The Makindye general court martial on the 1st of October 2024 again adjourned the bail hearing date for comrade Achileo Kivumbi to 15/10/2024, which is the same date that comrade Agaba Anthony aka Bobi Young will also be appearing for his bail hearing.

The persistent trial of civilians before the regime military court is an illegality that must be condemned by all Ugandans of good conscience.

#FreeAllPoliticalPrisonersInUganda:

A Call for Justice and Human Rights

Uganda, a country once full of promise, is now in the spotlight for all the wrong reasons. Decades of repression under the current regime have left the country grappling with a deteriorating state of democracy, human rights abuses, and political oppression. One of the most glaring issues is the unjust imprisonment of political dissidents—individuals whose only crime is demanding freedom, justice, and a better future for all Ugandans.

The Struggle for Freedom

For years, dissenting voices have been silenced in Uganda. Activists, opposition leaders, and ordinary citizens have been abducted, imprisoned, tortured, and, in some cases, killed simply for daring to speak out against the regime. Among these, supporters of the People Power Movement and the National Unity Platform (NUP) led by Bobi Wine have faced the harshest repression.

Political prisoners are being held without trial, subjected to inhumane conditions, and denied their basic rights, violating both Ugandan law and international human rights standards.

Who Are These Political Prisoners?

From prominent opposition leaders to unknown activists, many have been unjustly incarcerated. Some of the most notable cases include:

• Supporters of Bobi Wine: Numerous activists supporting Bobi Wine’s political campaigns have been jailed on trumped-up charges or abducted, with their whereabouts unknown.
• Journalists: Media practitioners who dare to expose the truth are often targeted, arrested, or threatened, stifling freedom of the press.
• Human Rights Defenders: Lawyers, NGO workers, and activists fighting for justice and the rule of law have not been spared from the regime’s brutal crackdown.

Human Rights Violations Under the Current Regime

The Ugandan regime’s treatment of political prisoners has been condemned both locally and internationally. Reports of torture, forced confessions, and degrading treatment have surfaced, painting a grim picture of Uganda’s justice system. Political prisoners are denied access to legal representation, subjected to biased trials, and often held in undisclosed locations without any contact with their families.

The Ugandan government must be held accountable for these violations, and the international community must pressure the regime to release all political prisoners immediately.

The Way Forward: #FreeAllPoliticalPrisonersInUganda

Our fight is not just for the freedom of political prisoners; it is a fight for the restoration of human dignity, the rule of law, and the freedoms enshrined in our Constitution. Every Ugandan deserves the right to speak, organize, and protest without fear of persecution.

We call on all Ugandans, the African Union, the United Nations, and the global community to stand with us in demanding the unconditional release of all political prisoners. These individuals are not criminals; they are patriots fighting for the future of our country.

How You Can Help

1. Raise Awareness: Share their stories. Use the hashtag #FreeAllPoliticalPrisonersInUganda to bring attention to their plight.
2. Pressure the Government: Call on your local representatives, human rights organizations, and international bodies to condemn the imprisonment of political prisoners in Uganda.
3. Support the Families: Many families of political prisoners are struggling due to the loss of their loved ones. You can offer financial or moral support through established solidarity funds.

Conclusion

The time for change is now. Uganda cannot move forward as long as its people are chained by fear and repression. The release of political prisoners is not just a political issue; it is a matter of justice, human rights, and national healing. Join the movement, raise your voice, and demand the freedom of all political prisoners in Uganda.

Former Leader of Opposition in Parliament Mathias Mpuuga asked to Resign by the NUP party to resign from the position of Commissioner of Parliament after admitting to having taken part in an irregular service award amounting to UGX 500 million.

There is an ongoing online protest under the hashtag #UgandaParliamentExhibition. The protest aims at exposing the massive corruption, abuse of office and gross mismanagement of public affairs by the leadership of Parliament and other leaders.

Unfortunately, the protest has not only revealed grand corruption on the side of NRM leaders. Some leaders on the opposition side have had serious allegations of corruption leveled against them. Specifically, our former Leader of the Opposition in Parliament and current Parliamentary Commissioner, Rt. Hon. Mathias Mpuuga alongside three other Parliamentary Commissioners have been accused of irregularly awarding themselves huge sums of tax-payers’ money on the pretext of “Service Awards”. Under the scheme, Rt. Hon. Mpuuga was allocated 500,000,000/= (Five Hundred Million Uganda Shillings).

On Wednesday 28th February 2024, the President convened an urgent meeting comprised of senior leaders of the Party including all Deputy Presidents and some of our senior legislators. At the meeting, Rt. Hon. Mpuuga admitted that he indeed took part in this wrong doing and apologised for the same. In light of this, he was strongly advised that the moral thing to do in the circumstances is to step down from his role as Parliamentary Commissioner with immediate effect.

The nation will recall that the values of the National Unity Platform are Discipline, Reliability, Inclusiveness, Integrity, Patriotism and Service. All actions of corruption and abuse of office go contrary to these values. They also go contrary to the Integrity Oath which every leader of the Party swore at the start of this term.

