THE HUMAN RIGHTS CENTRE UGANDA (HRCU)
WEEKLY UPDATE ON HUMAN RIGHTS AND KEY
EMERGING ISSUES WITHIN THE HRDS’ WOKING ENVIRONMENT
WEEK
OF 20TH TO 26TH SEPTEMBER 2021
It is a great week that we begin! The past is gone, the
new is here!
In the same vein, the President also
delivered his speech at the 76th UN General Assembly on Thursday
September 23 in which he highlighted the effects
of lack of vaccines and climate change on Uganda, and called for cooperation to
aid post-Covid recovery. In his speech relayed via video link, President
Museveni reiterated Uganda’s commitment to human rights, and also to supporting
refugees, including those from far away Afghanistan.
The
Human Rights Centre Uganda appreciates everyone’s effort in promoting and
striving for the protection and realization of human rights and fundamental
freedoms in Uganda whether at national or grass-root level.
Below
are some of the highlights that were documented between Monday 20th
and Sunday 26th September 2021.
COVID-19
UPDATE
Results of COVID-19 tests done on 25 September 2021 confirm 64
new cases. The cumulative confirmed cases are 123,245. The breakdown of
the new cases is: 62 Alerts and Contacts; Kumi (15), Apac (11), Oyam (8),
Adjumani (8), Pader (4), Kampala (6), Kwania (2), Kiryandongo (2), Wakiso (5),
Kabale (1) 2 Truck drivers from Amuru and Kyotera.
UNVACCINATED KOTIDO DISTRICT OFFICIALS SUSPENDED, ORDERED OUT OF STAFF
QUARTERS
Kotido district
officials who have not yet received the Covid-19 vaccination have been ordered
to immediately vacate the staff quarters, forfeit salaries and all
allowances. The Chief Administrative Officer of Kotido district Joseph
Lomongin in a letter dated September 24, and addressed to health workers,
teachers, district and sub-county staff, village chairpersons, VHTs and parish
village chairpersons ordered that those who have not received jabs shall not attend
the meetings, earn any allowances, including Covid allowances for LC1 and
village chairpersons.
The directive also
affects NGO and CBO staff working in the district who have been threatened to
be effectively discontinued from work or holding meetings with the community.
The directive
comes amid reports of low uptake of the vaccine in the district, which is
around 30 per cent. Kotido Senior Education Officer, Benson Katyango Boeing
says that he is yet to receive the jab. He adds that he will mobilize the
teachers to embrace the vaccination because it’s for their good.
Kotido district officials at municipal
offices recently
Source and more details at: The Observer,
Sunday September 26, 2021: https://observer.ug/news/headlines/71332-unvaccinated-kotido-district-officials-suspended-ordered-out-of-staff-quarters
UK TRAVEL
CURBS HURT VACCINE DRIVE: AFRICA CDC
The African Union's health watchdog on Thursday September
23 warned that Britain's pandemic travel restrictions could make people across
the continent more reluctant to get vaccinated. Under the restrictions, Britain
only recognises vaccines administered in a few countries. For most of the
world, and all of Africa, Britain will not recognise locally-administered
vaccines even if the jabs came from Britain.
"If you send us vaccines and you say,
'we don't recognise those vaccines', it sends a very challenging message for
us," said John Nkengasong,
Head of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC). That
is "a message that creates confusion
within our population... creating more reticence, reluctance for people to
receive vaccines," he told a weekly news conference.
Under the rules that take effect on October 4, travellers
arriving into the UK from so-called "red" listed countries are
required to quarantine in government - approved hotels even if they are
vaccinated.
A passenger wearing a face mask arrives
at Heathrow airport, west London. PHOTO | DANIEL LEAL-OLIVAS | AFP
RIGHT
TO EDUCATION: MUSEVENI: SCHOOLS WILL RE-OPEN IN JANUARY 2022
Primary and Secondary schools will re-open next year
after 4.8 million people in priority and vulnerable groups are fully
vaccinated. That includes teachers and 330,000 students aged 18 years and
above. Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni said this in his address on Tuesday
September 23, 2021 in which he said institutions of higher learning can open
November 1, as soon as vaccinations of the priority groups are done. The rest
of the learning institutions will open in January 2022.
He also announced that places of worship can re-open with
strict SOPs, and numbers limited to 200. Also allowed are funerals and
weddings, also at a limit of 200. On curfew, he said that restriction of
movement of persons at night time is key to the enforcement of other preventive
health measures. Curfew remains at 7:00pm – 5:30am. Boda-bodas should stop
movement by 6:00pm.
Secondary
and primary teachers get back to the blackboard in January
Source and details: The Independent,
September 22, 2021: https://www.independent.co.ug/museveni-schools-will-re-open-in-january-2022/
LAW DEVELOPMENT CENTER TO
RESCHEDULE SUPPLEMENTARY EXAMS
The Law Development Center (LDC) has rescheduled the
supplementary examinations to when tertiary institutions will reopen for
physical learning in November. 1,117 students who failed and did not graduate
in June were supposed to sit for supplementary examinations next month.
