disarmament has also generated a significant amount of alleged human rights violations. Long term consequences are also preoccupying.

The film investigates these developments, from the perspectives of different actors involved in the conflict:

Victims of raids in the neighboring district of Katakwi

Police (Anti Sock-Theft Units) and army forces (UPDF)

Witnesses of human rights abuses and Karimojongs

Karimojong members of parliament

The film also points at the regional dimension of the conflict and of .

Challenges to pastoral livelihoods

The threats to sustainable pastoralism are manifold, complex and interacting with each other. The film explores and introduces these dimensions, looking further into the vicious circle of food insecurity, over-use of land resources, environmental degradation, socioeconomic marginalization and cultural destabilization.

The related questions of demography, land use policies and climate change, and their roles in the vicous circle of unsustainability, are also introduced.

Involvement of the international community

The film also accounts for the involvement and on-the-ground actions of international organizations (such as the World Food Program) and Non Government Organizations, which are increasingly present in Karamoja, although only few of them are already active on the ground.

Major public figures such as the UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Uganda and the Head of the Delegation of the European Commission to the Republic of Uganda, stress the main goals of their growing presence on the ground.

Sustainable pastoralism

Besides, the film also conveys the richness, celebrates the beauty and highlights the adequacy of pastoralism in Karamoja, both as a thriving culture and as a sustainable traditional management of arid lands.

The film advocates for sustainable futures in Karamoja, whereby the (semi)pastoral Karamojan way of life may be furthered.