HRCU WEEKLY UPDATE | ISSUE NO.6/2021
The Human Rights Centre Uganda (HRCU)
WEEKLY UPDATE ON HUMAN RIGHTS AND KEY EMERGING ISSUES WITHIN
THE HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDERS’ WORKING ENVIRONMENT
ISSUE NO.6/2021 | THE WEEK OF FEBRUARY
15 – 21, 2021
INTRODUCTION
Dear Reader,
HRCU continues to appreciate your tireless
effort in promoting and striving for the protection and realization of human
rights and fundamental freedoms in Uganda and ultimately, world-over. You will
notice that there is so much going on within our working environment as human
rights defenders that could easily paint a picture that we are not doing enough
to salvage the situation(s).
Despite that however, truth stands that it is
through the resilience and the attitude of never giving up that voices keep
rising against human rights violations and abuses in the country. It is through
continued advocacy that we will see the much desired results – a society where
everyone’s rights and freedoms are upheld and realized.
Below are some of the stories as compiled:
COVID-19
SITUTATION IN UGANDA AND ELSEWHERE
As of Sunday February
21, 2021, Uganda had 40,199 registered cumulative cases of COVID-19 with the
death toll at 333 and recoveries at 14,578.
ENFORECMENT
OF COVID-19 GUIDELINES: TAXI OPERATORS WARNED AGAINST COMPLACENCY, VIOLATION
OF COVID-19 GUIDELINES
Taxi operators in the country have been warned against complacency and
violation of Covid-19 guidelines in the wake of declining cases of Covid-19. Speaking
to the media on Monday February 15, 2021, the spokesperson of Kampala
Operational Taxi Stages Association (KOTSA) Moses Birungi said many public
transport operators had resorted to carrying excess passengers as opposed to
the half capacity guideline issued by the government.
“The vehicle should have only 10 people including the taxi driver and
the conductor. The passengers should be only 8…” He stressed that all taxi
drivers should ensure that there is a sanitizer in their vehicles and also be
mindful of the curfew hours set by the government, but more important ensuring
that there is a tank of water and soap for every passenger who boards to wash
his or her hands.
Speaking to the press at Uganda Media Centre on Monday, Kampala
Metropolitan police spokesperson Patrick Onyango said that drivers who are
caught flouting the SOPs will be handled according to the law. He urged those
using private transport means not to exceed the minimum number of people they
are supposed to carry.
ENFORCEMENT OF CURFEW GUIDELINES:
POLICEMAN
HOSPITALIZED AFTER BEING ASSAULTED BY UPDF OFFICER IN MASAKA BAR
Police
in Masaka District are holding a soldier attached to Kasijagirwa Armoured
Brigade for assaulting a police officer who had been deployed to enforce curfew
on Friday night (February 19,2021). The suspect, Pte. Reagan Kagumaho together
with other people were reportedly found boozing at a local drinking joint
located at Ssaza Trading Centre in Masaka City during curfew hours before he
assaulted a security colleague.
Preliminary
police investigations indicate that Mr. Richard Ochaya, a police officer
attached to Ssaza Police Post was injured in a scuffle as police attempted
to disperse Pte Kagumaho and his colleagues. According to the southern regional
police spokesperson Muhammad Nsubuga, Kagumaho became errant and assaulted
Ochaya who was enforcing lawful orders which prompted him to call his
colleagues who swiftly came to his rescue and fired bullets in the air to
disperse the group.
COVID-19: WHO PUTS PRESSURE ON
MAGUFULI’S TANZANIA
World Health
Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has reached out to
COVID-19 skeptic, Tanzania’s President John Magufuli, promising to support the
country’s health system. “COVID-19 is a serious disease that can cause severe
illness and even death. National authorities everywhere must do all they can to
protect people and save lives and WHO stands ready to support them in the
response against this deadly virus,” Dr. Tedros said in a statement on the
situation in Tanzania.
Magufuli has ignored
all Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) recommended by the WHO, including use
of masks, and believes COVID-19 can be fought using natural remedies and
prayers. He at one time declared Tanzania COVID-19 free. The WHO however
insists that Tanzania is not telling the truth.
“A number of
Tanzanians travelling to neighbouring countries and beyond have tested positive
for COVID-19. This underscores the need for Tanzania to take robust action both
to safeguard their own people and protect populations in these countries and
beyond,” said Dr. Tedros.
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UGANDA IN THE POST ELECTION
PERIOD, THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION PETITION: MUSEVENI, EC, AG LAWYERS FIND
SUPREME COURT REGISTRY CLOSED
Counsel for President
Yoweri Museveni, the Attorney General and Electoral Commission on Saturday morning
(February 20,2021) found the Supreme Court registry closed.
