Uganda, AU destroy illicit firearms to curb proliferation of small weapons
The exercise was part of the ninth Africa Amnesty Month, observed under the theme "Safer Communities through Voluntary Disarmament".
Uganda and the African Union (AU) on Friday destroyed more than 100 illicit firearms, marking the launch of joint efforts to curb the spread of small arms and light weapons across the continent.
Ugandan Minister of Defence and Veteran Affairs Jacob Marksons Oboth presided over the symbolic burning of weapons at the Gaddafi Army Barracks in Jinja, eastern Uganda.
More To Read
- Activists chain themselves outside Foreign Affairs Ministry over disappearance of Njagi, Oyoo
- Uganda military denies holding Kenyan activists Bob Njagi and Nicholas Oyoo
- Rights group petitions Museveni to release abducted Kenyan activists Bob Njagi, Nick Oyoo
- Non-Aligned Movement ministers renew call for multilateralism at Uganda meeting
- Can the AU prevent coups like Madagascar's?
- AU sends high-level delegation to Madagascar after military coup ousts President Rajoelina
The exercise was part of the ninth Africa Amnesty Month, observed under the theme "Safer Communities through Voluntary Disarmament".
Oboth called on individuals still in possession of illegal firearms to hand them over voluntarily in the interest of peace and security.
"The 2025 Africa Amnesty Month commemoration here highlights Uganda's commitment to safer communities through disarmament. We need to silence the guns through voluntary disarmament," he said in a joint statement issued Friday.
Tebelelo Boang, chairperson of the AU Peace and Security Council, said, "firearms destroyed, potential lives saved, and hope renewed."
"Together, we advance disarmament, silence the guns, and build peace for all by 2030," he added.
The commemoration coincided with the opening of a two-day forum in Kampala, where experts and government officials discussed strategies to reduce the proliferation of small arms and light weapons across Africa.
The meeting, organised under the AU Peace and Security Council, brought together representatives from the AU, the East African Community (EAC), the United Nations (UN), civil society, youth, women's groups and other stakeholders to advance the continental agenda of ending armed violence.
In 2017, the AU declared September as Africa Amnesty Month to encourage civilians to surrender illegal firearms voluntarily without facing prosecution.
Top Stories Today
