Dozens of people have been detained in the Ugandan capital Kampala after joining scattered anti-corruption protests in defiance of an official ban.
Around 60 individuals, including a well-known TV presenter and three young protest leaders, were quickly brought before the courts and remanded in custody after a march on the country’s parliament on Tuesday.
President Yoweri Museveni, who has led Uganda for nearly four decades, had warned that protesters were “playing with fire” ahead of the demonstration.
The march, organized via social media, was driven by frustration over persistent corruption allegations involving several high-profile public officials.
The protests were partly inspired by recent demonstrations in neighboring Kenya that compelled President William Ruto to abandon proposed tax increases.
Police had previously announced that they would not permit the march, citing concerns over maintaining Uganda’s “peace and security.” On Tuesday, riot officers set up roadblocks, and security forces closed off roads and guarded the parliament building.
Images from the protests showed demonstrators holding signs reading “Stop corruption” and denouncing the parliament as a “den of thieves.” Other photos depicted protesters being forcefully handled by police and shoved into riot vans.
“We are tired of corruption,” protester Samson Kiriya told AFP news agency through the bars of a van after being arrested.
Those detained included well-known television and radio presenter Faiza Salima as well as three protest organisers – George Victor Otieno, Kennedy Ndyamuhaki, and Aloikin Praise Opoloje.
Bernard Oundo, president of the Uganda Law Society, said one hearing saw 50 people charged.
“This was a rushed trial. They were arrested and taken to court in a very short time and remanded to prison without securing them bail,” he said.
“We will ensure these people receive justice.”
On the eve of the march, Uganda’s main opposition leader, Bobi Wine, said security forces had besieged the Kampala headquarters of his National Unity Platform party.
He said some of his party officials had been “violently arrested” and that the offices had been turned into a “military barracks”.
Writing on X following the march, Mr Wine, whose real name is Robert Kyagulanyi, said: “Salutations to all who have courageously marched and are still marching against corruption and misrule – even in the face of very brutal actions by the military and police!
“The cowards have been picking up young people whose only crime is lifting up a placard.”
He also noted that legal and welfare teams would be provided to those in need.
Earlier this year, both the UK and US imposed sanctions on several Ugandan officials, including Parliament Speaker Anita Among and three former or current ministers, due to their alleged involvement in corruption.
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