Last week, the Supreme
Court issued strict timelines for hearing the presidential election petition by
the National Unity Platform-NUP President, Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu. The
petition seeks to overturn the victory of the incumbent president, Yoweri
Kaguta Museveni in the January 14, 2021 polls.
In his ruling, the
Chief Justice Owiny- Dollo noted that a presidential election petition must be
determined expeditiously within the required time frame as provided for in the
constitution to avoid a crisis. As a result, he noted that the registry would
be open even during the weekends for all parties to file evidence while parties
would also file and serve evidence to each other on the same day.
KYAGULANYI
THREATENS TO WITHDRAW PETITION
Robert Kyagulanyi
Ssentamu, the former National Unity Platform (NUP) presidential candidate, has
threatened to withdraw his petition from the Supreme Court challenging the
victory of his rival and incumbent President Yoweri Kaguta Tibuhaburwa
Museveni.
Kyagulanyi said he had
asked the party lawyers to make a formal application to the court laying down
their demands that the court must obey or they withdraw their case. Anthony Wameli,
one of the lead Counsel of Kyagulanyi declined to say whether they have such
instructions or not. “Can you talk to Counsel Sseggona or party spokesperson
Ssenyonyi?” Wameli said. Our efforts to speak to Medard Sseggona who is the
lead lawyer for the petitioner were futile as he didn’t answer our repeated
calls to his known number. Joel Ssenyonyi, the NUP spokesperson was still
attending a meeting by the time of publishing this story.
Speaking to reporters
at the NUP headquarters in Kamwokya on Tuesday February 16, 2021, Kyagulanyi
said the Supreme Court had shown an unprecedented level of bias against him. He
highlighted several cases to show what he called the bias of the Supreme Court
against him.
PETITION: COURT REJECTS NEW BOBI
EVIDENCE
The Supreme Court on
Monday February 15, 2021 rejected additional evidence in 127 affidavits that
lawyers for former presidential candidate Robert Kyagulanyi, alias Bobi Wine,
attempted to file in support of his petition challenging the victory of
President Museveni in the January 14 elections. The affidavits were attached
with evidential documents, audio and video compact discs (CDs) in four volumes.
The rejected documents
included affidavits by Bobi’s National Unity Platform (NUP) party lawyer
Benjamin Katana and Secretary General David Lewis, Mukono Municipality Member
of Parliament Betty Nambooze and other sworn statements by jailed singer Ali
Bukenya, aka Nubian Li, and veteran journalist Kalundi Serumaga.
On Thursday last week,
the court directed Bobi’s lawyers to file their additional affidavits and
evidences by February 14. Chief Justice Alfonse Owiny-Dollo on Tuesday evening
issued a memo directing the court registrar, Ms. Harriet Nalukwago, to inform
Bobi’s lawyers that the said affidavits were filed out of time.
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UGANDA AND INTERNATIONAL
RELATIONS: MUSEVENI WARNS EU AMBASSADORS OFF UGANDA'S AFFAIRS
President Yoweri Kaguta Tibuhaburwa Museveni has warned European Union
envoys to Uganda to stop getting involved in matters they don’t understand. Speaking
on Thursday February 18, 2021 at State House Entebbe while meeting EU envoys
led by their head of the delegation, Ambassador Attilio Pacifici, Museveni said
such interference in the past caused a lot of problems in some African
countries.
“By involving yourselves in matters that you don’t understand, even if
you do understand, you should not get involved because this kind of misconduct
can lead to many serious consequences and suffering of the people like it
happened in some African countries,” Museveni said.
Museveni’s
meeting with the EU came just a day after Foreign Affairs minister Sam Kutesa
responded to the European Union’s Parliament’s resolution to sanction Uganda
over what they called continued attacks on human and political rights.
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THE CALL TO RESPECT THE MEDIA
FRATERNITY: MILITARY POLICE BEAT UP JOURNALISTS COVERING BOBI WINE PETITION
TO UN
Several journalists have
been admitted to hospital with serious injuries they sustained when military
police on Wednesday February 17, 2021 assaulted them while covering
National Unity Platform (NUP) president, Robert Kyagulanyi who was delivering
his petition to United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) offices in Kololo,
Kampala.
Some of the journalists assaulted by security
operatives on Wednesday include Geoffrey Twesigye of NTV, Irene Abalo of Daily Monitor, Shamim Nabakooza of
Record TV, John Cliff Wamala of NTV and Timothy
Murungi of New Vision, among others. Others are Rashida Nakaayi of Galaxy
FM, Josephine Namakumbi of NBS,
Henry Sekanjako of New Vision, Joseph Sabiti of NBS and Thomas Kitimbo of NBS
TV.
