The cost of control: Uganda cracks down on digital and physical rights ahead of elections
- Human Rights Research Center
- 7 minutes ago
- 4 min read
Author: Erina Bazán López
January 15, 2026
HRRC calls upon the Ugandan government to immediately reinstate internet access, allow NGOs to resume their vital work, and ensure the safety of all journalists and opposition supporters. Continuity of leadership must not be pursued at the expense of the fundamental human rights of the Ugandan people.
![Supporters of Uganda's President and the leader of ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) party, Yoweri Museveni, march along the street before attending his campaign rally in Kampala, Uganda January 13, 2026. [Image credit: REUTERS/Michael Muhati]](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/e28a6b_44cc92332f85434284e296461693d7a0~mv2.png/v1/fill/w_49,h_32,al_c,q_85,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,blur_2,enc_avif,quality_auto/e28a6b_44cc92332f85434284e296461693d7a0~mv2.png)
As Uganda approaches its general elections on January 15, security forces have intensified their crackdown on the opposition, detaining hundreds of supporters frequently firing live bullets and tear gas to break up rallies.
The spike in election-period violence occurs as 81-year-old Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni seeks to extend his nearly 40-year rule amidst a challenge from popular 43-year-old singer-turned-politician Bobi Wine. The United Nations Human Rights Office has warned that the vote is taking place in an atmosphere of “widespread repression and intimidation,” with reports of arbitrary arrests and abductions of opposition supporters.
Efforts to control the narrative through digital silence have now culminated in a total communications blockade ordered by the Uganda Communications Commission (UCC) at 6:00 pm on 13 January, despite the government assuring as recently as January 5th that internet access would be maintained during the election. . The regulator justified the decision as a “precautionary intervention” to reduce the spread of online misinformation, electoral fraud, and incitement of violence. While essential services such as hospitals and banks were reportedly permitted access to the internet, their traffic is to be monitored, and such services are prohibited from allowing users to access social media or Virtual Private Networks (VPNs). This follows the government’s refusal to license Elon Musk’s Starlink service in the country and government assertions that they will block decentralised messaging tools like Bitchat.
On the same day as the internet shutdown, the government ordered two prominent local rights groups – Chapter Four Uganda and the Human Rights Network for Journalists-Uganda (HRNJ-U) –to halt operations immediately, claiming their activities were “prejudicial” to national security. Both organisations had been vocal in denouncing the arbitrary detention and torture of journalists and opposition activists. Furthermore, the Ministry of ICT has prohibited the live coverage of “riots, unlawful processions, or violent incidents,” a move critics argue is intended to shield abuses carried out by security forces from public scrutiny.
Since November 2025, several media practitioners have reported brutal assaults by security personnel, among them Ssematimba Bwegiire, who was reportedly electrocuted while covering an opposition rally; Ivan Mbadhi of BBS Terefayina, who was kicked and head slammed against a vehicle by police; and Brian Ssenkumba, who was slapped and then detained for hours. Foreign media journalists have also been denied access to the president’s final rally despite having accreditation.
As polling day arrives, the overlapping crises of political repression, information blackouts, and state-sanctioned violence are pushing Uganda’s democratic process to a breaking point. While the government maintains these measures are necessary for national stability, the cost is increasingly borne by the citizens and journalists caught in the crossfire of a contentious transition.
Glossary
Abuses: use (something) to bad effect or for a bad purpose; misuse.
Accreditation: The official government licensing required for journalists to cover public affairs; recently used as a tool to selectively bar critical outlets from covering state events.
Arbitrary Detention: The arrest or abduction of individuals, particularly opposition supporters, without clear legal basis or due process, a practice increasingly reported by the UN.
Communications blockade: intentional obstruction or severe restriction of information flow, often by a government or authority, to control expression, isolate populations, or disrupt opposition, effectively creating silence and denying access to communication channels like the internet, phones, or media, as seen during political events or conflicts.
Decentralised Tools: Communication applications (such as Bitchat) that use Bluetooth technology to function without a central internet server; identified by the UCC as targets for state blocking.
Disinformation: False information spread deliberately to deceive; cited by the government as the primary justification for the internet blackout, despite earlier government claims of a blackout being "rumours".
Fundamental: a central or primary rule or principle on which something is based.
Incitement: the action of provoking unlawful behaviour or urging someone to behave unlawfully.
NGO (Non-Governmental Organisation): A non-profit group operating independently of the government; several focused on human rights were ordered to cease operations with immediate effect on 13 January.
Precautionary: carried out as a precaution; preventive.
Prejudicial: harmful to someone or something; detrimental.
Rallies: a mass meeting of people making a political protest or showing support for a cause.
Repression: the action of subduing someone or something by force.
State-sanctioned: something is officially approved, permitted, or authorized by a government or ruling authority.
Virtual Private Network (VPN): A digital service that encrypts internet traffic to bypass censorship; specifically prohibited by the UCC for institutions still granted limited internet access.
References