At least 18 journalists attacked by armed forces in Uganda
At least 18 journalists were violently attacked by security forces while covering the legislative by-elections in Kawempe North, a northern neighbourhood in the capital Kampala. Reporters Without Borders (RSF) strongly condemns these aggressive assaults and calls on the authorities to guarantee journalists’ safety, namely by ensuring that the army’s commitments to press freedom are honoured.
“They made us take off our shirts to cover our eyes, told us to lie down and hit us with sticks and the top of their guns,” Abubaker Lubowa, a photojournalist for the independent daily Daily Monitor, recounted to RSF. At least 13 journalists sent to cover the by-elections in Kawempe North, a northern district of Kampala, on 13 March were severely beaten by Ugandan security forces, including the army – the Uganda People's Defence Force (UPDF) – and the Joint Anti-Terrorist Task Force (JATT). Five other journalists had also been assaulted while covering the election campaign three weeks earlier and one of them nearly lost sight in his left eye. All were identifiable as journalists at the time of the attacks.
Faced with the shocking scale of violence committed by its members, on 13 March the UPDF issued a press statement announcing investigations would be conducted into the assaults and the results “will guide the measures to be undertaken, including disciplinary processes.” When contacted by RSF, UPDF spokesman Chris Magezi said the violence was the result of a “misunderstanding and miscoordination,” and that “the journalists must have been mixed up with violent supporters.” He also supported the idea of providing UPDF members with more training on how to protect journalists during such events.
"The extreme violence shown by the forces of law and order towards clearly identified journalists confirms there are serious safety problems facing media professionals. Such treatment, by both the army and an anti-terrorist agency during an election period, is unacceptable. As the country will hold presidential elections in less than a year, it is vital that journalists are able to work in complete safety. RSF calls on the Ugandan authorities to ensure that the army fulfils its commitments to properly investigate and punish the perpetrators of these assaults and train its members to protect journalists."
Degrading treatment
On 13 March, while covering the arrival of a candidate at the Kazo-Angola polling station in Kawempe, at least six journalists were attacked and held for over an hour in an army van. Among them were Raymond Tamale, a journalist with the privately-owned NTV Uganda television station, his cameraman Dennis Kabugo and Abubaker Lubowa, who explained to RSF that, after confiscating their shoes, watches and equipment, the officers, whose faces were masked, hit them on the head, ribs, elbows and knees. "They told us to lie down in the van, then pretend to sleep, to snore. They forced us to count to 15 and hit us at each number. The windows were covered, it was very hot, you couldn’t see anything," explained Raymond Tamale. All their equipment was destroyed, and every journalist had to receive hospital treatment.
Journalists Ibrahim Ruhweza and Isaac Nuwagaba from New Vision were also held blindfolded for 20 minutes in a van by masked members of the Ugandan security agency Joint Anti-Terrorist Task Force (JATT), who beat them with sticks and electric cables before forcing them to erase their videos.
At least 13 journalists were severely beaten that day, at least ten of whom went to hospital. Several reporters who witnessed the violence chose to stop reporting and returned to their newsrooms while others took off their press vests to avoid being targeted.
Ultra-violent campaign
On 26 February, while covering the assault of an opposition party candidate by security forces in the run-up to the elections, journalist Miracle Ibra of the privately owned Top TV almost lost his sight in one eye. Two JATT officers “hit him several times in the face with a truncheon,” according to the journalist, who was seriously injured. At least four other reporters – from NBS TV and NTV Uganda – were attacked while covering the election campaign. Two of them were assaulted by JATT officers who opened fire several times in their direction.