Frank Nigel Othembi, the LDC Executive Director says that
they hope to finalize the process of arranging the supplementary papers when
students resume face to face learning.
Agatha Atuhaire, one of those supposed to sit for
supplementary exams said that LDC could not schedule the examinations without
the knowledge of the students.
Frank
Nigel Othembi, LDC Director. File Photo
OTAFIIRE CLASHES WITH MPS OVER MASAKA KILLINGS
The Parliament’s
Committee on Defence and Internal Affairs today clashed with the Minister of
Internal Affairs Gen. Kahinda Otafiire over the machete attacks in greater
Masaka. The clash erupted while officials from the Ministry of Internal Affairs
led by Gen. Kahinda Otafire were appearing before the committee chaired by
Sheema District Woman Representative Rosemary Nyakikongoro to answer key
security issues but also on the budget of the entities under Internal Affairs.
The committee had demanded that Otafire reconsiders the issuance of National
IDs to foreigners who reportedly cause atrocities and run away and cross back
through the borders to terrorize the locals in Masaka Region. Otafire told the
committee that Masaka machete attacks need collective effort with local leaders
who need to collaborate on security to defeat the insurgents. He said that the
politicians went there and convinced the population that they were the best to
represent them but later ran away leaving the locals under attack from the
assailant; that the politicians should now use the same networks they used to
win elections, to fight crime by involving their people.
However, this
statement angered the MPs including Namanya Naboth of Rubabo County – Rukungiri
District and Hajji Bashir Lubega Ssempa the Mubende Municipality MP who said
the Minister was justifying the alleged involvement of the politicians in the
Masaka killings.
SSEWANYANA REARRESTED AT KIGO PRISON AFTER BEING RELEASED ON BAIL
Makindye West MP Allan Ssewanyana was
on Friday 24th September 2021 dramatically rearrested at the gates
of Kigo prison moments after he was released on bail. Ssewanyana together with
Kawempe North MP Muhammad Ssegirinya are facing murder and terrorism
charges arising from the recent machete killings in Masaka sub region that
claimed over 30 lives.
Ssewanyana's temporary freedom was
short-lived after he got rearrested mafia-style by security personnel driving
in the infamous white drone. The commandos brutally arrested Ssewanyana as
prison officers looked on in disbelief. The commandos drove him away to an
undisclosed location. Ssegirinya probably survived facing the same fate
after Mityana Municipality MP Francis Zaake, who, committed to stand
surety for him was not available to append his signature on the bail release
form.
Ssegirinya and Ssewanyana were
arrested on September 7 and taken to Masaka Magistrate's court. But since
the court lacked the jurisdiction to try the offenses, they had to seek bail
before the High court which was granted by lady justice Victoria Nakintu
Katamba on September 20 on the presumption that they are still innocent unless
proven to be guilty.
Ssewanyana
was kidnapped by unknown gunmen outside Kigo prison. File Photo
Source: The
Independent, Friday September 24, 2021: https://www.independent.co.ug/mp-ssewanyana-rearrested-outside-kigo-prison/
Also see: Masaka Killings: Security Agencies Re-Arrest Mp
Ssewanyana https://www.newvision.co.ug/articledetails/115556/masaka-killings-security-agencies-re-arrest-m
SEPTIC TANK
MURDER: BUSINESSMAN ONEBE CHARGED, REMANDED
The Makindye Chief Magistrates
Court in Kampala has charged businessman Francis Onebe with one count of murder. Onebe,
63, an accountant by profession, is accused of murdering his wife Immaculate
Onebe, and later dumping her body in a septic tank.
Appearing
before Chief Magistrate Anne Basemera, Onebe was read the charge alongside his
co-accused Bonny Oriekot, 26, a security guard attached to Pentagon Security
Limited. The accused were not allowed to take plea against the charge because
the offence committed is capital in nature and only triable by the High Court.
'You are hereby charged with murder, remain silent and
reserve all that you ought to say for the High Court which has jurisdiction of
your case,' Basemera said as she read out the charge to the accused.
The
charges against the duo contravene Sections 188 and 189 of the Penal Code Act
and attract a maximum sentence of death, upon conviction. Lydia Nakato led the prosecution and informed court that investigations
are still ongoing whereas Moses Ingura represented the accused. The duo was remanded to Kitalya Government Prisons and
the case was adjourned till September 30, 2021.
Onebe
(R) seated in court before he took plea to the charge. (Credit: Nicholas Oneal)
EMERGING ISSUES
HUMAN RIGHTS
AND PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS: COLLAPSED MAKINDYE BUILDING THAT KILLED 13 WAS
CONSTRUCTED BY BRICKLAYER
A five-floor building that collapsed in
Lukuli, Makindye in May last year and killed 13 people was being constructed by
an “engineer” whose highest qualification is a certificate in bricklaying. This
revelation is contained in a National Building Review Board (NBRB)
investigation report that the board conducted last year following the accident.
