Rtd Col Anthony Kyakabale, one of the early fighters in Uganda’s National Resistance Army (NRA) liberation struggle, has died in Sweden, where he had been living in exile.
Kyakabale, who was registered as RO/00058, was among the pioneer combatants in the 1981–1986 bush war that brought President Yoweri Museveni and the National Resistance Movement (NRM) to power.
Born in Kabale District, Kyakabale joined the army in 1980 and took part in the attack on Kabamba Barracks in February 1981 — the operation that launched the NRA rebellion. After the NRM victory, he steadily rose through the ranks, eventually attaining the rank of Lieutenant Colonel.
However, in the late 1990s, Kyakabale became increasingly disillusioned with the NRM government. Together with other senior officers such as Col Samson Mande, he began expressing dissent, especially after their comrade Dr. Kizza Besigye openly challenged President Museveni’s leadership.
Amid reports of an impending arrest, Kyakabale fled Uganda in 2001 and later publicly declared war against the government in 2002, accusing President Museveni of steering the country back toward a “violent past.”
He was later linked to the People’s Redemption Army (PRA), a rebel group that the government claimed was plotting to overthrow Museveni’s administration — allegations Kyakabale and his colleagues consistently denied.
