One shot Dead following Demarcation protests in Mbale

One person is dead following a shooting by police officers who were trying to calm residents of Namanyonyi Sub County in Mbale district  who are protesting the demarcation of the boundary of Namakole wetlands.

The deceased is Hassan Mukasa, a resident of Nankusi village in Namayonyi Sub County who breathed his last evening at Mbale Regional Hospital where he had been admitted.

The victim was hit by a stray bullet on Tuesday afternoon after police opened fire to deal away with during protests that started on the weekend.

The problem emanated from a few residents who started plucking the boundary marks planted by a team of officials from the Water and Environment Ministry and Mbale District Environment Department. This forced police to open fire and in the process, a stray bullet hit Mukasa who was incidentally looking on while the demarcation was taking place.  He was not part of the protesters. 

According to residents, they could lose their land in the demarcation and wetland restoration exercise since they haven’t fully been sensitized about its importance and why they should surrender their land to government.