By Jireh Isaac Lubogo
There is a powerful Luganda proverb that says, “Bw’omega toluma.” Translated loosely, it means: “If you have subdued your enemy, do not bite them.” It is a principle of restraint, justice, and wisdom. It speaks to the African ethos of “obuntubulamu” (Ubuntu) — that even in victory, humanity must prevail. For to humiliate a fallen enemy is not strength; it is a form of spiritual weakness dressed in the garments of revenge.
In the context of the Israel-Palestine conflict, this proverb becomes not just cultural wisdom, but a prophetic warning.
I. The Anatomy of Power and Subjugation
Israel is, by all geopolitical and military standards, the subduer. With one of the most sophisticated armies in the world, cutting-edge intelligence (Mossad, Shin Bet), an Iron Dome defense system, and unwavering Western backing (especially from the U.S.), it dwarfs Palestine in military might. Gaza, on the other hand, has no army, no air force, and no real external allies willing to militarily intervene on its behalf.
It is in this imbalance of power that the proverb speaks loudest.
Having subdued the territory — encircled it, controlled its borders, airspace, and even economic lifelines — “bw’omega…” Israel is already in the dominant seat. Yet, the continuation of bombings, blockades, starvation, and structural humiliation against a trapped civilian population feels like “…toluma” — the unnecessary bite after victory.
It is vengeance masquerading as security.
II. Ancient Wisdom in a Modern War
“Bw’omega toluma” is not a call to weakness; it is a doctrine of sustainable peace. The ancient Baganda knew that a permanently humiliated enemy becomes a ticking time bomb. Peace obtained through cruelty is brittle. It cracks under the weight of generational trauma.
And herein lies Israel’s crisis: military victories have not translated into existential security. Why? Because the psychology of humiliation festers like a wound beneath the rubble. Every dead child in Gaza is not just a tragedy — it becomes a martyr in the next generation’s memory. Every demolished hospital is not forgotten — it is transformed into resistance poetry, street graffiti, and underground resolve.
The “bite” Israel continues to take, risks creating more enemies than it can ever eliminate.
III. A Lesson from African Statecraft
In precolonial Buganda and other African kingdoms, when a chief subdued his rival, he often married the rival’s daughter, offered him land, or gave him a symbolic role in the new administration. Why? Not out of romance or charity — but because reconciliation was strategic. Alienation breeds revolt. Integration breeds stability.
But Gaza has not been integrated — it has been strangled.
If “bw’omega toluma” was applied here, Israel would have used its dominance to create corridors of dignity, education, medical care, and economic opportunity. Instead, it built walls, both physical and psychological, that scream: You are not human enough to coexist with us.
That is the bite.
IV. The False Security of Iron Domes
Israel may feel secure behind its Iron Dome — but you cannot shoot down grief. You cannot intercept generational hatred. You cannot bomb a people into submission without bombing your own future into fragility.
As the Luganda wisdom reminds us: a subdued enemy is not a dead enemy. They are still breathing, still thinking, still remembering. A society beaten into a corner becomes either silent or explosive — and Gaza has shown it will not be eternally silent.
The proverb is a caution: victory without compassion is a future without peace.
V. The Spiritual Irony of Chosen People
Israel calls itself the homeland of a chosen people. But what is the meaning of chosenness if it becomes synonymous with relentless dominance, unchecked retaliation, and collective punishment? To be chosen, in the biblical sense, was to be a light unto nations — a moral beacon, not a military machine.
Yet now, the world watches images of starving Palestinian children, leveled neighborhoods, and medical convoys blocked. The “bite” has become visible. And even global sympathies are shifting.
The same hand that once subdued is now biting — not in justice, but in fear. Not in security, but in cycles of revenge. And each bite poisons the possibility of ever being truly safe.
VI. Conclusion: From Domination to Dignity
The Luganda proverb is both judgment and roadmap.
> “Bw’omega toluma” is not just about your enemy — it is about your own future.
Because when you bite what you’ve already subdued, you don’t just wound your opponent — you awaken a rage that never sleeps. The only true victory is the one where even the vanquished finds a place to stand — and breathe.
If Israel seeks real peace, it must stop biting, and start building. Start healing. Start imagining coexistence — not conquest.
And if the world fails to learn this Luganda wisdom, it will continue to watch war after war with no end in sight — only more blood, more rubble, and more children born into vengeance.
Let the African proverb speak to the nations: When you subdue, show restraint. When you win, show wisdom. For the strongest is not the one who destroys — but the one who stops when he can destroy.
# Suigeneris
