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A reference filed by CSOs against the planned construction of the East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) is set for hearing.

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By Witness Radio Team

Four East African Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) have petitioned the regional court of justice, seeking both temporary and permanent injunctions against the planned construction of the East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP)

The reference submitted by the Center for Food and Adequate Living Rights (CEFROHT), Africa Institute for Energy Governance (AFIEGO), Natural Justice-Kenya, and Center for Strategic Litigation in Tanzania highlights significant issues including threatening local livelihoods, food security, public health, biodiversity and the global climate that have failed to be addressed by both the governments of Uganda and Tanzania.

According to the reference filed on the 6th of November 2022, the governments of Uganda, and Tanzania and the Secretary General of the East African Community have violated environmental laws, human rights obligations, and regional agreements, in authorizing French oil giant, Total, to build a massive oil pipeline from Hoima, Uganda to Tanga, Tanzania.

For years, communities and civil societies have echoed concerns over the impacts of the East Africa Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) project which has affected thousands in Uganda and Tanzania. Human rights organizations claim French energy giant Total and its partner China National Offshore Oil Corporation involved in the $3.5 billion EACOP have failed to fully address concerns raised by the project to host communities.

The 1,443km people crude oil export pipeline which is expected to impact over 118000 people will transport Uganda’s crude oil from Hoima in Uganda to Tanga port in Tanzania.

The project will cross through 10 districts in Uganda, a distance of 296 kilometers, and 25 districts in Tanzania, covering eight regions, and 25 districts is estimated to be the longest electrically heated pipeline in the world.

Its impact has largely been witnessed by the PAPs, leaders, and human rights activists opposing the project including land grabbing, harassment, and arrests of community leaders and rights activists.

“Construction of the pipeline will destroy farmland, disrupt livelihoods and exacerbate food insecurity. Thousands of people are to be displaced and have already been told not to set up or plant any long-term structures or crops and yet they have not been given any compensation yet. These impacts are set to cause major social disruption and erode social cohesion, leading to increased poverty in areas affected by the EACOP in Uganda and Tanzania.” The reference reveals in part.

The reference further adds that the pipeline will traverse protected forests, such as the Wambabya and Bugoma reserves, and endanger numerous water sources of great importance to millions of people in East Africa, including Lake Victoria. The pipeline passes along the Lake Victoria basin which is a major water source for millions in not only East Africa but the whole of the African region. This risks and exposes Lake Victoria and River Nile to danger through oil spills and pollution. The EACOP will also significantly impact biodiversity and put numerously vulnerable and endangered species native to Uganda and Tanzania at risk, including elephants, lions, and giraffes.

The EACOP has been widely criticized by civil societies and other actors advocating for the rights of affected people expressing the unaddressed concerns the project is likely to expose to the host communities.

On the 14th of September 2022, the European Union Parliament passed an advisory resolution to suspend the oil pipeline for a year citing disastrous human and environmental rights violations associated with the project.

According to the resolutions by the European Parliament legislators, the oil pipeline has caused the displacement of people from their land without fair compensation, caused harassment, criminalization, intimidation, and arrests of human rights defenders, and closure of NGOs, and is likely to endanger the nature reserves and habitats.

The case is scheduled to be heard in Kampala on the 11th of November 2022.

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Criminalization of planet, land, and environmental defenders in Uganda is on the increase as 2023 recorded the soaring number of attacks.

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By Witness Radio team.

Close to 200 community human rights defenders and activists have paid a price for protecting the planet, land, and environmental rights in Uganda in the year 2023, Witness Radio – Uganda reports.

The abridged report titled “The State of Planet, Environmental, and Land Rights Defenders in Uganda 2023” by Witness Radio documented 181 cases of arbitrary arrests, detentions, imprisonments, disappearances, and other retaliatory attacks.

Witness Radio‘s findings reveal a disturbing pattern wherein all arrests are marked by extreme violence, particularly targeting those who boldly stand up to fight for nature, food sovereignty, and biodiversity and mobilize communities to push back violence against them. Beyond the mere detentions, these defenders often fall victim to kidnapping, torture, and arbitrary arrest, fostering an atmosphere of fear among them and the communities they represent.

Nevertheless, defenders who persist and stand up for their beliefs are at a higher risk of violent attacks from investors and their agents. Notably, the Western region emerges as a fiery epicenter for the unjust criminalization of these brave individuals, where the flames of oppression burn most intensely. It is followed by Central, Northern and Eastern regions respectively.

