Karamoja 2007-10

Animated Documentary Film: Karamoja City Warriors 2010

Article: Removing Karamojong for CHOGM 15/11/2007.

Business initiative: Karamoja Design

Between projects with the Karamojong, I remained committed to doing some of my own pictures...

Warrior and Son, view from near Moroto.

Perusing their land, aware that in the distance there is the constant threat of cattle raiders from neighboring Karamoja districts.

Acrylic on canvas. 90x40 cm

Brief history

Karamojaland is a dry semi-arid savannah subject to yearly drought and famine. For the last 30 years it has also been the scene of an internal conflict, where by villages are attacking one-another over the ownership of cows and for revenging previous attacks.

Now, the Government is in the process disarming the Karamojong, however, small groups of warriors are continuing to raid, and are targetting villlages that have already been disarmed - leaving the people who most want peace with nothing.

Due to these problems, many Karamojong are fleeing to the city, where they sweep the streets for food and beg for money.

The people

It is said, the semi nomadic Karamojong came from Ethiopia around a 1000 years ago. They migrated South to Sudan (Toposa), Kenya (Turkana), Tanzania (Maasai) and to Uganda, where they became 'tired' and settled in what is now Karamojaland.

The word Karamojong means "The tired old man".

On Location Painting

Due to the tribal conflict it was necessary to be accompanied by a local when visiting villages. So, I combined my trips with another project which was to start a local industry of jewellery making
(Karamoja Design).

The nature of Karamojaland being made up of vast savannas, meant it usually took us 2 hours to walk to our set of villages. We had 2 water holes on route and often a sorghum beer stop! This involved a local women taking down a jug of fermented sorghum from her head and pouring out a quart into a plastic bowl.

In the village the two main problems with painting was that inside the huts it was too dark, and outside it was too hot. Then, when it rained the ground turned into a quagmire. The answer was to sketch straight on the canvas whenever conditions allowed. Perhaps this is why the pictures sometimes take on a stressed look.

AK47

This painting tells the story of how anyone who wears a blanket might be concealing a gun. Women collecting wood from the bush are particularly vidulent of strangers, and quite righty so. Warriors frustrated with a failed cattle raid often vent their anger on anyone they meet in the wilds of Karamoja!

Acrylic on canvas. 80x50 cm

Karamoja woman Namgit, Lokopo District.

This remote village is subject to regular armed raids by warriors. They do not just steal cows, but also, goats, and grain.

One day, after we left the village, there was an attack at 6pm, and 100 head of goats were taken. We found out the next day, when I asked about the absense of animals in the village. Slowly these communities have less and less. Part of the problem can be blamed on the Government Disarmament Program, because while the guns have been removed from this village, they have not been removed from villages in the North.

Acrylic on canvas. 80x50 cm

Selling water, Matany.

Everyday a large gathering of women and children sit under the tree in the middle of town. They are waiting for a slightly richer member of the community to ask them to collect water and bring it to their house. They fight over jobs, and rush to get the task done, but all for very little money.

Acrylic on canvas. 75x55 cm

The return Namgit, Lokopo District.

Women are fleeing Karamojaland because of famine and conflict, and they are taking children with them to beg on the streets of Kampala. The flip side of this escape is, of course the communities they leave behind. Of the villages I was visiting, up to half the population had left, leaving only the old or sick..

Acrylic on canvas. 85x50 cm

Giant Aloe Vera, Moroto Mountain.

Karamojaland has sporadic rises of mountains and there the vegetation is rich and lush, but the worry of conflict still troubles the women who collect wood. This woman said she had seen warriors higher up and that it was not safe for me either. I pack up quickly and finish the picture later.

Acrylic on canvas. 75x55 cm

Ghetto-painting Kampala.

Painting by Karamojong street men, women and children from Kisenyi Ghetto, Kampala.

Acrylic on canvas. 75x55 cm