{UAH} Clashes Erupt as Sudanese March on Presidential Palace
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12:36 PM |
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Annet Kobby,/ Frank Mujabi
Can Ugandans do this if they are thinking of removing Kayibanda through People Power revolution? Because this is precisely what they have to be prepared to do to capture and kill Kayibanda, or force him to flee back home to Rwanda if People Power remains their preferred option for change.
I witnessed People Power revolution with my own eyes in the Philippines when 3 million Filipinos surrounded Marcos's palace, determined to arrest or kill him that same day, no matter how many people he shot and killed trying to do so.
Malacanang Palace is built on a small island off the coast of Manila. It is completely surrounded by the sea and a bigger island on which Manila City sits. A 3 mile long bridge connects the palace to the mainland. At the end of the bridge on either side were huge garrisons of at least 2,000 soldiers on either side. There was also a marine batallion on the island with several boats patrolling the sea around the island day and night. In addition, the airforce had a runway garrison as well at least 50 powerful helicopter gunships.
Ferdinand Marcos was armed to the teeth. His palace was a fortified military base that only a very powerful military force could overpower. Communists, with over 50,000 well armed guerrillas supported by 1 million lightly armed militias, had been trying for over 10 years to overthrow Marcos using military force, but had not succeeded. So how were unarmed civilians going to overpower this brutal fascist military dictator Marcos and bring his evil regime to an end?
For any one to arrest him, they had first of all to overpower the garrison at the front of the gate on the main island. Then they would have to walk three miles on the bridge, being shot at by the garrison on the other side, and being bombed by both the helicopter gunships and marine boats cruising around the bridge. It seemed a mad cap idea, an impossible task.
Marcos also had at least 200,000 well armed soldiers and police located at all strategic points in the city. These were backed up by at least another 100,00 militiamen and death squads bussed in from around the country.
So between 22 February 1986 – 25 February 1986- over a period of 5 days, there was a major showdown or confrontation in the Philippines- the kind of which was perhaps last seen during the Bolshevik Revolution in Russia. The world had never seen this political/military confrontation before.
On the one side, there was Marcos and his wife Imelda holed up in his palace being defended by 50,000 marines and special forces. These were supported by 250,000 armed soldiers, police and militia in or around Maila city. Against them were 3 million unarmed Filipinos who were determined to remove Marcos no matter how many people he killed. The 3 million had completely surrounded Marcos' palace, and their numbers were increasing by the minute as more and more people rushed in from the countryside to join in the historic event. Marcos was trapped in his palace, with no way of escape, except only by air. Marcos knew what his fate would be if he landed in the hands of any of the irate crowd. And he also knew this confrontation had to resolved on that day, and no other. There was no escaping history. 250,000 heavily armed troops facing up to 3 million unarmed citizens
The stalemate was broken on the 24 February when the crowd at the palace gate overpowered the soldiers and started marching on the bridge to go and capture Marcos- a distance of 3 miles. What many people thought was a mad cap idea was actually now being put into practice. Marcos's soldiers and marines opened fire on the people as they marched, but for every one who fell, another quickly moved forward to replace them, as the injured and dead were passed backwards and evacuated. This was like scene from hell- Marcos shooting the people, but completely powerless to stop their forward march. In a relatively short time frame, he had murdered over 700 civilians, but the more he murdered, the more determined the people became to arrest him and kill him if he resisted.
It was at this point that the Philippines Army command, his own army, rebelled against him and refused to take any more orders from him. They stopped shooting at the demonstrators. The Americans then intervened and arrested Marcos from his palace and flew him and his wife to a nearly airbase and onwards to exile, never again to set foot on Philippines soil.
I give you this story of what happened in the Philippines to demonstrate the level of self sacrifice and discipline that a people power revolution requires. It should also be noted that 3 million people did not just emerge out of the blue. There were there after years and years of struggle, organisation and mobilisation. The people power revolution had leadership tested in battle over many years, so what happenned between 22 February and 25 February were but a culmination of eeforts of of many years of strugglle, tears, sweat and blood. I may be wrong, but I dont think Ugandans have that courage and determination. They dont have the disciplined leadership to sustain such a struggle. They are never going to face a hail of bullets the way the Filipinos were prepared to do
Thats why the armed struggle remains the only viable route open to Ugandans. In armed struggle, it is military might that ultimately will prevail. We will recruit volunteers who will not run away from battle- those determined to sacrifice their lives. kayibanda will melt away like putty when faced with armed opponents prepared to look him straight in the eye. This is the last option he wants to face. But the people power option is his preference because he knows all he has to do is shoot 200 to 500 people as he did in Kasese and the people will melt away and game up.
Bobby
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