L'Uganda promuoverà il turismo internazionale attraverso i suoi musei

Negli anni scorsi mi sono occupata più volte della questione dell’Uganda National Museum che rischiava di essere abbattuto per fare posto ad un grattacielo. 

Ora sembra che l’Uganda abbia finalmente voltato pagina e si stia dedicando a valorizzare il patrimonio culturale, in particolare quello ancora poco conosciuto, proprio per mezzo dei propri musei. Anzi, se ne vorrebbero creare ancora altri con la convinzione che un maggior impulso al turismo culturale aiuterebbe non solo a preservare il patrimonio culturale ma anche a creare opportunità di sviluppo locale. La richiesta di costruire nuovi musei non è un’idea velleitaria, ma una necessità reale.

Attualmente, infatti, l'Uganda ha solamente quattro musei funzionanti: tre sono statali, l’Uganda National Museum, a Kampala, il Karamoja Museum di Moroto  e il Kabale Museum; uno è un museo privato, l’Igongo Museum a Mbarara Town.

Si ritiene che proprio la mancanza di musei sia la causa dei problemi legati alla conservazione del patrimonio culturale locale e della poca presenza attiva della comunità nel settore del turismo. Un altro problema importante, però, è la mancanza di personale qualificato nei musei dato che non esistono istituzioni preposte alla formazione e all’aggiornamento dei professionisti museali. E questo è un ostacolo da superare se si vorranno istituire altri musei. Si sta cercando, pertanto, di attivare delle collaborazioni internazionali, per esempio con il Museo Etnograficodell'Università di Zurigo che darà l’opportunità agli amministratori locali di interagire con gli esperti dei musei svizzeri.

Igongo Museum

Secondo Raphael Schwere dell’università di Zurigo, che collaborerà con l’Igongo Museum, si dovrà iniziare valorizzando le specificità locali. L’Uganda, forse non tutti ne sono al corrente, è un grande produttore di latte (ne produce più di un miliardo di litri all’anno) e dei suoi derivati, come il Ghee che è un latte fermentato tipico di queste zone. 

Il latte rappresenta una voce importante nell'economia ugandese 
Foto tratta da http://www.newvision.co.ug/newvision_cms/newsimages/file/Jesa-28.jpg

Esiste una ricca documentazione riguardo le tecniche di produzione del latte da parte dei mandriani ugandesi e tutto questo può rappresentare un motivo di interesse per quei musei che tratteranno questi argomenti, valorizzando le tipicità e le tradizioni locali.

Anche Miss Uganda, Leah Kalanguka, alle prese con la mungitura!
Foto tratta da http://modernfarmer.com/2014/11/miss-uganda-beauty-contest-demands-contestants-milk-cow/

“L'Uganda ha un vasto patrimonio culturale” – ha dichiarato Schwere – “ma non è conosciuto”. Le agenzie governative per il Turismo internazionale non dovrebbero concentrarsi solo sulla promozione delle più note bellezze naturalistiche, ma anche di quel patrimonio meno conosciuto che è situato in aree poco frequentate dal turismo internazionale e che necessitano di politiche adeguate. I musei potranno aiutare a farlo conoscere. 

Cattive notizie dall'Uganda

di Caterina Pisu

Mi sono appena giunte cattive notizie dall'Uganda, riguardo il caso del rischio di abbattimento dell'unico Museo Nazionale del paese, situato a Kampala, a causa di un'incomprensibile decisione del governo ugandese (su questo blog potete trovare altri articoli). Questa è la lettera che mi è giunta dal Dott. Ellady Muyambi, Executive Director dell'Historic Resources Conservation Initiatives (HRCI):


Dear Caterina,
Just as I had earlier predicted in my last e-mail where I updated you on the Uganda National Museum court case, I do hereby extend to you sad news that the same case has been dismissed. The case has been dismissed on a technical ground that our lawyer did not issue a statutory notice to the government before filing the case. Our lawyer tried to raise some exceptions over this issue but it seems it could not help. He was suggesting of appealing but we believe this may not help us. We are looking at options of filling the case a fresh. We will meet him tomorrow to discuss the way forward.
Best regards,
Ellady Muyambi

Speriamo che si possa trovare presto un'altra soluzione ma a mio parere ci sarebbe bisogno di un maggior supporto internazionale.

