Uganda
Amnesty International was concerned
about the wide-ranging detention without
trial of alleged opponents of the government
Several hundred were detained by
the civil authorities under the Public
Order and Security Act, in many cases
without full observance of their legal
rights. Many others were detained unlawfully
by the military authorities and
reportedly tortured. Some reportedly "disappeared" in military custody
or were killed. Amnesty International was also concerned about reports
of extrajudicial executions of civilians by soldiers and about the use of
the death penalty.
President Milton Obote's government continued to face armed
opposition in central and northwestern Uganda from the National
Resistance Army, Uganda Freedom Movement and Uganda National
Rescue Front Many unarmed civilians were allegedly killed by the
army but the government denied these allegations. Amnesty International
also received reports of killings by opposition guerrilla organizations.
As a result of the insecurity and violence, several thousand people fled to
neighbouring countries. Some 150,000 other people were placed in
"displaced persons" camps under army control where many were
reportedly ill-treated by soldiers. In April, Amnesty International published the correspondence with
the government that followed a mission to Uganda in January 1982.
Amnesty International had submitted recommendations for the protection
of basic human rights but few of these recommendations appeared
to have been implemented. In particular, the government had not
initiated an independent inquiry into allegations of torture or killings and
had not taken steps to end arbitrary executions by the army.
Large numbers of people were arrested during 1983 on suspicion of
supporting armed opposition organizations. In Kampala, hundreds of
people at a time were detained in a number of panda gari ("get in the
lorry") operations, carried out by police and military officials. Although
most such detainees were believed to have been quickly released, a
considerable number were reportedly detained for further interrogation.
Several hundred people were detained under the Public Order and
Security Act, which provides for indefinite detention without charge or
trial. They were held at Luzira Upper Prison, a maximum security
prison administered by the Prison Service. On 12 August the government
acknowledged that 92 people had been detained under this act in
the first half of 1983, when it published a list of 359 people who were
still in detention following their arrest between 1979 and 1983.
Amnesty International, however, believed that the actual number of
detainees was much higher and that the government had failed to
observe the constitutional requirement that all those detained under the
act should be named in the government gazette within one month and
thereafter at six-monthly intervals. The constitution also requires that
all detentions should be reviewed within two months by an independent
Detention Review Tribunal, at which detainees may appear with legal
representation, and thereafter at six-monthly intervals. The findings of
the tribunal are not binding on the government and are not published
The tribunal reviewed a small proportion of detentions in early 1983 but
many detentions were allegedly not reviewed at all during the year.
Several prisoners detained under this act in 1983 were members of
the legally permitted opposition Democratic Party and were apparently
arrested for their non-violent political activities. Among them was the
Reverend Francis Kizito, a Roman Catholic priest from Mpigi district,
who was arrested in January and publicly accused of having visited
guerrilla camps in 1981. He was released uncharged in October.
Another prisoner who was still detained without charge at the end of
1983 was Ambrose Okullo, a former deputy Minister of Education and
an unsuccessful Democratic Party parliamentary candidate. The
government made no reply to Amnesty International's inquiries into the
grounds for his detention and about the detention of several others
whom Amnesty International believed could be prisoners of conscience.
Yoweri Kyesimira, a Democratic Party member of parliament and former university professor, was arrested on 12 March and charged
with treason for allegedly having met guerrilla leaders in 1981. By the
end of 1983 no date had been set for his trial. Amnesty International
was investigating whether he had been detained because of his nonviolent
political activities.
Amnesty International received information that large numbers of
other people were arrested by the army ostensibly for having links with
the guerrillas. Details were difficult to obtain but the organization
received information indicating that many people were held without
official acknowledgement and incommunicado in military custody,
although the army has no power in law to detain civilians. It was alleged
that people arrested by the army in the Kampala area were usually taken
initially to military interrogation offices in Nile Mansions in Kampala,
and then transferred to Makindye, Mbuya or Malire barracks in Kampala
or certain private houses in Kampala under military control. It was also
alleged that torture and ill-treatment of such detainees in military
custody were common and some were alleged to have "disappeared" in
military custody, although such reports were invariably difficult to
verify. Former detainees, including alleged torture victims, told Amnesty
International that other detainees had been arbitrarily executed or had
died in custody as a result of torture, starvation or the denial of medical
treatment
In July Amnesty International made urgent appeals on behalf of
Pius Kawere, a lawyer and Democratic Party member, who was held
without official acknowledgement in Mbuya barracks. He had been
arrested in Mukono on 22 April by a military intelligence officer. He
was released in August after being held in harsh conditions together with
almost 100 other civilian detainees, many of whom had been tortured.
Amnesty International made inquiries to the authorities about
several other prisoners who were reportedly tortured while in military
custody. Amnesty International later learned of the transfer of some of
the detainees to detention in civil custody and the release of certain
others, reportedly after their relatives had paid bribes to military
officials. A number, however, were feared to have "disappeared". In
one case documented by Amnesty International, Patrick Kibaalya, a
primary school headmaster in Jinja, was arrested by soldiers on 20
February in Jinja, and then "disappeared". It was later learned that he
had been taken to Katabi military barracks in Entebbe and tortured so
severely that he died two days later.
