{UAH} Fwd: [UGANDACOM] Cleric attacks police over harassment
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From: matek <matekopoko@gmail.com>
Date: 2013/12/1
Subject: [UGANDACOM] Cleric attacks police over harassment
To: ugandacom <ugandacom@yahoogroups.com>, voice-of-uganda <voice-of-uganda@googlegroups.com>
Cleric attacks police over harassment
Kampala Catholic Archbishop Cyprian Kizito Lwanga sprinkles blessed water onto a congregation, including the Lord Mayor Erias Lukwago (L) and a number of MPs during the church service at Rubaga Cathedral Sunday. The Archbishop said although the current government continues to condemn Amin's regime for brutality, similar actions are being meted out by the police today. Photo by Faiswal Kasirye
Posted Monday, December 2 2013 at 02:00
KAMPALA- Kampala Archbishop Cyprian Kizito Lwanga has raised a red flag over the violence meted out on Ugandans by police in recent days, accusing the Force of deviating from the "fundamental change" promised by President Museveni in 1986. P.
Delivering a sermon at Rubaga Cathedral yesterday, Dr Lwanga became the latest voice to condemn the high-handedness that has been employed by police to disperse residents of Kampala, expressing dissatisfaction with attempts to impeach the Lord Mayor, Mr Erias Lukwago.
"Former President Amin is always referred to as a brutal president but what some of the State organs are doing is not any better from what Amin did. President Museveni in his inaugural speech said he had brought a fundamental change not a mere change of guards but some state actors seem to have forgotten [that]," Dr Lwanga said.
He added: "What we are seeing on the streets is surprising. Police are beating, mistreating and humiliating people which is far from enhancing the rule of human rights. When we see such things, we wonder whether state organs respect the rule of human rights."
Yesterday, Mr Ofwono Opondo, the executive director of the government Media Centre, quickly issued a rebuttal, indicting the cleric for using the wrong forum to express dissatisfaction against the police.
Mr Opondo tasked the Archbishop to provide details of specific cases of police brutality.
"That is his opinion. He is an adult who is entitled to his opinion. He lived here during Amin's and Obote's regimes and if that is his assessment, well and good. Let him bring specific cases against the police. Avenues of complaints against the police are not in church, they are in courts of law or administrative units of the police," Mr Opondo said.
Mr Lukwago, accompanied by NRM and Opposition MPs, attended the mass that was filled to capacity to mark the World Aids Day.
Earlier, MPs representing the constituencies of Kampala attacked Prime Minister Amama Mbabazi for suggesting that the government still considers Mr Lukwago impeached.
The cleric's concerns come after Parliament's Human Rights Committee summoned Gen Aronda Nyakairima, the minister of Internal Affairs, and the Inspector General of Police, Gen Kale Kayihura, to explain why the force was unleashing violence to breakdown peaceful assemblies.
This is a quote:
"Even if Joseph Kony was killed, that would not necessarily be the end of the war in northern Uganda because Kony is no more than a ' spiritual' leader of the LRA. This quick fix, arm-chair solution seemed to be from the Kampala-based 'opinion leaders' who only know the war through newspapers".
" Until the legitimate grievances and the marginalization of northern Uganda's communities are addressed, LRA fighters remain a possible vehicle for the expression of northerners' frustrations".
"Kony may never sign a peace agreement. Whether or not he signs, however, is less relevant to avoiding new conflict in northern Uganda than ending marginalization policies and fulfilling promises by the Ugandan government."
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