We therefore ask our leaders at all levels to do self-reflection and recommit themselves to these values and the Oath they took to shun and fight corruption in all its forms.

What you need to know

“Activists in Uganda are increasingly recognizing the importance of exposing these enablers. By shining a light on the individuals who facilitate and execute Museveni’s oppressive tactics, activists aim to dismantle the system of impunity that allows such abuses to continue. This approach not only seeks to hold accountable those directly responsible for human rights violations but also challenges the broader power structures that sustain dictatorial rule.”

Yoweri Museveni’s authoritarian regime in Uganda has continued to systematically dismantle any form of dissent or opposition for over three decades. Museveni employs a range of repressive tactics designed to intimidate, silence and eliminate those who dare to criticize or oppose him.

Abductions carried out by security forces are commonplace, with critics of the regime seized from their homes or the streets, blindfolded and taken to undisclosed locations. In these ungazetted detention centers referred to as “safe houses”, detainees are subjected to torture and denied due process or access to lawyers and families. Some eventually resurface, dumped in remote areas, while many simply disappear without a trace an example is John Bosco Kibalama who was abducted on the 3rd of June 2019 and many others.

The use of unlawful detention is another key weapon for Museveni, who regularly has opposition leaders and activists unlawfully arrested and imprisoned for prolonged periods without trial. By locking up opponents indefinitely, the regime aims to weaken and fracture any organized resistance. Prominent opposition figures and academicians have found themselves thrown in jail on questionable charges.

Beyond detention, Museveni also ruthlessly clamps down on dissent through targeted killings and assassinations. Security operatives have shot opposition leaning prominent Ugandans in broad daylight and run vehicles of activists off the road. Homes of anti-regime lawyers and journalists have been raided by armed assailants resulting in point-blank murders. These violent silencing tactics instill deep fear across Ugandan society.

To try to evade accountability, Museveni relies on a network of enablers spread across the judiciary, security establishment, public sector and beyond. Complicit judges, officials, police chiefs and magistrates all play a role enacting the regime’s oppressive agenda through sham trials, trumped up charges, abductions, illegal detentions and more.

Police and soldiers carry out violent crackdowns on protests. Prison authorities hold detainees incommunicado and deny them due process. Together, these individuals form a machinery of oppression that ruthlessly crushes any challenge to Museveni’s authority.

Despite the grave risks, courageous activists continue exposing human rights abuses, building solidarity networks and using both legal means and civil disobedience to challenge the regime’s grip on power.

Human rights defenders and concerned civilians are documenting stories of torture and enforced disappearance, turning victims into symbols of resistance. Opposition leaders are calling for sanctions and travel bans against specific security officials complicit in abuses but most importantly against the man at the helm of all this, Museveni.

By targeting not just Museveni but also his lieutenants, activists are striking at the foundation of the regime’s repressive edifice. Their brave actions are leading to greater global solidarity, as international civil society groups amplify calls for accountability and governments face pressure to act against Museveni’s key henchmen.

With their focus on dismantling the structures and individuals propping up dictatorship, Ugandan activists offer hope for a future where impunity is replaced by justice. Our struggle is about more than just Museveni’s exit – it aims to build a Uganda where the human rights and civil liberties of all citizens are respected. Although the road ahead remains fraught with risks, these courageous voices show that even the most entrenched authoritarian systems are vulnerable when their victims unite to expose their abusers.

We there for call upon the entire human race globally to pay attention to what is happening in Uganda under Yoweri Museveni who captured power in 1986 through armed struggle and has clung onto power till to date by using the military to crush any opposition.

Museveni has gradually eroded democratic norms, removed term limits and age limits, and stifled any dissent in order to entrench his authoritarian rule. Ugandans have continued to pay a steep price as Museveni’s security apparatus abducts, tortures, detains and assassinates opposition voices with impunity.

The stories of victims like John Bosco Kibalama and many other disappeared Ugandans need to be heard. The voices of activists, opposition leaders, journalists and citizens being crushed by Museveni’s brutal machinery of oppression need to be amplified on the global stage.

Most of these Museveni repressive tactics were Cleary captured live on camera and documented well in the Bobi Wine the People’s president Documentary, a gripping documentary that chronicles the remarkable journey of Bobi Wine, a pop star-turned-politician, as he strives to dismantle Uganda’s brutal dictatorship under Museveni brutal rule. The film delves into the 2021 Ugandan presidential election, where Bobi Wine, alongside his wife Barbie, leads a courageous fight for freedom against President Museveni’s oppressive 35-year regime

It is high time the international community re-examined its ties with Museveni’s regime and took concrete action to stand with Ugandans yearning to be free of decades of dictatorship. With rising resistance and striving for change, Uganda needs solidarity from world leaders, civil society and human rights defenders in this difficult struggle.

Writer

Social Activit JBMuwonge 

Email: contact.jbmuwonge.com