In Uganda, a 24-year-old man named Edward Awebwa has been sentenced to six years in prison for insulting President Yoweri Museveni and his family on TikTok.

Awebwa was accused of spreading hateful and false information about the President, First Lady Janet Museveni, and their son, Muhoozi Kainerugaba, who leads the military. He also claimed that taxes would increase under President Museveni.

Although Awebwa pleaded guilty and asked for forgiveness, the judge felt he wasn’t truly sorry and described his words as very offensive.

The judge decided Awebwa needed a serious punishment to learn respect for the president and his family. Awebwa received six years for each of the four charges, but they will run at the same time.

Human rights groups often criticize Ugandan authorities for limiting free speech. In 2022, Ugandan author Kakwenza Rukirabashaija faced charges for criticizing the president and his son on Twitter.

He fled to Germany after claiming he was tortured in jail. Activist and writer Stella Nyanzi also faced jail time for a poem criticizing Museveni.

President Museveni has been in power since 1986. He recently signed a law against offensive speech online, which human rights groups say suppresses free speech.

Last year, part of this law was ruled unconstitutional. Lawyer Michael Aboneka, representing human rights, argues that the president and his family should expect criticism and that the law used against Awebwa is vague and being challenged in court.

Source: BBC

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cv2g6378125o

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *