Case against men accused of illegal entry into Balaalo farm in Gulu dismissed

The case against 17 people who had been charged ofย destroying fencing materials belonging to the cattle herdsmen commonly known as โBalaloโ has been dismissed by the Gulu chief magistrate Said Barigye in Gulu District.
The accused were arrested in November 2023 and later released on bail.
Keep Reading
- > ๐๐ ๐๐ฎ๐ง ๐๐๐ฅ๐ฎ๐ญ๐ ๐๐ฌ ๐๐ซ๐ข๐ ๐๐๐ง Charles Oluka is laid to rest
- > ย Emorimor condemnsย murder of P.1 Pupil at Sorotiโs Jozan Primary School
- > Kiprop, Chelangat shine at this year's national athletics championships
- > Butebo, Pallisa, Bukedea cassava farmers demand govt action over drop in prices
Theย Gulu chief magistrate Said Barigye dismissed the case afterย the complainant failed to appear in court.
Tears of joy filled the eyes of the accused as the court ruled in their favour.
โThis was a case that came out from the issue of Balalo must go and it was not surprising to us," Christpher Kidega, the lawyer to the accused said.
โDespite the dismissal, we are not feeling happy. Our district is bleeding and we are alsoย not free in the land, cutting of trees is very rampant, heavy trucks coming to our district day and night,โย said Betty Ocwee, one of the accused.
The 17 were arrested in November 2023 after a video went viral on social media showing them destroying fencing materials of the balalo in Gulu district.
This was after president Yoweri Museveni had given executive order number 3 for all balalo who do not have properly fenced land to leave Acholi sub region with immediate effect.
However, Patrick Okello ,one of the accusedย said nothing in their act was tribal or in any way discriminative or having another interest, rather they did itย in a bid to protect and preserve their mother land.
โWhat we are saying is thatย many people are trying to blackmail us that we are being tribal and anti-government butย that is not the case. Itย is about a communal land, and the procedure to acquire a communal land is set by the law.โ
Laker Gloria Grace an activist says she has been following the case from the time of itโs birth(November 2023) noting that justice has been served.