Ugandan protesters planning to proceed with a banned anti-corruption march on Tuesday are “playing with fire,” warned the country’s president.
“Some elements have been planning illegal demonstrations, riots,” President Yoweri Museveni said in a televised address late Saturday.
Museveni, who has ruled the East African nation with an iron fist since 1986, claimed the protesters included “elements working for foreign interests,” though he did not provide further details.
Earlier on Saturday, Ugandan police had informed the organisers that the planned protest in Kampala would not be permitted, citing intelligence that “some elements were trying to take advantage of the demonstration to cause chaos in the country.”
“Demonstrations can only be allowed under our mandate as long as they are not causing public disorder and disrupting the lives of lawful citizens,” stated Ugandan police operations director Frank Mwesigwa to AFP.
Despite this, the protest organisers told AFP they were determined to proceed.
“We don’t need police permission to carry out a peaceful demonstration,” said Louez Aloikin Opolose, one of the main protest leaders.
“It is our constitutional right.”
The protesters intend to march past parliament, accusing it of tolerating corruption.
“Our starting point in the fight against corruption is parliament… and the demonstration is on irrespective of what police is saying,” said protester Shamim Nambasa.
Transparency International ranks Uganda low on its corruption perceptions index, placing it at 141 out of 180 countries.
The anti-corruption protesters have been closely watching the sometimes deadly demonstrations in neighboring Kenya, which have been ongoing for more than a month.
Initially peaceful rallies against controversial tax hikes in Kenya evolved into a broader anti-government movement, with activists demanding action against corruption and alleged police brutality.
According to the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights, at least 50 people have been killed and 413 injured since the Kenyan demonstrations began on June 18.
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