Uganda unbowed after UK aid cut

Britain's decision to cut the amount of direct aid to Uganda would not enable it to impose its view of democracy, Uganda's information minister has said. The UK said it would divert £15m ($26m) to aid agencies in the conflict zone in the north because of concerns about the country's slow progress to democracy.

Uganda's main opposition leader, Kizza Besigye, is in jail on treason and rape charges ahead of February 2006 polls.

James Buturo said he did not agree with the UK move but respected the decision.

"When these people impose their views on us, we do not just succumb to their wishes. That is not the way countries are run," the minister told reporters.

"They have a different notion of democracy and we don't believe that what we have here is not democracy."

He added that there was no cause for panic because good relations with Britain and the donor community would, he believed, soon be restored.

"What we are telling everyone really today; to be calm and not lose hope because we think that sooner than later the situation will come back to normal. It's not dark days we shouldn't give that impression at all."

UK International Development Secretary Hilary Benn said a further £4m ($6.9m) is being held back pending the conduct of the elections.

The announcement follows a similar move by Sweden, which diverted £4.6m ($8m).

Once highly praised by Western donors, President Yoweri Museveni has ruled Uganda for 19 years.

Last year, parliament voted to abolish term limits that would have prevented him from seeking a third term.

The BBC's Will Ross in Kampala says almost half the Ugandan budget comes from donor funding.


Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/africa/4549220.stm

Published: 2005/12/21 13:15:14 GMT

© BBC MMV

Uganda: Respect Opposition Right to Campaign

Government Must Remove Obstacles to Free and Fair Elections

New York, December 19, 2005) ? Uganda must allow the opposition Forum for Democratic
Change (FDC) to organize campaign rallies for its jailed presidential candidate, Dr.
Kizza Besigye, Human Rights Watch said today.

The government has tried to stop demonstrations related to the November 14 arrest of
Besigye on charges of rape and treason in the High Court. He was declared a
candidate only days before his trial was to start in the High Court today. On
November 22, the government banned public rallies and demonstrations related to
Besigye?s trial, claiming the protests would prejudice the courts and interfere with
the defendant?s constitutionally protected right to a fair trial. Between November
22 and 24, police arrested opposition leaders who were planning rallies for November
24, the day Besigye was scheduled to appear in the High Court to hear the verdict on
his bail application.

?Ugandans have a right to peacefully protest against Besigye?s trial and rally in
support of his campaign,? said Jemera Rone, Uganda researcher at Human Rights Watch.
?The authorities cannot use the Besigye trial as a pretext to prevent opposition
rallies now that the campaign season is in full swing.?

Human Rights Watch is concerned that authorities will use the ban to obstruct
campaign rallies by the Forum for Democratic Change, during Uganda?s first
multi-party elections in 25 years. Besigye is considered the main challenger to
President Yoweri Museveni, who seeks a third term in office. Presidential and
parliamentary elections are scheduled to take place on February 23, 2006.
.
Human Rights Watch is also concerned about reports that security forces have
intimidated, harassed and physically assaulted opposition party supporters since
Besigye?s return to Uganda in late October. In December, Human Rights Watch
interviewed supporters of the Forum for Democratic Change from Kampala and the
Kabarole district in western Uganda. They told Human Rights Watch that since
Besigye?s arrest, local government officials and members of the security
forces?including the police, Internal Security Organization, and Ugandan Peoples?
Defense Forces (UPDF)?had ordered them to stop supporting Besigye, either
threatening them or using physical violence.

An FDC activist from the Kabarole district told Human Rights Watch that police
prevented him from organizing a protest against Besigye?s arrest. Later that night,
several UPDF soldiers arrested him and took him to a nearby military barracks, where
they beat him, tied him to a tree, and threatened to kill him by firing squad if he
continued to support Besigye.

?It is up to the independent Electoral Commission and the police to see that the
2006 elections are free from intimidation and violence,? said Rone. ?The commission
must promptly investigate allegations of any abuse and ensure that perpetrators of
violence are held accountable.?

Background:
Dr. Besigye challenged President Museveni in the presidential elections of March
2001 and lost. He appealed to the Supreme Court, which ruled 3-2 that there had been
fraud and violence in the elections, but then ruled 3-2 that the fraud and violence
was not sufficient to set aside the election results. Dr. Besigye fled into exile a
few months later.

