“The Correct line?” Discussed in the British Parliament

Mr Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent reports he has received on (a) freedom of speech in Uganda and (b) confiscation by the Ugandan authorities of copies of “The Correct Line?”, Uganda under Museveni, by Dr Olive Kobusingye; and if he will make a statement. [18677]

Mr Bellingham: Freedom of expression is a right recognised by the Constitution of Uganda. I am encouraged by some reports of progress in upholding this right, including the recent abolition of the crime of sedition by the Constitutional Court of Uganda, and continuing evidence of free and lively debate in Uganda’s media. But I am concerned by reports of restrictions on freedom of expression, including the impounding by the Uganda Revenue Authority at Entebbe Airport of a shipment of Dr Kobusingye’s book “The Correct Line, Uganda under Museveni”.
I understand that the Ugandan Minister of Internal Affairs, in a statement to the Ugandan Parliament on 19 October 2010, said that Dr Kobusingye’s book had been impounded because of irregularities in the shipping documentation. This contradicted an earlier statement to Parliament by the Minister, in which he suggested that the shipment had been impounded for security reasons. I understand that part of the shipment has now been released and that Uganda’s Daily Monitor newspaper is serialising Dr Kobusingye’s book for a wide readership.
We will continue to raise the importance of upholding fundamental rights, including freedom of expression, with the Government of Uganda. This will be particularly important as Uganda prepares for presidential and parliamentary elections in 2011.

Uganda: Politics and Government

Mr Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received on the treatment by Ugandan police of Dr Kizza Besigye on 9 June 2010; what assessment he has made of (a) the extent of implementation in Uganda of the 2006 recommendations of the EU and the Commonwealth on the Electoral Commission and (b) the prospect of free, fair and peaceful elections in Uganda; and if he will make a statement. [18675]
Mr Bellingham: On 9 June 2010, an opposition rally in Kampala led by Dr Kizza Besigye was broken up by the police. Members of a vigilante group known as the ‘Kiboko Squad’ assaulted Dr Besigye and other demonstrators. Members of the Kiboko Squad were arrested following the assault but were subsequently released without charge. We have raised concerns directly
25 Oct 2010 : Column 26W
with the head of Uganda’s police and the Ugandan Government about the activities of the Kiboko Squad. We have also raised the importance of the police balancing its responsibility to maintain order with its duty to act as an independent body that respects the freedoms of expression and assembly.
We assess that Uganda has made some progress in improving the framework for its next elections in 2011, partly in response to the recommendations of the Observation Missions to the 2006 elections. These include amendments to electoral legislation and update of the voter register. We do however retain concerns about the evenness of the playing field between Government and Opposition, and challenges to freedom of expression and assembly. It will be particularly important to the prospects for free, fair and peaceful elections in 2011 that Uganda’s Electoral Commission and the Ugandan police force demonstrate their independence and competence during the campaign period and in the organisation of the polls.
We are providing a range of assistance to support democratisation in Uganda, including technical support to the Electoral Commission through a Deepening Democracy Programme funded by the Department for International Development. We will also continue to raise the importance of free, fair and peaceful elections with the Ugandan authorities and Uganda’s political leaders. I did so myself with President Museveni and Professor Ogenga Latigo, the Leader of the Opposition in Parliament, when I visited Uganda in July.

Source: Posted on November 1, 2010