Mike Wells Famine In Uganda

Hannah Park
Ms Bradley
Honors English 12
24th May 2017
Title
The year is 1980. Missionary and Catholic monk Mike Wells makes his way to the Karamoja region of Uganda, Africa where the natives are facing great suffering. This is not a new or unusual occurrence, but this time famine has struck hard. Wells captures the pain and hardship in a photo of a missionary’s healthy, strong, and lively hand holding the malnourished hand of a starving Ugandan boy. This photo spoke louder than any news story could even begin to about the famine in Uganda. Many are quick to blame poor geographical and weather conditions for starvation around the world, but it is not so simple. Failed policies and political corruption, not drought, are the true underlying cause

Less than two decades before drought struck Karamoja, Uganda, “At independence (1962), Uganda had one of the most vigorous and promising economies in Sub-Sahara Africa,” (Kapoor 3). They key to this statement is “at independence.” When Amin overthrew the government, the economy declined, war broke out, and the new poorly run government were the cause of the country’s demise. Amin’s selfishness and hunger for power left his own people as the victims in the years following his regime. 1980 was not the first year for drought in Uganda, but, “Traditionally, the population in the region was prepared to cope with those periods of drought by maintaining large herds of livestock, using communal forms of assistance, moving to other agricultural regions in search of food, or by early state intervention. However, in 1980 those coping mechanisms collapsed for various reasons,” (Umana-Aponte 8). Firstly, without order in Uganda, there was economic unrest, which spiked the price in goods, services, and decreased the value of money. The country was economically distraught. Secondly, there was much more violence in the area, which encouraged raids from neighboring countries and enemies. The possible food from cattle that they did have was stolen. Another reason was that this growing political turmoil in Uganda threatened the supplies that relief organizations tried to offer. Amin’s poor leadership and corrupt ways, “brought bloody tragedy and economic ruin in his country, during a selfish life that had no redeeming qualities,” (Keatley 43). His era of self declared presidency ruined Uganda for the decades to come. His selfish lifestyle prevented the management of the drought and left hundreds of thousands of Ugandans dead during his nine years on