The report also highlights a concerning trend in Uganda’s agricultural sector, marked by a significant increase in violent and retaliatory attacks and detentions. It is closely followed by similar issues within the oil sector, as the infrastructure sector underscoring the urgent necessity for comprehensive action to address the escalating threats and attacks faced by land and environmental defenders in Uganda.

Witness Radio’s Community Empowerment officer, Ms. Bulyerali Joan, reveals that the prevalence of the continued unforceful evictions and escalating criminalization of community land and environmental defenders is a result of insufficient due diligence by both government entities and investors in their business investments.

“Land and environmental rights defenders are consistently targeted for arrest as a means to intimidate them into relinquishing their land. The collusion between the police, who are tasked with protecting the community, and investors results in the detention of these defenders, leaving them vulnerable to the whims of the investors. Furthermore, the government and various project funders fail to conduct proper due diligence to ensure that the entities they support uphold human rights standards,” Ms. Bulyerali emphasized.

“Over the past years, we have been documenting the complicity between the police, army, and private security guards in carrying out illegal evictions, as well as their roles in suppressing protesters advocating for land and environmental rights,” added Ms. Bulyerali. “Unfortunately, 2023 has seen a continuation of this pattern, with the police, private guards, and army actively involved in violent evictions, resulting in the arrests and detentions of critics of various projects.”

In one of the communities mentioned in the report, Rwabunyonyi village in Hoima district, a community member named Venessa not real name due to fear of retaliation from land grabbers, disclosed that in March 2023, 21 land defenders were forcibly arrested by local police, allegedly in collusion with land grabbers. Shockingly, these defenders were falsely charged with murder and aggravated robbery, a blatant attempt to silence them and instill fear among the communities they represent.

“Our land remains heavily guarded by private security personnel, preventing us from accessing and utilizing it for our livelihoods. These guards have intensified violence against us and persistently target our land for large-scale investments” Vanessa told Witness Radio.

Shockingly, despite Junior Lands Minister Mr. Sam Mayanja’s attempt to intervene and protect the community from land grabbing on August 24, 2023, security guards affiliated with the Pyramid Private Security group stationed on the land resorted to threatening him with gunfire.

According to the Rwabunyonyi community members, they perceive this act as demonstrating the impunity with which these powerful land grabbers operate to the extent of ordering the guards to shoot at the minister. They questioned how ordinary citizens like themselves could challenge the oppressive tactics of these guards if they showed no fear in confronting high-ranking officials.

In the oil sector, the controversial East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) has persistently inflicted detrimental effects on the very individuals it purports to benefit. From unfair compensations and land grabbing to relentless harassment and violent arrests of critics, its impact is starkly evident. Notably, among those forcefully arrested and falsely charged for raising legitimate concerns about the environmental damage caused by the pipeline project is Bob Barigye.

Barigye, a climate activist and an advocate for social justice and human rights, working with the African Initiative on Food Security and Environment (AIFE) was arbitrarily arrested and detained more than three times in 2023. He recounted one harrowing incident on January 24th 2023, while in Kampala. He revealed that during this arrest, 15 police officers manhandled and severely beat him. The catalyst for the activist’s arrest was his involvement in organizing a debate addressing the environmental, human rights, and economic ramifications of the EACOP project.

Barigye further described being forcefully placed into a police van, where officers compelled him to lie on the floor beneath the seats. He was then transported to and detained at Wandegeya Police Station, in Kampala district. He reported being charged with obstructing police officers while on duty before being released on police bond on January 27th 2023.

Despite the increasing number of reported cases, the report anticipates a potential reduction in land evictions shortly. This optimism follows President Yoweri Museveni’s decision to ban the involvement of the army in evictions. Museveni’s action was later complemented by the Minister of Internal Affairs, Kahinda Otafiire, who warned against the participation of both police and private guards in illegal land evictions.

Following growing concerns about the army’s role in carrying land evictions, in December 2023 the President announced a ban prohibiting the involvement of the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) in land matters and guarding grabbed land claiming, that the actions by the army deviate from its primary mandate of securing the country’s borders.

Additionally, Otafiire, earlier this year cautioned police’s involvement in illegal land evictions and added that he has always advised the Ugandan police to stay away from land involving conflicts. Otafiire also gave a directive barring private security company groups from manning people’s land.

