Masindi, 25th, December, 2014; Police in mid- western Uganda is harassing an online activist Jonathan Akweteireho for his online engagement and mobilizing communities to demand accountability and service delivery in Masindi.

Akweteireho, a veteran journalist has been running a face book page under the name of Masindi News Network for the past two years https://www.facebook.com/groups/masindinewsnetwork/files/ (Manet) publishing stories relating to bad conditions of roads, lack of toilets at some public hospitals and poor conditions of police cells among others and mobilizing the locals to demand for better service delivery.

On November 10th 2014, Akweteireho was arrested by police with his two colleagues and a computer server confiscated for running a petition on their face book page urging over 9,592 followers to sign on it before it’s delivered to parliament.  The petition sought to compel government repair Kigumba- Masindi-Kagadi-Kyenjojo highway which is currently in a sorry state and yet government has been pledging to undertake construction of the road for the past financial years.

The trio were charged with incitement to violence and released on police bond on 13th November 2014. They have since reported on bond for three times and expected to report for the fourth time on 29th/December/2014.

The Unwanted Witness Uganda considers actions of police in the mid-western Uganda as intimidating with intent to cause fear and psychological torture among activists to abandon their work online and as general elections draw nearer, online platforms are likely to be targeted by the regime.

For more information contact;

THE UNWANTED WITNESS – Uganda

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