In October 2005, he returned to Uganda to run again for president. On November 15,
he was charged with rape and treason before the High Court and remanded to Luzira
Prison near Kampala. His arrest provoked demonstrations and some looting in Kampala.
On November 24, Besigye was charged with terrorism and illegal possession of
firearms before the General Court Martial. Although the High Court granted bail to
Besigye on November 25, he remains in Luzira Prison because of the court martial
charges.

On December 12, High Court Justice Remmy Kasule extended a stay on Besigye?s trial
before the General Court Martial until the Constitutional Court rules on the
legality of the military trial. The military court hearing had also been scheduled
to begin on December 19.

Besigye, five of his 22 co-defendants in the cases, and the Uganda Law Society have
filed petitions before the Constitutional Court disputing the constitutionality of
provisions in the Ugandan Peoples? Defense Forces Act that established the Court
Martial. They are also challenging the Court Martial?s jurisdiction to prosecute the
offense of terrorism, try civilians, and prosecute Besigye and his co-defendants in
two different courts on charges based on the same facts.

On December 19, the High Court postponed Besigye?s trial for rape and for treason
until January 2 and January 6, 2006 respectively.

For further information, please contact:
In Washington, D.C., Jemera Rone (English, Spanish): +1-202-368-5414, or
+1-202-332-8455
In Toronto, Georgette Gagnon (English): +1-416-893-2709

Related Material:

Uganda?s Electoral Commission Must Uphold Presumption of Innocence
Press Release, December 12, 2005
http://hrw-news-africa.c.topica.com/maaekCuabm1fNbpnfZPe/

Crowds cheer Museveni's poll bid

December 15, 2005
Posted By BBC News

Large crowds have turned out to cheer Uganda's President Yoweri Museveni as he submitted his nomination papers for elections due next year.
He was wearing a dark suit, yellow tie and a baseball cap as he handed over his forms in a stadium, Reuters news agency reports.

Mr Museveni's main rival is expected to be Kizza Besigye, who was nominated on Wednesday even though he is in prison.

He says the treason and terrorism charges were to stop him running.

Mr Museveni has already been in power for 19 years and would have been barred from contesting future elections had it not been for a recent change in the law.

'Golden moment'

After studying Mr Museveni's papers for 10 minutes, Electoral Commission Chairman Badru Kiggundu announced: "Now the golden moment... I hereby declare Museveni Yoweri Kaguta a duly nominated presidential candidate for presidential elections 2006."


For Dr Besigye's nomination ceremony on Wednesday, officials from his Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) party stuck a poster of Dr Besigye on an empty chair with a baseball cap on top.

The FDC has vowed that Dr Besigye will defeat Mr Museveni from prison if his trial has not ended by election time.

However, if found guilty Dr Besigye will have to withdraw from the presidential race.

He has denied claims that he is linked to two rebel groups.

He was arrested in November, three weeks after ending a four-year exile, vowing to end Mr Museveni's "dictatorship".

This is the first multi-party election since 1980 and 35 people are intending to contest, including the widow of former President Milton Obote.

Uganda’s Electoral Commission Must Uphold Presumption of Innocence

Fairness of March Presidential Elections at Stake

(New York, December 12, 2005) Uganda’s Electoral Commission should uphold the presumption of innocence and objectively consider whether to permit the indicted opposition leader Dr. Kizza Besigye to run for president, Human Rights Watch said today. Nominations for the 2006 presidential candidates are scheduled to take place on December 14 and 15.

Leader of the Forum for Democratic Change, Besigye is the main opposition candidate in the presidential elections scheduled for March. He challenges twenty-year incumbent President Yoweri Museveni, who is running for his third term in office. On November 15, 2005, Besigye was charged with treason and rape before the High Court. On November 24, 2005, Besigye was charged with terrorism and illegal possession of firearms before the General Court Martial. On December 12, all proceedings in the cases were temporarily stayed.

Although the High Court granted bail to Besigye on November 25, he remains in Luzira prison near Kampala because of the court martial charges. Human Rights Watch is concerned that the charges against Dr. Besigye may be a politically motivated attempt to prevent him from running for president.

