US EditionUN rights office cites 'widespread repression' in Uganda before next week's presidential election
The UN reports that authorities have used arrests, raids, and live ammunition to suppress opposition ahead of Uganda’s election, with key political figures detained in Kampala.
- On Friday, the Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights said the Jan. 15 Uganda election will be marked by widespread repression and intimidation, citing lawfare and military restrictions on political activity.
- Since 1986, Mr. Museveni has kept power by rewriting rules, scrapping term and age limits, jailing rivals, and seeks a seventh term at age 81.
- OHCHR documented detentions of Kizza Besigye and Sarah Bireete in a maximum security prison in Kampala, raids on opposition offices, and security forces using live ammunition and unmarked vans `drones` to abduct supporters.
- OHCHR stressed election-related human rights violations must be investigated and those responsible held to account, while a magistrate remanded Sarah Bireete to jail until Jan. 21 and Kituuma Rusoke, police spokesman, did not immediately respond as voter registration continued on Jan. 7.
- With stakes high given Uganda's history, Human Rights Watch called Sarah Bireete's arrest `a demonstration of the Uganda government's continuing intolerance of dissent`, and Bobi Wine accused the military of victimizing his supporters.
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The presidential and legislative elections to be held on 15 January in Uganda will take place in a context " marked by widespread repression and intimidation" of the opposition, denounced on Friday the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk.
Uganda: police repression in lead-up to elections
Amnesty International reported Jan. 5 that Ugandan security forces have unlawfully targeted opposition rallies with excessive force and arbitrary arrests, with some detainees subject to torture and other mistreatment. Documented incidents include the use of tear-gas, pepper spray and beatings against peaceful crowds in the localities of Kawempe and Iganga in November. An eyewitness in Kawempe described the use of dogs to “intimidate the crowd,” …
Ugandan Election: Democracy Under Siege?
The UN Human Rights Office warns of wide repression and intimidation against the opposition in Uganda's upcoming presidential election. Authorities allegedly use military tactics to suppress dissent, with key opposition figures detained. Critics label the government as intolerant of dissent under President Museveni's long rule.
Associated Press News
UN rights office cites 'widespread repression' in Uganda before next week's presidential election
A new U.N. rights report says that the presidential election in Uganda next week will be “marked by widespread repression and intimidation" against the opposition and others.
UN News
Global Diaspora NewsWorld News in Brief: Repression in Uganda, fighting in Syria’s Aleppo continues, Gaza and West Bank updates
The UN has raised serious concerns ahead of Uganda’s elections scheduled for 15 January, warning they will take place in an environment marked by widespread repression, intimidation and shrinking civic space.
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