The Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs Nobert Mao has asked the security forces of Police and Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) to explain where the alleged abducted supporters of the National Unity Platform (NUP) are.
Mao said during the launch of the third Quarterly Rule of Law Report for the year 2023. The Report highlights critical events and issues, including the appointment of new judicial officers, the introduction and passage of new legislation, reports on cases of human rights violations, empaneling of commissions of inquiry to investigate disputes of wide importance, the rising cases of enforced disappearance, violation of the rights of journalists, and general reports on the state of governance and the Rule of Law in Uganda.
The report comes at a time when there is ongoing boycott of parliament by the opposition legislators over the allegations of missing persons. The opposition MPs led by Nyendo-Mukungwe MP Mathias Mpuuga claim the government has failed to account for missing persons and the continuous detention of their supporters without trial.
“We acknowledge some of these weaknesses. We believe that the matter of November 18 has got to come to a close. I believe that the arrests and abductions must be explained. I don’t think the security forces are lunatics. But I also don’t know why they don’t explain,” he said.
“It is not enough to say what you have done is bad. What law society should be doing is to say look, if you truly believe that somebody has done something wrong, arrest them. I don’t like it when police conduct itself as if they have a personal problem with anybody,” he said
He said; “Dear members of the security forces, you are acting on behalf of the State of Uganda. I know our people are provocative because I have been in many demonstrations like walk to work walk. Even war has rules. There are rules of teargassing people, arresting people so observe those rules thriving on human rights in Uganda”.