It is the clearest evidence of
unprofessionalism, that experts say has been on rise in the construction
sector, especially after approval of plans done by professionals, developers
run away to hire cheap unqualified builders to take on complex projects. The
developer, Abraham Kalanzi and the builder Christopher Ruhambya Bbaandi were
arrested by police on May 20, 2020, ten days after the collapse of the building
and detained at Kabalagala police station. That’s where the team from NBRB that
was conducting the investigations found them for interviews on 21st May 2020.
Both Kalanzi and Ruhambya appeared
before Makindye grade one magistrate in May 2020 in litigation instituted by
families of people who died. In June 2020, the magistrate advised the families
that had sued for compensation to settle the case out of court. A lawyer who
was involved in the case told URN in confidence that they compensated the
families of people who died. Kalanzi who pleaded guilty of the criminal charges
was also fined Shs.1 million only. And that was end of the case. Kampala
Capital City Authority spokesperson Daniel Nuwabiine corroborated what the
lawyer said.
REGIONAL LEVEL
UGANDA’S DOORS WILL REMAIN OPEN TO REFUGEES
The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Jeje Odong has said that for Uganda, welcoming
refugees is not just a humanitarian decision but knows the value they can add
to a host country.
Last month, the United States led a
gargantuan rescue operation in Afghanistan. Tens of thousands of Afghans who
had aided the US and its allies in the last 20 years in an effort to build a
better future for their country were desperate to flee – understandably fearing
what may happen to them under the Taliban’s rule. Since mass evacuations began
on August 14, the US has helped evacuate approximately 120,000 people.
An operation of that size and complexity
requires cooperation and collaboration on a global scale. The US was quick to
reach out to a select few of its allies that might be able to temporarily house
the refugees before they continued their journey onto the US and elsewhere.
Among them was my home country of Uganda. Just over a week after the Taliban
entered Kabul, we welcomed the first batch of Afghan refugees.
Crowds of people hoping to
flee the country wait outside the airport in Kabul, Afghanistan on August 25,
2021 in this picture obtained from social media [Twitter/David_Martinon via
Reuters]
Source and details at: AlJazeera:
KENYA PROBES 'SUSPICIOUS' DEATH OF 89 KENYANS IN SAUDI ARABIA
Kenya’s Foreign ministry says 89
Kenyans, most of them domestic workers, have died in Saudi Arabia in the past
two years. Saudi authorities told their Kenyan counterparts that most of the
deaths were from cardiac arrest. But abuse of foreign domestic workers has long
been a problem in Saudi Arabia and the Kenyan ministry this week admitted that
it never conducted independent investigations.
Appearing before Parliament’s Labour Committee,
Foreign Affairs principal secretary Macharia Kamau said Thursday all the Kenyan
deaths in Saudi Arabia over the last two years are suspicious. 41 Kenyans
died in Saudi Arabia in the last nine months, allegedly due to heart failure.
Kamau blamed the ministry of Labour for failing to do its job and protect
Kenyan workers.
With very little opportunity at home,
many see working in Arab countries as a ticket out of poverty in a country
where about 40 per cent of the population lives below the poverty line. Wachira
Kabinga, a lawmaker and chair of the labour committee, said Kenyan labourers
abroad need protection.
FILE Travellers at Jomo Kenyatta
airport, Kenya. Kenya says it is treating the 89 deaths in Saudi Arabia as
suspicious
PRESIDENT SAMIA DEFENDS TANZANIA'S COVID-19 RECORD
Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu on Thursday
defended her country’s initial slow response to fighting Covid-19, arguing that
leaders were grappling with balancing between protecting people from the
pandemic and ensuring they could still earn a living. In an inaugural address
to the UN General Assembly, President Samia promised to bring Tanzania back
into the international fold, breaking with her predecessor John Pombe
Magufuli’s record of bickering with donors.
She spoke at the 76th Session
of the UN General Assembly in New York, marking history as the first female
Tanzanian President to ever do so. And she used the occasion to explain how her
country has battled Covid-19.
Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan speaks at the 76th
session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) at UN headquarters in New
York on September 23, 2021. PHOTO | AFP
Source and details at: The East African, Friday September 24,
2021: https://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/tea/news/east-africa/president-samia-tanzania-covid-record-3561078
CONCLUDING REMARK
Human rights defenders cannot sit and fold
their hands when issues like this arise. As community watchdogs, we can
continue to whistle blow whenever we see situations that are most likely to
endanger anyone’s life. Where we learn of occurrences that lead to violations
and abuses of human rights and fundamental freedoms, it becomes incumbent upon
us to report them or where possible, give guidance to whoever is involved. We
could save more lives. It starts with everyone, everywhere.
Wishing you a fruitful week.
Thanks for the updates, but two days back,we have lost one of our local council two chairperson in masindi in pakanyi subcounty who was cut to death with pangs by unknown people
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