“The presumption of innocence should prevail. Besigye has not been found guilty of anything,” said Jemera Rone, Uganda researcher at Human Rights Watch. “He is still in pretrial detention because of jurisdictional questions regarding the military court and the civilian court. This is not a legal or constitutional basis on which to deny anyone the right to be nominated as a political candidate.”

The independent Electoral Commission must determine whether Dr. Besigye, who has been charged but not tried or convicted, may run for political office. According to press reports, the Electoral Commission previously stated that Besigye could be nominated even if he was in detention. The Minister of State for Constitutional and Justice Affairs has reached the same conclusion.

Human Rights Watch is concerned that the Electoral Commission will be intimidated or unduly influenced by a December 7 letter from Attorney General Dr. Khiddu Makabuya. In it, the Attorney General, responding to a question from the Electoral Commission, urged it to stop Besigye’s nomination, arguing that Besigye is the subject of serious criminal proceedings and that his nomination would be “tainted with illegalities.” The Attorney General is part of the ruling party.

Human Rights Watch believes that the Attorney General erred because he did not give precedence to Uganda’s obligations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which it is party. The Covenant provides for the right to be presumed innocent, and treated as innocent, unless and until conviction by a court meeting international fair trial standards. The right to be presumed innocent applies not only to the evaluation of evidence in court, but also to treatment before trial. The Covenant also provides that every citizen shall have the right and opportunity to take part in the conduct of public affairs and to be elected in genuine periodic elections.

“Free elections anywhere require an impartial electoral commission independent of the ruling party and the government of the day,” said Rone. “How Uganda’s Electoral Commission handles the Besigye case will set the tone for the fairness of the March presidential elections. It is important that the Electoral Commission adhere to international human rights—and remain independent of the political parties, including the ruling party.”

Ugandans welcome rebel overture

Ugandan Interior Minister Ruhakana Rugunda has welcomed a call for peace talks by the deputy commander of the rebel Lord's Resistance Army.
He said that if the overture was serious it was a welcome development.

"The government will seize any opportunity to bring the suffering of people in northern Uganda to an end," he told the BBC.

The LRA has fought for 19 years. Peace talks were attempted a year ago, but broke down.

"The government is waiting and the government will be ready to meet a delegation of the Lords Resistance Army anytime. So the government is ready," he said.

On Tuesday, LRA deputy commander Vincent Otti told the BBC's reporter in Uganda, Will Ross, on a satellite phone that the LRA was ready to talk.

He said he was speaking with the backing of rebel commander Joseph Kony.

He addedd that he would also be willing to go to the international court to face justice, adding that in his view, the government should also face justice for crimes committed in northern Uganda.

Mr Rugunda said the government would cooperate with the ICC.

Atrocities

Uganda's Anglican Archbishop, Henry Luke Orombi, also welcomed the development.

"Until we sit down and talk with each other and agree, it's not going to be an easy way for us to resolve the northern problem," he told the BBC.

Along with others, these two LRA commanders are wanted by the International Criminal Court based in The Hague for war crimes and crimes against humanity.


The LRA has carried out terrible atrocities for the past 19 years, and the civilians have suffered the most.

They are well known for abducting children and forcing them to fight.

Peace talks have been attempted in the past, but with little success, with observers accusing both the rebels and the government of not being committed to the talks.

Our reporter says that President Yoweri Museveni has put more emphasis on a military approach to ending the war, and the rebels have been weakened.

However, the LRA continues to carry out ambushes and close to 1.5 million people have been displaced and are living in camps due to the ongoing insecurity.

This latest call from the LRA is likely to be welcomed by people in northern Uganda who hold on to any glimmer of hope of the war ending.


Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/africa/4484444.stm

Published: 2005/11/30 15:11:22 GMT

© BBC MMV

Ugandan rebel urges peace talks

By Will Ross
BBC News, Kampala

A senior commander of the Ugandan rebel group, the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA), has called for peace talks with the Ugandan government.
LRA deputy commander Vincent Otti also said he would be willing to go to the international court to face justice.

He added that in his view, the government should also face justice for crimes committed in northern Uganda.

The LRA has fought in northern Uganda and Sudan for 19 years, abducting children and forcing them to fight.

