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This case study in Apac District examined the hopes and assumptions behind the Government's policies on supporting the development of a land market to see how they have been working out in practice. The study examined who is buying land, and who is selling - and why? The study revealed that land sales are not helping agricultural development in the District, but are threatening the rights of many to land.
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Land Matters in Displacement
This study took place in the three Districts of the war-torn Acholiland, in Northern Uganda, where almost the entire rural population has been forced into displacement camps. LEMU examined how land ownership works in Acholiland, looked at the links between land rights and the conflict, and analysed the legal implications of forced displacement in the light of Ugandan law. The study found that there are widespread misconceptions about land ownership in Acholiland which are contributing to land rights violations. The study also looked at how Government and humanitarian agencies are responding to the food security problem and found that a better understanding of land issues could result in very different interventions.
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Policy brief 1 Protection and land rights.
The law is supposed to protect a woman's rights to land. The law is failing, and husbands can ignore their wife's legal rights. Why? And what should be done about it?
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Policy brief 2 Titling of customary land.
The Ugandan Government is convinced that only by giving everyone titles to their land will people have security of tenure, and it is investing everything in pushing this through. However, this policy is based on ignorance about how customary tenure actually works, and on some dangerously false assumptions about what happens when ownership of land moves from one tenure system to another. Violence and conflict have already been the result. This brief looks at less conflictual options to achieve the same goals and ensure that rights are protected.
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Policy brief 3A Landlessness.
This brief looks at how married women and children are vulnerable to becoming landless. Should something be done? What can be done?
Policy brief 4 Does customary tenure have a role in modern economic development?
This paper reveals some of the common myths held in Uganda about customary tenure and its 'backwardness'. The brief argues that customary tenure offers opportunities for economic development which remains untapped by policy makers.
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Information paper 1 How is land owned and managed under customary tenure?
This paper explains what "ownership" means in customary tenure and how land is managed, and shows the differences between the concept and institutions of ownership in customary tenure and in freehold.
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Information paper 2 Land rights or power distortion?
Land ownership is increasingly being personalised, and the family heads are often taking land for themselves when customary law said they were supposed to administer the land for their families. This paper explains how this is happening and what is the impact for women and children.
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Information paper 3 How can we minimise conflict?
Boundary disputes are the most common cause of conflicts within the village in Uganda. This paper shows people steps they can take together to help reduce conflicts by fixing land borders in a cheap and simple way.
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Information paper 4 Is Your Clan Strong?
The clan used to have the role of protecting its vulnerable members, but many clans have weakened and allow people to grab land from widows and orphans. This paper highlights the excuses which land grabbers give and is call to clan leaders to protect women and children according to their own customary laws.
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Information paper 5 Know the law on Compulsory Acquisition.
Many people are losing their land to development by local authorities simply because neither they, nor the local authorities, know the law on "compulsory acquisition" and on people's rights to compensation. This simple guide explains the rights of each side.
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Information paper 6 - Know the law on the Consent Clause.
The law protects wives from the family land being sold without their consent. Unfortunately, the law is not applied because neither the women and their husbands, or the local officials, know about the law. This paper is a simple explanation of how the law works, and what each party needs to do if they want to sell land.
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