The Uganda Journalists Association (UJA) strongly condemns in the harshest terms the acts of torture occasioned on the BBS TV journalist Ivan Mbadhi by the Uganda security personnel under JAT on Monday 5th while executing his professional lawful journalistic duty in Kwen district- Kapichorwa sub region.
Mbadhi was on the campaign trail of NUP president Bobi Wine when he was attacked. He was in the occupation of a field van with other media personnel that he immediately exited when he saw the Commander of those security personnel whose names are yet to be identified, allegedly attempting to spray it with pepper inside, forcing others who were in its occupation to run out.
He captured the officers action using his camera. Two of the JAT personnel then instantly rounded him up and started heavily boxing him in the belly accompanied by kicks, and eventually terribly hit his head severally on one parked car.
As a result of this, Mbadhi is seriously feeling pain in his ribs, head and other bodily parts.
“Such acts are a blatant violation of the constitutional right to freedom of the press and access to information as enshrined under Articles 29(1)(a) and 41 of the Constitution of the Republic of Uganda (1995). Security Forces as mandated law and order keeping bodies, are public institutions funded by taxpayers and thus, must remain open to public scrutiny as they equally not act outside the law,”Emmanuel Kirunda, Secretary General,
Uganda Journalists Association (UJA) stated.
He added that such acts are also viewed as a deliberate attempt to silence independent journalism and shield the conduct of errant security officers from public accountability, hence undermining the principles of democracy and good governance that the state is duty-bound to uphold.
According to Kirunda ,the officers names and faces were concealed as the events unfolded, but despite that the Commanders face was captured in the footage.
This will therefore, be helpful in our legal teams ongoing investigations to guide our plan aimed at suing those individual officers under the Human Rights Enforcement Act and the Constitution, as it was case with some individual military officers including Lt. Col Napoleon Namanya under the November 2024 landmark judgement handed down by the Hon. Justice Boniface Wamala, from the petition; MISCELLANEOUS CAUSE NO. 64 of 2021, successfully filed by the Uganda Journalists Association, journalists Timothy Murungi and Henry Sekanjako Vs Attorney General and Eight individual UPDF officers.
“We wish to remind the leadership of security personnel that journalists have a constitutional duty to inform citizens about decisions that affect their lives and their country. Any move to restrict media access to public information, is therefore, an affront to the sovereignty of the people and a step backwards in Ugandas democratic journey,”Kirunda stressed.
He emphasized that UJA stands in full solidarity with journalist Mbadhi and will continue to amplify the voice in ensuring that justice is served for him.
“The Uganda Journalists Association also reaffirms its unwavering commitment to defending press freedom, promoting ethical journalism, and holding duty bearers accountable,”Kirunda said.
Uganda journalists Association is a body of journalists in Uganda that was established in 1963 by a group of human rights minded journalists who developed a sense of activism amidst a deteriorating context and glaring abuses targeting the media