The report also advises the government to enforce regulations mandating thorough human rights and environmental due diligence processes before endorsing any land-based investments. It suggests conducting periodic evaluations of such investments. The Uganda Investment Authority should engage with investors and companies to establish Internal Grievances Appeal Mechanisms to address adverse social and economic effects of their operations, among other measures, to curb rising criminalization.

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DEFENDING LAND AND ENVIRONMENTAL RIGHTS

Mityana district police rounded up and arbitrarily arrested over 50 Kikuube PAPs to block them from meeting Uganda’s Prime Minister.

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By Witness Radio team

Two (2) community land rights defenders and 68 projects-affected persons from Kikuube district including children have been rounded up and arrested by Mityana district Police, Witness Radio has learned.

The community group led by Fred Mbambali and Ahumuza Busingye, were arrested from City Healing Church in Mityana Municipality, Mityana district. They were arrested on the orders of Mityana District Police Commander, Mr. Hasunira Ahmed, without being informed of the reasons for the arrest.

To seek justice and reclaim their grabbed land, the community decided to journey from the Kikuube district on Saturday, 2nd March 2024. Their objective was to petition Uganda’s Prime Minister, Rt. Hon. Robinah Nabanja, to intervene in grievances concerning forced evictions from their land and their unsuccessful attempts to regain ownership of their land that was grabbed by the officials of the Prime minister’s office for Kyangwali resettlement camp.

“On Friday, we departed from Kikuube district to Kakumiro intending to meet the Prime Minister. We aimed to convey the challenges we are facing following the unlawful seizure of our land. We sought her intervention to help us regain ownership, especially since many offices that were approached have not helped end our misery. Unfortunately, upon our arrival, we discovered she was in preparations to leave her residence. Instead, she instructed her private security team to escort us to her party’s offices (National Resistance Movement, NRM) in the Kakumiro district, assuring us that she would meet with us there. But she did not come back.” Mr. Mbambali Fred, one of the group leaders told Witness Radio.

Little did the affected community members know that their stay at the offices would be short-lived. Initially, they were welcomed by the security officers at the party offices, but their situation took a turn when the District security committee of Kakumiro led by the Resident District Commissioner (RDC), Mr. Matovu David and the District Police Commander (DPC) in the area Mr. Niyonzima Morris visited and questioned them about the reasons for their visit.

Subsequently, PAPs explained that they had been directed to wait at the offices by the Prime Minister. Despite their explanation, the Committee was skeptical and held an emergency meeting to resolve that Kikuube PAPs should leave the premises. The committee stated that the issue raised was not within the mandate of the Kakumiro district and thereafter, were asked to relocate to a different location, not within Kakumiro.

The stern Kakumiro district leaders directed the group to depart and proceed to the Office of the Prime Minister in Kampala for their meeting with her.

Shortly after being chased, they proceeded to Kampala via Mityana road, but PAPs sought to rest at one of the churches in the Mityana district. As soon as they occupied the church, Mityana district raided the premises, arrested all of them, and took them to Mityana Central Police Station, claiming that PAPs were posing a threat to the community.

“We were rounded up and arrested without being given any opportunity to explain ourselves. They didn’t even inform us of the reason for our arrest. We were kept at the police for nearly 12 hours without food. Both children and elders were starving, and the children even reached the point of crying because we were not allowed to move. It’s a double punishment to us because we haven’t committed any offense,” Ahumuza Busingye, another defender, told Witness Radio.

They were cautioned and later released without charges.

The Mityana District Police Commander, Mr. Hasunira Ahmed confirmed the arrest, stating that people neighboring the church had lodged complaints with the police about unknown individuals with a large amount of luggage occupying their premises. This led the police to arrest them.

“We received complaints about these individuals occupying a particular church, which posed a potential threat because they hadn’t obtained permission to stay there and didn’t possess a letter authorizing their movement to their destination. That’s why we intervened with an arrest, as many of them looked like rebels,” stated the Mityana District Police Commander.

PAPs arrested are part of the larger group of over 90,000 people evicted between 2013 and 2019 in 29 villagers by the office of the Prime minister (OPM) to give their land to the refugees in Katikala and Bukinda in Kyangwali district.