Peace talks were attempted a year ago, but broke down.

Atrocities

Mr Otti called the BBC on a satellite phone and said that the LRA was ready to talk.

"I am Lieutenant-General Vincent Otti and want this talk with the government of Uganda to end the rebellion, because now we fought for 20 years, we are ready for this talk from today," he said.

He called on the government to respond to the request for peace talks, and said he was speaking with the backing of rebel commander Joseph Kony.


Along with others, these two LRA commanders are wanted by the International Criminal Court based in The Hague for war crimes and crimes against humanity.

The LRA has carried out terrible atrocities for the past 19 years, and the civilians have suffered the most.

Peace talks have been attempted in the past, but with little success, with observers accusing both the rebels and the government of not being committed to the talks.

President Yoweri Museveni has put more emphasis on a military approach to ending the war, and the rebels have been weakened.

However, the LRA continues to carry out ambushes and close to 1.5 million people have been displaced and are living in camps due to the ongoing insecurity.

Since the latest attempt to hold peace talks broke down a year ago, there has been little hope of a negotiated end to the war.

This latest call from the LRA is likely to be welcomed by people in northern Uganda who hold on to any glimmer of hope of the war ending.

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/africa/4483320.stm

Published: 2005/11/29 20:22:02 GMT

© BBC MMV

Museveni defends rival's arrest

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/africa/4471194.stm

Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni has defended the arrest of the country's main opposition leader ahead of next year's presidential election. Kizza Besigye has been charged with treason and terrorism. Supporters say the charges are politically motivated.

The issue is threatening to overshadow the Commonwealth summit in Malta.

UK PM Tony Blair said the arrest was of "great concern", but Mr Museveni said taking action against those accused of terrorism was good governance.

Dr Besigye's wife, Winnie Byanyima, said the military tribunal that had ruled that he should spend four weeks in custody was a "kangaroo court".

She has urged Commonwealth leaders to press Mr Museveni to release her husband.


HAVE YOUR SAY
Our leaders are stunting the baby we have been esteeming to have in 2006
Patrick Kiyemba, Kampala
But Uganda's leader said the proceedings against Dr Besigye were part of an "open process".
"Nobody is going to stop Besigye standing for election, but there's also the question of the wrong actions he is alleged to be involved in," Mr Museveni said on the opening day of the Commonwealth conference.

"One of the emphases of the new democratic order is no impunity."

He told reporters that Uganda was still well qualified to host the next Commonwealth summit in 2007.

But Mr Blair said he would "no doubt" be raising the issue of Dr Besigye's arrest with Mr Museveni before the current conference ends on Sunday.

"It's one of the basic principles of the Commonwealth that there should be proper respect for the proper functioning of democracy, and therefore what has been happening with the opposition leader in Uganda has caused us a great deal of concern," he said.

Although concerns over human rights in member state Uganda are likely to dominate the summit, the Commonwealth leaders will also work on a declaration about trade reform.

Bail denied

Dr Besigye appeared in court twice on Friday, first at a military tribunal and then in the High Court.

He denies allegations of links to rebel groups, which have led to military charges of terrorism and unlawful possession of weapons, and civilian charges of treason. He has also been charged with rape.


KIZZA BESIGYE
Used to be Museveni's doctor
March 2001: Ran against Museveni
August 2001: Went into exile
Oct 2005: Returned home
Nov 2005: Charged with treason, rape in High Court
Nov 2005: Charged with terrorism and unlawful possession of weapons in military court

At the military tribunal, he was denied bail and told he must remain in prison until the court martial on 19 December.
This is a few days after the date that nominations close for presidential candidates, although the electoral commission says a candidate does not have to be physically present to be nominated.

Later on Friday, the High Court judge granted him bail but this ruling is academic and he remained in prison on the military charges.

While being transferred between two courts, Dr Besigye said: "I'm quite fine. I'm in prison but my issues are not imprisoned."

Dr Besigye's arrest earlier this month, which was condemned by the US, sparked two days of riots.

Mr Museveni has been praised for raising living standards in Uganda after years of misrule.

But this year, the UK and other donors withheld some aid in protest at moves to change the constitution and allow him to seek a third term.

Published: 2005/11/25 23:07:44 GMT

© BBC MMV