Leader of opposition demands security boost in refugee camps

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The leader of Opposition in Parliament Betty Aol Ochan has called for the deployment of more policemen in refugee settlements across the country. She says the lax security in settlements presents a huge security gap for Uganda.

The comments follow a recent oversight visit to different settlements hosting thousands of refugees mostly from South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Uganda hosts up to 1.2 million refugees.

According to Aol, a number of the camps she visited are marred with cases of violence and tribal conflicts, which spark tensions in settlements with a possibility of escalating if not handled swiftly.

But despite the threat, Aol says, the level of deployment is inadequate and does not match the acceptable international ratio of 1 policeman to at least 500 refugees. Aol says this compromises security and case management in the refugee centres.

“When it comes to conflict and crime in the refugee settlements it is difficult to manage for these officers because the area is vast and very populated.  The police management should at least ensure that they deploy more officers to the refugee areas” Aol said in her report.

According to data from the Office of the Prime Minister there are 196 police officers guarding 377,000 refugees in Kyangwali refugee settlement, Kyaka II, Rwamwanja and Nakivale refugee settlement. The situation is worse in Kyaka II with 20 policemen guarding 94,000 refugees.

Deputy Police Spokesperson Polly Namaye acknowledges the need for increased deployment at the refugee centres, and generally in the country. Namaye says the Uganda Police Force is working with sister security agencies to bridge the gap.   According to 2015 statistics from Police, 1 Policeman is in charge of 772 People.

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