Uganda Reopens Borders for First Time Since Coup

The ruling military council Friday opened Uganda’s borders for the first time since last week’s coup, but airports remained closed.

An announcement broadcast on Radio Uganda said the borders will be open between 6 a.m. and 6:30 p.m.

Economic factors may have played a role in the border reopening. Dozens of trucks, many of them bound for Uganda with oil from a Kenya refinery, had been stranded at the borders.

Travel in and out of Uganda has been virtually halted since the coup a week ago, which toppled the civilian government of President Milton Obote. Exceptions were made for some foreigners, mostly Westerners, who were allowed to drive from Kampala into Kenya in convoys.

Political negotiations continued Friday on formation of a multiparty Cabinet to serve under the military council, pending elections, which the coup leaders say will take place within 12 months.

The new prime minister, Paulo Muwanga, indicated Wednesday that appointment of Cabinet minsters was imminent, and the lack of an announcement by Friday indicated that negotiators were having difficulty satisfying all of the parties seeking representation.

The country’s largest guerrilla faction, the Uganda National Resistance Army, said Friday that it will resume its insurgency if the new regime “continues to make decisions without our knowledge and consent.”