Uganda held presidential and parliamentary elections on January 14. In the months before, armed men in “drones” abducted people from markets, taxi stops, petrol stations, roadsides, and homes. Hundreds of disappearances have been reported in the press and on social media. President Museveni himself, discussing what he described as “so-called disappearances”, said last month that the army had arrested more than 300 people. Most of those taken are young men with links to the National Unity Platform (NUP), the opposition party Bobi Wine leads.
For this story, Al Jazeera spoke to the relatives of 17 people who have allegedly been abducted in central Uganda since November 2020, as well as witnesses, activists, local political leaders and lawyers. We also spoke to 10 more people who say they were taken by security forces and released, after periods of detention ranging from a few hours to two months. Where possible, we cross-checked stories with official documents such as court fi
Disciplinary measures against Ugandan army officers shrouded in mystery
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Opposition leader Robert Kyagulanyi, aka Bobi Wine, and supporters outside the UN Human Rights Office office in Kampala, as journalists are assaulted by Uganda Military Police, 17 February 2021, BADRU KATUMBA/AFP via Getty Images The head of the Ugandan military apologises for the February 17 attack on journalists, promises to pay medical bills and claims officers have been disciplined.
This statement was originally published on cpj.org on 25 February 2021.
Ugandan authorities should ensure that soldiers who recently assaulted journalists covering an opposition political event are held to account in a credible and transparent process, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.
Ugandan military sentences soldiers for attack on journalists - JURIST - News jurist.org - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from jurist.org Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
THE STANDARD By
Betty Njeru and Reuters |
February 18th 2021 at 10:42:08 GMT +0300
Rashidah Nakayi, a journalist working with Uganda’s Galaxy FM receives treatment after she was injured following an attack by security officials, outside the UN Human Rights offices. [Reuters]
The United Nations has condemned the attack meted on Ugandan journalists and civilians yesterday.
Video clips from Ugandan media showed police officers beating up journalists who had gone to cover opposition leader Bobi Wine as he delivered a petition on alleged human right violations to the United Nations Office in Kampala.
In a statement, the UN acknowledged that prior to the meeting, members of the Uganda Military Police used excessive force “to prevent a number of persons accompanying the NUP delegation from accessing the Human Rights offices.”
February 18, 2021 Share
The United Nations is condemning military and police officers who attacked journalists covering opposition figure Bobi Wine’s delivery of a petition to the U.N. rights office in Uganda on Wednesday, according to a press release.
At least 20 journalists were wounded and at least four suffered severe head injuries, Stephen Bwire of the Uganda Journalists Union told Reuters.
“The journalists were doing their duty and they were clearly identifiable as journalists; they were not hostile, they were politely covering the events,” Bwire said.
Bobi Wine rejected his loss in last month’s presidential elections, claiming the elections were rigged in favor of the president, Yoweri Museveni.