West Nile Bank Front
Encyclopedia
The West Nile Bank Front (WNBF) was a rebel armed force in Uganda
under the command of Juma Oris
. The WNBF began a campaign against President Yoweri Museveni
in 1995. It appears to have been a West Nile offshoot of the Uganda People's Democratic Army
and recruited primarily in Koboko
County, Arua
and Obongi, Moyo
.
It was active up through the end of the First Congo War
in 1997, fighting from Sudan
and the Democratic Republic of Congo against the Uganda People's Defense Force. The WNBF worked at destabilizing northern Uganda. It was responsible for many kidnapping
s and violent raids, and had similar goals and tactics to the Lord's Resistance Army
. While it had initially recruited with promises of generous pay, which proved to be false, it eventually turned to forced recruitment to replenish its ranks. The brutal tactics of the WNBF, including the laying of landmines
, made it lose popular support in the region. They were in competition for popular support with the rebel Uganda National Rescue Front II that was operating in the same region simultaneously.
The fortunes of the WNBF did not really change until UPDF Major General
Katumba Wamala
arrived in 1996 and initiated a policy of civil-military cooperation. He has stated:
By working through local and traditional authority structures and enforcing a measured approach to the counter-insurgency, Wamala earned the trust of much of the populace and was able to arrange for numerous rebels to return to their former lives. This diplomatic initiative was coupled by military pressure upon WNBF bases in Southern Sudan by the Ugandan-backed Sudan People's Liberation Army
. The last WNBF bases in Sudan were destroyed at a major battle at Kaya
in which the SPLA, UPDF and several Congolese armed groups took part, though some former members joined small rebel movements based in the DRC. By 1998 the WNBF as a group was no longer capable of significant activity.
Uganda
Uganda , officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. Uganda is also known as the "Pearl of Africa". It is bordered on the east by Kenya, on the north by South Sudan, on the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, on the southwest by Rwanda, and on the south by...
under the command of Juma Oris
Juma Oris
Colonel Juma Oris Abdalla was a rebel leader in the West Nile sub-region of Uganda in the early 1990s. He was previously a minister in Idi Amin's government , and later was allegedly backed by the government of Sudan...
. The WNBF began a campaign against President Yoweri Museveni
Yoweri Museveni
Yoweri Kaguta Museveni is a Ugandan politician and statesman. He has been President of Uganda since 26 January 1986.Museveni was involved in the war that deposed Idi Amin Dada, ending his rule in 1979, and in the rebellion that subsequently led to the demise of the Milton Obote regime in 1985...
in 1995. It appears to have been a West Nile offshoot of the Uganda People's Democratic Army
Uganda People's Democratic Army
The Uganda People's Democratic Army was a rebel group operating in northern Uganda from March 1986 to June 1988.In January, 1986, the government of Ugandan President Tito Okello was overthrown by the rebel National Resistance Army under the command of Yoweri Museveni, which took the capital city...
and recruited primarily in Koboko
Koboko
Koboko is a town in Northern Uganda. It is the main municipal, administrative and commercial centre of Koboko District. The district is named after the town...
County, Arua
Arua
Arua is a town in Arua District, Northern Uganda. An important local commercial centre, it is a base for a large refugee population from Southern Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo and is an aid distribution centre for those nations.-Location:...
and Obongi, Moyo
Moyo District
Moyo District is a district in Northern Uganda. Like many other Ugandan districts, it is named after its 'chief town', Moyo, where the district headquarters are located.-Location:...
.
It was active up through the end of the First Congo War
First Congo War
The First Congo War was a revolution in Zaire that replaced President Mobutu Sésé Seko, a decades-long dictator, with rebel leader Laurent-Désiré Kabila. Destabilization in eastern Zaire that resulted from the Rwandan genocide was the final factor that caused numerous internal and external actors...
in 1997, fighting from Sudan
Sudan
Sudan , officially the Republic of the Sudan , is a country in North Africa, sometimes considered part of the Middle East politically. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the...
and the Democratic Republic of Congo against the Uganda People's Defense Force. The WNBF worked at destabilizing northern Uganda. It was responsible for many kidnapping
Kidnapping
In criminal law, kidnapping is the taking away or transportation of a person against that person's will, usually to hold the person in false imprisonment, a confinement without legal authority...
s and violent raids, and had similar goals and tactics to the Lord's Resistance Army
Lord's Resistance Army
The Lord's Resistance Army insurgency is an ongoing guerrilla campaign waged since 1987 by the Lord's Resistance Army rebel group, operating mainly in northern Uganda, but also in South Sudan and eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo...
. While it had initially recruited with promises of generous pay, which proved to be false, it eventually turned to forced recruitment to replenish its ranks. The brutal tactics of the WNBF, including the laying of landmines
Land mine
A land mine is usually a weight-triggered explosive device which is intended to damage a target—either human or inanimate—by means of a blast and/or fragment impact....
, made it lose popular support in the region. They were in competition for popular support with the rebel Uganda National Rescue Front II that was operating in the same region simultaneously.
The fortunes of the WNBF did not really change until UPDF Major General
Major General
Major general or major-general is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. A major general is a high-ranking officer, normally subordinate to the rank of lieutenant general and senior to the ranks of brigadier and brigadier general...
Katumba Wamala
Katumba Wamala
Lieutenant General Edward Katumba Wamala, more commonly known as Katumba Wamala, is a Ugandan Army officer and former policeman. He is the Commander of Land Forces in the Uganda People's Defense Force...
arrived in 1996 and initiated a policy of civil-military cooperation. He has stated:
- Seeing that the people didn’t support the war, my approach was to reach out to them and deny the enemy fertile ground to work on. So I had to combine a military approach with a political strategy... Rather than just sitting in the barracks, I decided to go out and spend time with the communities to work on calling the rebels back. It was very important that we never mistreated reporters (people who reported on rebel activity), so we built up trust.1
By working through local and traditional authority structures and enforcing a measured approach to the counter-insurgency, Wamala earned the trust of much of the populace and was able to arrange for numerous rebels to return to their former lives. This diplomatic initiative was coupled by military pressure upon WNBF bases in Southern Sudan by the Ugandan-backed Sudan People's Liberation Army
Sudan People's Liberation Army
The Sudan People's Liberation Movement is a political party in South Sudan. It was initially founded as a rebel political movement with a military wing known as the Sudan People's Liberation Army estimated at 180,000 soldiers. The SPLM fought in the Second Sudanese Civil War against the Sudanese...
. The last WNBF bases in Sudan were destroyed at a major battle at Kaya
Kaya, Sudan
-Location:The city is located in Kaya Payam, Morobo County, Central Equatoria State, in exteme southeastern South Sudan, at the International border with the Republic of Uganda. Kaya is located approximately , by road, southeast of Yei the nearest large city. This location lies approximately , by...
in which the SPLA, UPDF and several Congolese armed groups took part, though some former members joined small rebel movements based in the DRC. By 1998 the WNBF as a group was no longer capable of significant activity.
External links
- Negotiating Peace: Resolution of Conflicts in Uganda’s West Nile Region (PDF) offers an overview of rebel activity in the West Nile, including the genesis of the WNBF