Armed
forces deployed heavily along roads leading to Kololo and blocked everyone
except Mr. Kyagulanyi and two other NUP officials who were allowed to proceed
to UNHRC offices before a military officer ordered soldiers to beat up
journalists.
Also see related story from 2020:
https://www.monitor.co.ug/uganda/news/national/police-beat-up-journalists-covering-bobi-wine-campaign-trail-3226432
JOURNALIST BODIES CONDEMN
SECURITY BRUTALITY, CDF APOLOGISES
Journalist bodies have
condemned continued the brutal attacks by the military on journalists as they
do their work. On Wednesday, as the former National Unity Platform (NUP)
presidential candidate Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu alias Bobi Wine presented a
petition on gross human rights violations to the office of the United Nations
High Commission on Human Rights in Kololo, the military police descended on
journalists battering them up indiscriminately.
Some of the victims of
the military brutality are; New Vision's Henry Ssekanjakko and Timothy Murungi,
NTV's Cliff Wamala, Daily Monitor's Irene Abalo Otto, Shamim Nabakooza of
Record TV, and Galaxy FM’s Nalule Amina. Other victims are NBS TV’s Josephine
Namakumbi, Joseph Sabiti and Thomas Kitimbo.
Now the different
journalism bodies; The Uganda Editors Guild, Uganda Parliamentary Press Association
(UPPA), Uganda Journalists Association (UJA) and the Human Rights Network for
Journalists have come out to condemn the acts of brutality saying this confirms
the statement of the Inspector General of Police Okoth Ochola that they will
continue beating journalists until they blame their mothers for producing them.
Condemning the brutal
attacks, the Uganda Editors’ Guild stated that despite repeated appeals over
time to security agencies and law enforcement personnel to respect the right of
journalists to work, blatant attacks against journalists continue. In their
statement, they note that they will continue documenting attacks on journalists
and individual officers who brutalize journalists and will one day be held
accountable.
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REMEBERING ARCHBISHOP JANANI LUWUM: ARCHBISHOP JANANI LUWUM, A MARTYR OF HOPE AND
HEALING
The Most Rev. Janani
Luwum, then sitting Archbishop of the Province of Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and
Boga-Zaire, was martyred in Kampala by president Idi Amin’s regime on February
16, 1977. The following year in July, Canterbury Cathedral designated its East
Chapel “The Chapel of Saints and Martyrs of Our Own Times.”
“His killing had a
great effect on us Anglicans,” recalls former Canterbury Canon,” who preached
the Sunday following the assassination…” “Janani Luwum was an archbishop killed
by a king. I felt the stones of Canterbury shuddered in sympathy,” he
continued.
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WORLD/INTERNATIONAL NEWS:
UN SECURITY COUNCIL TO MEET ON
GLOBAL WARMING IMPACT ON WORLD PEACE
The UN Security
Council will hold a summit of world leaders Tuesday February 23, 2021 to debate
climate change's implications for world peace, an issue on which its 15 members
have divergent opinions.
The session, called by
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and conducted by video-conference, comes
just days after the United States under President Joe Biden formally rejoined
the Paris climate change accord. Johnson, whose country now holds the Security
Council's rotating presidency, will address the forum, as will US climate czar
John Kerry, French President Emmanuel Macron, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi
and the prime ministers of Ireland, Vietnam, Norway and other countries,
diplomats say.
MYANMAR COUP: FACEBOOK SHUTS DOWN
MILITARY'S PAGE, AS THOUSANDS PROTEST
Facebook has deleted the Myanmar military’s main page for breaching its
standards prohibiting the incitement of violence, as police arrested a
well-known actor wanted for opposing the military coup and thousands gathered
for mass protests.
Facebook said it deleted the military or
Tatmadaw’s page under its standards prohibiting the incitement of violence. “In
line with our global policies, we’ve removed the Tatmadaw True News Information
Team Page from Facebook for repeated violations of our Community Standards
prohibiting incitement of violence and coordinating harm,” Facebook said in a
statement.
The Facebook ban came as the internet was
blocked out for a seventh night in a row.
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CONCLUSION
The
situation of human rights promotion and protection in Uganda is not in any way
different from what is happening in many other parts/countries around the world.
The solution to the incidents and cases of human rights violations and abuses
can be managed through actual/practical approaches such as the Human Rights
Based Approach to implementation of existing laws and handling of matters that
arise from time to time.
Through
it all, human rights defenders deserve greater protection and every human being
deserves to have their rights respected and realized. Reference may be made to
the quote by Nelson Mandela (RIP) that To deny people their human rights is to challenge
their very humanity.
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