In support of the Uganda National Museum:

Stop the demolition of the Uganda National Museum! Please sign the petition.

http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/stop-the-demolition-of-the-uganda-national-museum.html

 

MPs oppose fresh plans to demolish Uganda Museum

 By Mercy Nalugo (extract from Daily Monitor)

Parliament has protested the planned demolition of the Uganda Museum and tasked government to produce a comprehensive report on the matter.Lubaga South MP Ken Lukyamuzi on Friday raised the matter on the floor of the House when he reported that he had received information from credible circles to the effect that government would in two months demolish the country’s most symbolic cultural sites to pave way for the construction of a 60-storey modern mall.

“Mr Speaker, we are saddened by the news that government intends to demolish the museum in order to construct a mall but this we shall not allow and we are ready to die,” said Mr Lukyamuzi, attracting debate.

Govt to explain
Former Vice President Gilbert Bukenya (Busiro North) opposed the demolition of the museum, saying it is one of the country’s major tourist attraction centres that has been preserved for a long time and for a purpose.

The Prime Minister, Mr Amama Mbabazi, said he was not prepared to give an explanation. The Deputy Speaker, Mr Jacob Oulanya, ruled that the Prime Minister produces a statement on the matter on Thursday next week.

Retired Supreme Court Judge George Kanyeihamba, some Members of Parliament and cultural rights activists, last month launched a campaign to save the Uganda National museum , the country’s national heritage centre, from being demolished.

Prof. Kanyeihamba said he will task the Executive on why government, which promised to protect the heritage of the country, is now backtracking on its own pledge.

The Ministry of Tourism in 2010 sanctioned the construction of a trade tower on the site and government intends to save two floors for the museum.

The museum, founded in 1908, has exhibits of traditional culture, archeology, history, science, and natural history.

mnalugo@ug.nationmedia.com

News about the campaign to save the Uganda Museum

 

Activists in renewed drive to save museum

In a last minute effort to save Uganda's only national museum, a group of civil society organizations, members of the academia and other stakeholders have renewed the campaign to stop the intended demolition of the Uganda Museum.

The museum faces demolition to pave way for construction of a 60-storey building dubbed the East African Trade Center. Some reports say demolition could be as close as two months away. On Monday, retired Supreme Court judge Prof George Wilson Kanyeihamba, vice chancellor of the International University of East Africa (IUEA), Prof Eric Edroma and maverick Rubaga South MP, John Ken Lukyamuzi, joined the drive to save the museum.

In the renewed campaign, activists plan demonstrations to force government to stop what they describe as "a barbaric demolition" of the museum. They launched car stickers to raise awareness and rally Ugandans to oppose the move. The Save Uganda National Museum campaign is spearheaded by Historic Resources Conservation Initiatives (HRCI), Cross-Cultural Foundation Uganda (CCFU), Jenga Afrika and Historic Buildings Conservation Trust and Heritage.

Launching the stickers on Monday at Ibamba restaurant next to the museum on Kira road in Kampala, Prof Kanyeihamba lambasted government for continuing to harbour intentions of demolishing the museum even when Ugandans have objected to the move.

"How do you demolish our history? It is only primitive and barbaric people that demolish their history" he said.

Kanyeihamba advised government to build the trade centre near Lugogo and spare the museum.

"We have information that government has already awarded two companies tenders to construct [the trade centre]", said Ellady Muyambi, HRCI's executive director.

He said there is suspicion that someone might be trying to grab the 11.5 acre property on which the museum sits. "If there is no foul play, why is the land title missing?" he wondered.

The 2010 Auditor General's report revealed that the museum's land title was missing from the land registry. The Uganda Museum was established to conserve, promote and interpret Ugandaís cultural and natural heritage through research, collections, documentation and imparting knowledge for today and the future. Founded in 1908, the museum is arguably East Africa's oldest. It was first built at Fort Lugard in Old Kampala, where it stayed until 1942 when it was transferred to Makerere University. It was shifted from there to its current site in 1954.

On January 14 last year, the tourism, trade and industry ministry placed an advert in the New Vision for interested bidders to enter into contract with the Government to finance, design and build a proposed 60-storey building on plot 5 Kira road, where the current museum is situated. Construction of the 60-storey skyscraper, whose developer remains anonymous, is planned to take 10 years. It will house the ministry of tourism and two floors will be reserved for the museum, according to government.

