Museveni issues Executive Order to end discrimination against Banyarwanda in Uganda

President Yoweri Museveni has signed an Executive Order to address the longstanding injustices faced by the Banyarwanda community in Uganda, often referred to as the Bavandimwe.

The Executive Order comes after years of complaints by the Bavandimwe about systematic discrimination by immigration and NIRA (National Identification and Registration Authority) officials.

The presidential directive aims to among others ensure that all Banyarwanda residing in the country are granted full access to Ugandan legal documents, including passports and national IDs.

Frank Gashumba, the Chairperson of the Bavandimwe Association says many members of the community have faced unreasonable hurdles in obtaining passports and national IDs, despite being bonafide Ugandan citizens.

“This terrible scenario had rendered our people stateless because of the naked discrimination and violation of their rights by Ugandan immigration officials, who do that to our people and get away with impunity,” Gashumba said.

He explained that the bureaucratic demands placed on Banyarwanda applicants are excessive and discriminatory.

“When a Ugandan Munyarwanda applies for a passport, he/she is told to bring his father. When he brings the father, he/she is told to bring the mother… [and later] the grandparents. When he/she brings the grandparents, immigration officials then demand a graduated tax card. Whether you are lucky to still have one or not, they order you to naturalize, which means ‘buying citizenship’ in a country of your birth,” Gashumba detailed.

This prolonged mistreatment led the Bavandimwe to consider taking the government to the Constitutional Court to seek formal recognition and protection of their rights.

Gashumba commended President Museveni and Gen. Salim Saleh for stepping in to resolve the issue, describing it as “a small matter” that could be easily addressed. He praised the President’s decisive action in issuing the Executive Order, which guarantees that Banyarwanda in Uganda will now fully enjoy their rights as citizens without facing discrimination.

The Banyarwanda community hopes this directive will put an end to practices such as the deactivation of their national IDs, denial of passport renewals, and other systematic abuses that have disrupted their lives and economic prospects.