Yoweri Museveni BBC interview, September 2004
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| BBC / Ugandan president Yoweri Museveni Interview by BBC |
| Interview with Ugandan president Yoweri Museveni, conducted in September 2004 by BBC. |
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Transcript
Yoweri Museveni: We have recommended that to the population, the white paper, and we shall debate it. This is our accomodation as a government that we will now move to pluralism. It is up to the population to decide. We will campaign for it ourselves.
BBC: But you think you've found the model that you want?
Yoweri Museveni: Well, this is not a new model this is an old model. The model which we used to recover was one which was unique, the Movement system. The non-party democracy, this is one which has given us the ability to recover in the past 18 years. But where we are going now is a traditional system, that's what we are proposing. The interest rate has now gone up from 52% to now 67%. The sectarianism of the past has sort of abated so we think we can now move.
BBC: And will those constitutional changes be in place before the 2006 elections?
Yoweri Museveni: Oh, yes. The white paper is now in parliament.
BBC: There's also a view that Uganda will never develop economically unless there is an end to the conflict in the north, the conflict which has gone on for the last 18 years since you came to power. I've seen a figure which says Uganda has lost $100m dollars in production capacity as a result of the conflict.
Yoweri Museveni: That's a diversion, that's not true. Let's say Uganda has stagnated because of conflict. How bout other African countries? Which have never had conflict since indepenence? Why, they are the same or worse than Uganda - that means there's something else.
BBC: But presumably you would like an end to the conflict and it would make a difference?
Yoweri Museveni: That conflict, of course we want it to end and it is ending.
BBC: You talk about terrorism in the north. Does that mean you're set on a military solution rather than trying to negotiate a political end to the conflict?
Yoweri Museveni: We have always had a peaceful angle - the amnesty for those people for all this time. So we have never had a single channel, we have always had a multi-channel operation.