Advertisement

Uganda urged to respect media freedom on eve of polls

Saturday January 16 2016
ugandaelectionsvoting

Voters in Bukoto South constituency, southern Uganda. Activists are urging respect for media freedom. PHOTO | FILE

The assault on a team of television reporters, the arrest of two editors of a prominent tabloid, and the arrest of a regular political analyst all in less than a week appear to suggest a renewed onslaught by the State on the media — which a new report by Human Rights Watch (HRW) says dents the credibility of next month’s General Election.

Even as the campaigns enter the home stretch and after voting on February 18, journalists and media platforms are likely to be targeted, said HRW officials and media observers in Uganda.

“The stakes will continue to rise and the media is likely to be seen as a scapegoat. As candidates’ actions and promises come under more scrutiny and journalists continue to probe and highlight these inconsistencies, they may not want to be portrayed as failures and so could turn on the people who are transmitting these uncomfortable pictures,” said Haruna Kanaabi, who works with the Independent Media Council. 

On Sunday, January 10, reporters from NTV Uganda were beaten up and their equipment destroyed for recording a roadblock the police had erected to prevent Forum for Democratic Change candidate Kizza Besigye from proceeding to a scheduled campaign venue.

Three days before that, the police had arrested two editors of Red Pepper for publishing a picture of a dead body, thought to be that of Christopher Aine, the head of security for former premier and independent presidential candidate Amama Mbabazi.

Mr Aine has been missing since around December 17, after people suspected to be security operatives arrested him outside his home.

Advertisement

A day after the editors were taken in, Charles Rwomushana, a former intelligence officer with the Internal Security Organisation, was arrested too, on suspicion that he provided the photo of the dead body. The police say that the body is not that of Aine and have offered a Ush20 million ($5,719) reward for whoever provides information about his whereabouts.  

To prevent further occurrences like these, the government has been urged to ensure respect for and protection of freedom of expression, particularly during the ongoing election period.

However, the nature of the media landscape in Uganda in terms of the number of media platforms and the many different languages they work in, presents difficulties in mobilising and deploying resources.
“The government’s harassment and intimidation of independent voices in the media and civil society is a threat to the 2016 campaigns and elections. For free, fair and credible elections to take place, the government should protect freedoms of expression and association and work actively to ensure no government or security official tries to silence media and civil society voices or obstruct their access to communities,” reads the 41-page HRW report, entitled, Keep the People Uninformed: Pre-election Threats to Free Expression and Association in Uganda.

“If nothing changes, we anticipate obstruction to free expression... That is why it remains so important for key government and police leadership to clearly state that intimidating or threatening journalists, or obstructing candidates from participating in broadcasts, will not be tolerated,” said Maria Burnett, a senior researcher in HRW’s Africa Division.

Outside Kampala

So far, the more pronounced cases of harassment and restrictions have happened to media personalities working outside Kampala — the capital city enjoys relative freedom. Graver threats are also faced by journalists working in non-English speaking media houses based outside the capital, where the government is subject to less scrutiny.

“Journalists outside Kampala — particularly radio journalists working in vernacular stations, which target rural listeners — face frequent challenges in freely reporting on issues deemed sensitive by local authorities loyal to the ruling party. Journalists and station managers can face threats of suspension or dismissal for being seen to provide the opposition with a platform,” says the report.

Oddly, the ill treatment of journalists and the contraction of freedom of expression in Uganda occurs against a backdrop of fairly progressive legislation especially regarding civil and political rights.

The reason the government neither follows nor enforces these laws is because it has little will to do so. This observation is contained in an analysis of how ownership of radio stations impacts political speech in Uganda, conducted by the African Centre for Media Excellence after the 2011 General Election.

The analysis arose out of complaints raised by opposition candidates and politicians about how access to radio — which is a primary source of news for up to 90 per cent of Ugandans — appeared to be influenced by political considerations rather more explicitly than at other times and in previous elections.

Advertisement