Dear editor,I read in your paper that authorities in Nyagatare district are contemplating disarming cattle keepers. What you actually referred to as a ‘walking’ stick is a ‘weapon’. Cattle keepers tend to walk long distances in isolated forests as they graze their animals. The sticks they carry therefore are meant to save them from wild animals and thieves. Disarming them under the pretext of maintaining order is a great error. It is like disarming all soldiers just because one of them shot people in a bar. Let those who use sticks in unnecessary fighting be punished severely as you sensitize them slowly. In addition walking with sticks could be restricted as a measure to curb the indiscipline. Reduce the possibility of carrying sticks in bars for instance. Otherwise, the Mayor must know that, such is the traditional challenge of managing a predominantly pastoralists society. REMERA
