21 August 2013 Human Rights Watch This 50-page report documents increasing government attacks on organizations whose focus includes oil revenue transparency, land acquisition compensation, legal and governance reform, and protection of human rights, particularly the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people. Both government ministers and district-level officials have engaged in obstruction, Human Rights Watch said. Read the full report here.
5 August 2013 Amnesty International The Public Order Management Bill which is likely to be passed by Uganda’s parliament tomorrow represents a serious blow to open political debate in the country, Amnesty International said today. The Bill imposes wide ranging restrictions on public meetings and gives the police unprecedented powers to prohibit and disperse public gatherings of a political nature. In its current form, for example, the Bill gives the police discretionary powers to prevent a gathering of as few as three people in a public place to discuss political issues. “This Bill represents a serious blow to open political Read the full article…
6 August 2013 Human Rights Watch Following years of increasing oppression, today Uganda’s parliament has passed a law giving police more power while restricting its people’s rights. Once it comes into force, the Public Order Management bill will give Ugandan police broad powers to permit or disallow any “public meeting.” Why is this a problem? Because the law defines a meeting as any gathering of more than three people in any public place where the “failure of any government, political party, or political organisation” is discussed. Organizers of such gatherings would be required to inform police in advance or face Read the full article…
Integrated Regional Information Networks (IRIN) 11 July 2013 The Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), a Ugandan rebel movement based in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), is recruiting, training and reorganizing to carry out fresh attacks on Uganda, officials say. “The threat is real. ADF is recruiting, training and opening new camps in eastern DRC. We are alert and very prepared to deal with any attack on our side of the border,” said Lt Col Paddy Ankunda, spokesman for the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF). “We are sharing intelligence information with the DRC government [and] FARDC [DRC's national army] about their Read the full article…
Amnesty International 25 June 2013 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY This report provides an analysis of the legal environment and wider context of human rights violations against lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) individuals in sub-Saharan Africa. Recent years have seen increasing reports of people being harassed, marginalized, discriminated against and attacked because of their real or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity. This is occurring in countries whose legal systems still condone the criminalization of consensual same-sex behaviour, and in countries where the police and justice systems are failing to prevent these crimes from happening. The continued criminalization of consensual same-sex Read the full article…
Freedom House 6 June 2013 Throughout 2012, the political opposition and civil society challenged President Yoweri Museveni on issues such as corruption, deteriorating economic conditions, transparency in the oil sector, and gay rights. Meanwhile, the government harassed and intimidated opposition leaders and critical nongovernmental organizations. In December, parliament passed a bill regulating the oil sector that awarded significant power to the executive and threatened transparency. Read full report here.
Amnesty International 23 May 2013 The government accepted recommendations on the rights to freedom of expression, assembly and non-discrimination in February during the assessment of the country’s human rights record under the UN Universal Periodic Review in 2011. The courts nullified constituency election results from 2011 which led to by-elections. Opposition parties subsequently won seven out of the nine seats contested. Allegations of embezzlement within the Office of the Prime Minister led the UK, Sweden and Denmark to withhold aid money. Ministers charged in connection with allegations of embezzlement of public funds intended for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting Read the full article…
Human Rights Watch 20 May 2013 The Ugandan government should immediately end politically motivated police intimidation of newspapers and radio stations and ensure that the media can operate freely, Human Rights Watch said today. Recent raids on two newspapers and two radio stations are linked to a legal dispute in which the police have sought to obtain the source for an article by the Daily Monitor about the “Muhoozi Project,” an alleged plot to usher into power the son of President Yoweri Museveni. “Police should resolve legal disputes before the courts without resorting to abusive tactics to scare journalists away from politically Read the full article…
International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) May 2013 Uganda continued to recover from the effects of armed conflict, particularly in the north, but difficulties in accessing essential goods and services persisted for many people. The country remained susceptible to violence and regional instability. In Karamoja, intercommunal clashes over cattle rustling and disarmament operations, as well as the risk of violence owing to porous borders and the availability of cheap weapons in neighbouring countries, threatened the fragile security situation. Demonstrations against the ruling party reportedly triggered clashes and the arrest of protesters. Many people fleeing the violence in the Kivus Read the full article…
US Department of State 19 April 2013 Uganda is a constitutional republic led since 1986 by President Yoweri Museveni of the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) party. Voters reelected Museveni to a fourth five-year term in February 2011. While the election marked an improvement over previous elections, it was marred by irregularities. State security forces (SSF) generally reported to civilian authorities. The three most serious human rights problems in the country were a lack of respect for the integrity of the person (including unlawful killings, torture, and other abuse of suspects and detainees); unwarranted restrictions on civil liberties (including freedom Read the full article…