Uganda dissent crackdown spreads fear, UN says

UN rights chief Volker Turk said on July 30 that Uganda's authorities were increasingly targeting dissent and that a climate of fear was spreading across the country.

Turk said the crackdown was accompanied by erosion of the rule of law, increased military involvement in civilian institutions and shrinking civic space.

His office said repression had increased since President Yoweri Museveni was re-elected for a seventh term in January. It said at least 50 opposition leaders and supporters, five human rights defenders and five journalists had been subjected to human rights violations since then, including enforced disappearance, torture, ill-treatment and arbitrary arrest or detention.

Turk called on Uganda's government to respect its obligations and allow civil society, free expression and participation in public affairs.