In April last year, civil society organizations filed a civil suit in the High Court to stop government's plan to demolish the museum. Although court did not grant the petitioners a temporary injunction, the case is scheduled for hearing on April 18 this year. Several initiatives are already ongoing, including campaigns on social media networks like face book to raise awareness about the matter.

ssekika@observer.ug This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Extract from: The Observer

News from Uganda National Museum

On 8^th November, 2011, the Uganda National Museum court case heard in the High Court of Uganda for the second hearing. I was out of the country (in Burundi) by the time but my team and our lawyer were present. They briefed me as follows:

The hearing started at 2:30pm in the private chambers of Justice Eldad Mwangusya.

Dr. Ephraim Kamuhangire (the former Commissioner, Department of Museums and antiquities, Government of Uganda and currently, the senior presidential advisor on cultural affairs) was the first expert witness to be examined and cross-examined. His testimony was on the history and importance of the Uganda National Museum. He boldly told court that the EA Trade Centre should not be mentioned alongside the Museum as it will deny the people of Uganda their right not only to preserve and enjoy their cultural heritage which is within the museum building but it will also be irresponsible of those advocating for the destruction of the home of that heritage to pave way for the construction of the trade centre.

Dr Kamuhangire also said that denial of a people of their cultural heritage for the 30 years, a period that construction will take, is a denial of their human rights. He further argued that objects in the Uganda Museum since 1954, acquired a new environment which is scientifically managed, whereby, if removed from that environment; the objects will break or get damaged.

He said that the museum as an institution is not transferable though some of its functions can be transferred. According to Dr. Kamuhangire, the current museum space is indeed its befitting home unlike its previous locations at Lugard’s Fort and Makerere College School of Fine Art which were smaller and borrowed facilities respectively.

Dr. Kamuhangire concluded by saying that the museum building itself is in an excellent state-it only needs regular maintenance and repairs and not condemnation.  He also said that EA Trade Centre can be built somewhere else and leave the museum to serve it purpose.

The second expert witness was Robert Baganda (from the environmental perspective). Robert was examined and cross-examined on the environmental dangers of the proposed EA Trade Centre.

Robert argued that the proposed building will affect the land use around the area and that it will also affect the persons enjoying and utilizing the green environment at and around the national museum.

Robert went ahead to argue that the proposed building will change the road network-(the judge was however, not convinced whether Robert, an environmentalist was the most competent person to talk about roads!!)

Robert suggested that: The EIA and the Heritage Impact assessment should be carried out before a project of the EA trade centre magnitude is undertaken. Thorough consultations with relevant stakeholders should be conducted.

After being briefed by my team, I realized the following errors which were committed in court.

·         Robert was partly inside while Dr. Kamuhangire was giving his testimony and this annoyed the Judge.

·         Robert’s testimony could imply that the project will be fine if an EIA or a Heritage Impact Assessment is done. Government might turn around and say that they will do all this since the project is still at proposal level.

·         Some peoples’ mobile telephones were not in silence

·         Very few journalists attended the hearing.

I therefore advised my team as follows;

·         We should follow the court rules while in court-if one is going to be a witness, please stay out when someone else is giving testimony.

·         We should also put our cell phones on silence!!

·         We have to prepare ourselves well before giving our testimonies. We also need to focus on key issues especially those we have all agreed on.

·          The right advice Robert should have given government is to relocate the E.A. Trade Centre since it will be unfit for the local environment around Uganda Museum. He should not have emphasized the need to carry out the EIA.

·         We need proper briefing and preparation by our lawyer so that we do not contravene court procedures or give responses that might weaken our case.

·         We need to involve as many journalists as possible.

What next?

Because the Judge is interested in disposing of the case before the year ends, the next hearing is scheduled for 1st December 2011. The next expert witness will be Kenneth Amunsimire, an architect from the Uganda Society of Architects. However, we should prepare an additional witness from the cultural dimension. We will try to work out this issue with Emily Drani from CCFU and see whether she will be available by the time of the hearing. We will also do whatever it takes to bring journalists on board. This requires some financing as well.

Impending challenge

The Lawyer is demanding his legal fees from us. Any suggestions on how we can move forward on this is highly welcome.

Ellady Muyambi

Executive Director,

Historic Resources Conservation Initiatives (HRCI)