The community was evicted by officials led by Charles Bafaki from the Office of the Prime Minister, accompanied by the police and Uganda People Defence Forces (UPDF), from their land measuring 36 square kilometers located in various villages, including Bukinda A and B, Bukinda 2, Kavule, Bwizibwera A and B, Kyeya A and B, Nyaruhanga, Kabirizi, Nyamigisa A and B, and Katoma, all in Kyangwali sub-county for the Kyangwali refugee resettlement camp.

Despite receiving various directives, including two from the President, instructing the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) officials to facilitate the return of the residents to their land, they have chosen to turn a deaf ear and disregard the implementation of these directives.

In 2016 and 2018, President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni issued directives to resettle PAPs back to their ancestral land, but unfortunately, these directives remained unimplemented.

In 2021, Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja visited the victims and promised action, which, as of the time of writing this article, it’s yet to be realized.

On March 1, 2022, Minister of Relief, Disaster Preparedness, and Refugees, Mr. Hilary Onek, accused the victims of encroaching on government land. He also criticized local leaders and officials for potential involvement in stage-managed evictions.

In 2022, approximately 1,000 of the evictees camped at the office of the Kikuube Resident District Commissioner, Amlan Tumusiime, demanding his intervention to help them return to their land. Unfortunately, this intervention did not materialize. Some of the evictees sought shelter in temporary shelters provided by Florence Natumanya, the Kikuube Woman MP, and Francis Kazini, the Buhaguzi Member of Parliament, while others continued to search for livelihoods in other parts of the country.

“People are suffering immensely, and we are witnessing deaths without having a proper place to bury our loved ones. No one is coming to our rescue, and it’s heartbreaking to see our children deprived of education, as they are the future of tomorrow,” expressed the community members in an interview with Witness Radio.

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MEDIA FOR CHANGE NETWORK

Breaking: A community land rights defender in Kiryandongo is arrested for attempting to open a case against company workers who erased his garden.

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By Witness Radio team.

A community land rights defender, known for his steadfast efforts in mobilizing Kiryandongo district communities against land grabbing by multinational corporations, has been arbitrarily arrested and detained at Kiryandongo central police, Witness Radio has learned.

According to his close relatives, Mwawula Fred, based in Kisalanda village, Mutunda parish, Kiryandongo district, was arrested and detained on Thursday, February 29th, 2024, at Kiryandongo police while attempting to open a criminal case against workers of Great Seasons SMC Limited for destroying his maize and green pepper garden with a tractor.

On the 22nd of February 2024, four Great Seasons SMC Limited Company workers with a tractor invaded and erased the community defender’s garden with crops ready for harvest such as maize, green pepper, and tomatoes. The workers used a numberless company tractor to destroy the defender’s 3 acres of crops.

Meanwhile, the defender bravely tried to intervene to stop the destruction of his crops but, workers callously persisted with their destructive actions, disregarding the defender’s pleas to cease their illegal land grab bringing in an altercation from both sides. After, company workers made off with sacks full of maize.

Sources, have it that the defender was rounded up at the Kiryandongo Central police counter while opening up a criminal case against company workers. He was arbitrarily arrested and detained on charges of assault.

It alleged that he assaulted workers of the Great Seasons SMC Company Limited who destroyed his crops.

Mr. Mwawula on several occasions has been in and out of prison on several charges over eight times for mobilizing local communities to resist land grabbing and forceful evictions by multinational companies in the Kiryandongo district. However, the court has dismissed all of them for want of prosecution.

Frequently, the gardens belonging to smallholder farmers, activists, and defenders have been targeted and vandalized by Great Seasons SMC Company Limited, demanding that the local community should vacate what the company asserts as its land. In a distressing incident last December 2023, many defenders’ gardens were set ablaze by workers of the company, resulting in a prolonged famine within projected affected families.

Since 2017, when these multinationals started their operations in the Kiryandongo district, nearly 40,000 residents have lost their family lands to violent and forceful evictions to pave the way for industrial agriculture. In addition to the Great Seasons SMC Limited, several multinationals are implicated in land-grabbing activities, such as Kiryandongo Sugar Limited, Agilis Partners Limited, and Somdiam Limited.

Great Seasons SMC Company Limited grows coffee, Agilis Partners grows soya and maize while Kiryandongo Sugar Company and Somdiam Sugar Company grow sugarcane.

The defender is yet to be aligned before the court.

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