Amnesty International was also investigating allegations of illegal
detentions and torture by officials of the National Security Agency, an
intelligence unit, and by officers of the Special Force, a para-military
police unit
Amnesty International expressed concern about the continued detention without trial of several people who were arrested in 1981 and
1982. They included Ben Riling. a Democratic Party supporter and
businessperson in Tororo, and Silver Tibihika, an army lieutenant.
Amnesty International repeated its calls for thorough investigations into
the "disappearance" of several people arrested by the army in 1981,
including Beatrice Kemigisha, a Makerere University lecturer, and
Constantin Kabazaire, a former magistrate. The government continued
to deny that they had been arrested. In March, Amnesty International
received some information from the Minister of Internal Affairs
concerning prisoners about whom it had inquired in 1982, but its
request for clarification in a number of cases, and further investigations
into -disappearances" received no response.
In January 200 detainees were released from Luzira Upper Prison.
They were believed to have included some political detainees as well as
some of the 60 or more former soldiers of ex- President Amin's army
who had been detained without trial since 1979. In October the
government announced the release of 2,100 prisoners in an amnesty to
mark the 20th anniversary of Uganda's independence. The government
did not disclose details of those released, most of whom were apparently
convicted criminal prisoners, although some had been detained under
the Public Order and Security Act and had been the subject of inquiries
by Amnesty International. At the end of 1983 several hundred
detainees were still believed to be held in Luzira Upper Prison.
Amnesty International received allegations of torture throughout
1983 of detainees held in military custody. The allegations were made
by detainees who survived and were later released, detainees' relatives,
and others. Detainees interrogated in Nile Mansions military offices
were reportedly stripped naked and severely beaten with sticks and gun
butts, and given little or no food for days at a time. Particularly severe
torture reportedly occurred at Makindye and Kireka barracks. Detainees
in Makindye barracks were said to be subjected to beatings and assaults
with bayonets, some being shot in the limbs. Many allegedly died as a
result of torture, starvation or being shot. Torture methods reported in
Kireka barracks included burning sensitive parts of the body, beatings
and shootings. Reports of torture were also received in respect of
military detention centres in other parts of the country, for example in
Bombo, Tororo and Mpigi. People held at local administrative centres
in Luwero and Mpigi districts were also reportedly tortured. Amnesty
International inquired about a number of such cases in 1983 but
received no replies from the authorities.
Prison conditions for those held in military custody after interrogation
were also said to be harsh. Detainees were held incommunicado in
dirty, overcrowded cells. They were given very little food and were
denied medical treatment. Prison conditions for political detainees held in civil custody by the
police or prison service -- including those held in Luzira Upper Prison -
were believed to be much better in comparison.
Numerous reports were received of the arbitrary and illegal killing of
civilians by military personnel, both in areas of military activity against
the guerrillas and in urban and rural areas outside any area of armed
conflict The government maintained that it investigated any cases of
abuse of power by soldiers but few soldiers were known to have been
charged with offences of violence against civilians. In one case, a soldier
was charged with the murder of an opposition member of parliament,
Africano Ssembattya, on 2 October, but the circumstances of the
incident were not known to Amnesty International and the trial had not
started by the end of the year. Deaths of non-combatant civilians
allegedly at the hands of the military were rarely investigated by the
police and no inquests were known to have been held in such cases.
Political killings by opposition guerrilla organizations were also
reported. Allegations that specific killings were committed either by
government or by anti-government forces were generally difficult to
corroborate. The absence of detailed accounts of the incidents from
official sources or eye-witnesses, as well as the high level of insecurity in
the areas where the killings occurred, contributed to the difficulties
Amnesty International faced in seeking to attribute responsibility for the
killings.
In Kikyusa village in Bulemezi county in Luwero district, up to 100
people were killed in a "displaced persons" camp at the end of May.
The government blamed the killings on opposition guerrillas wearing
army uniform, but other sources alleged that the perpetrators were in
fact government soldiers. Despite international concern about this
incident, no independent inquiry was known to have been initiated by
the government In August a government spokesperson admitted in
parliament that the killing of 30 people in Ssonde and Jinja villages in
Mukono District on 18 March by men in army uniform had been carried
out by soldiers, although the government had earlier blamed the killings
on guerrilla opponents. He stated that the kMings were a "mistake" but
Amnesty International has no knowledge of any further investigation
into the incident or of any action taken against those responsible. In
September, over 60 people arrested in Mpigi West district and held in
Mpigi prison were reportedly taken out by soldiers and killed nearby.
The government did not reply to Amnesty International's inquiries
about the incident.
Amnesty International received information that some 23 prisoners
were awaiting execution in Luzira Upper Prison in March. They were
all reported to have been convicted of murder and armed robbery and
sentenced to death since 1979. It was not known how many death
sentences were imposed in 1983 or whether any executions were
carried out.
EM
On the 49th Parallel
Thé Mulindwas Communication Group
"With Yoweri Museveni, Ssabassajja and Dr. Kiiza Besigye, Uganda is in anarchy"
Kuungana Mulindwa Mawasiliano Kikundi
"Pamoja na Yoweri Museveni, Ssabassajja na Dk. Kiiza Besigye, Uganda ni katika machafuko"
