CATEGORY: I write Human Rights

Trial Judge orders investigations into torture claims by a land rights defender
By witnessradio.org Team Mubende – Uganda – As a criminal trial for the 28 land rights defenders enters its 15th day, trial judge Justice Anthony Oyuk Ojok has ordered Mubende district police to investigate

Mubende Judge Joseph Murangira in the spotlight once again over bias
Judge Joseph Murangira PHOTO BY RACHEL MABALA. By witnessradio.org Team Barely three months after he recused himself from a case involving 28 land rights defenders over bias, Mubende resident judge, Joseph Murangira is in the

More than 50 witnesses to testify in the trial of 28 land rights defenders
By witnessradio.org Team Mubende – Uganda – More than 50 witnesses have been lined up to testify in a 30 day-long trial of 28 land rights defenders, which kicked off on November 11th, 2019.

Court dismisses application to disqualify prosecutor, criminal trial for 28 land rights defenders kicks off today
Justice Anthony Oyuk Ojoko. By witnessradio.org Team Mubende – Uganda – the criminal Trial for the jailed 28 land rights defenders has kicked off today at Mubende high court circuit in a special criminal

Mubende district leaders want state attorney disqualified from a case against 28 land rights defenders.
MP Anthony Ssemuli (left) and LCV Chairperson Kibuuka Francis Amooti (right) By witnessradio.org Team Two Mubende district leaders have joined the campaign seeking to disqualify prosecutor Birivumbuka Richard from the case against 28 land

Lawyers for the jailed 28 land rights defenders want prosecutor disqualified.
By witnessradio.org Team Mubende – Uganda – As the criminal trial for 28 land rights defenders is rescheduled to Monday, November, 11th, 2019, defense lawyers have applied for the disqualification of state prosecutor Birivumbuka Richard

DPP fails to make full disclosure in Mubende land rights defender’s trial citing copier breakdown
By witnessradio.org Team Mubende – Uganda – Prosecution in the case in which 28 land rights defenders has so far failed to make full disclosure of evidence- to the defense lawyers citing copier breakdown. On

Mubende land rights defenders: Court changes dates for trial
Some of the 28 land rights defenders in court By witnessradio.org Team Mubende – Uganda – Prosecution in the case in which 28 land rights defenders who are accused of murder yesterday partially disclosed evidence

28 land rights defenders charged with 9 counts, trial slated for this November
By witnessradio.org Team Mubende – Uganda – After a year of detention without trial, the 28 land rights defenders have appeared on Friday, the 11th/10/2019 before High Court judge Anthony Oyuko Ojoko and denied

Uganda: Attorney for jailed land rights defenders detained briefly at Kaweeri prison.
Lawyer Eron Kiiza By witnessradio.org Team Mubende – Uganda: Eron Kiiza, the lead counsel, for the 28 jailed land rights defenders was on Thursday briefly detained at Kaweeri government Prison. The arrest stemmed from

Masindi High Court refuses to block a multi-million agribusiness company from illegally evicting thousands.
By witnessradio.org Team Masindi – For the second time, in a row, the High Court in the western town of Masindi has declined to stop Agilis Partners limited, a multi-million agribusiness company from forcefully

Criminal trial date for 28 land rights defenders is set
By witnessradio.org Team Virtually one year of being detained, without trial, 28 land rights defenders are now set the face the court of law this very month. October, 10, 2019, has been listed by

Human rights lawyer Eron Kiiza appears before the police over alleged libel investigations.
Kampala/Mubende – The lawyer is currently representing over 3000 inhabitants who were forcefully if not violently evicted from their land covering five villages in Mubende municipality- Mubende district. Kiiza’s clients lost their livelihoods to

Land grabbing: Police shields complainant in the libel case against human rights attorney Kiiza Eron.
A team of lawyers representing Attorney Eron Kiiza. By witnessradio.org Team Kampala/Mubende – The Criminal Investigations Department (CID) of Uganda police has so far developed a cold foot when tasked to disclose a complainant

Attorney representing 3000 land grab victims indicted with criminal libel
By witnessradio.org Team Kampala – Uganda police has issued criminal summons against Human Rights Lawyer Eron Kiiza. Kiiza who is currently representing 3000 victims of land grabs in Mubende district and the 28 land

Chinese farms in Uganda Disappoint, with little to show after fanfare
Chinese agricultural investments in Africa have sparked fierce controversy, excoriated as colonial plunder or hailed as productive and beneficial to local farmers. But the picture here in Luwero, Uganda, 50 miles north of the capital,

Be part of a million people to demand justice for Kaweeri coffee victims
Photo was taken by Fian International By witnessradio.org Team People from across the world are calling on Ugandan President, Yoweri Museveni and Neumann Coffee Group CEO Christian Neumann to fully compensate displaced people from

Court orders police in Mityana to unconditionally release a community land rights defender, and 5 others
By witnessradio.org Team Mityana district – A Chief Magistrate Court has ordered Mityana police headed by Maine Alex Mukono to unconditionally release six (6) people who have been held in police custody since 7th

Police commander sued for illegal detention of a community land rights defender, and 5 others
By witnessradio.org Team witnessradio.org lawyers have sued Mityana district police commanders Mwine Alex Mukono and the attorney general for illegally and unlawfully detaining community land rights defenders plus five other people for over 14

Victims of Kaweeri Coffee Plantation Limited settle for compensation
By witnessradio.org Team Having suffered for approximately 18-years, inhabitants evicted from their land by Kaweeri Coffee Plantation limited in the Central District of Mubende have settled for compensation as a court guided mediation process

Five people framed and arrested over murder of a landlord in Mityana
By witnessradio.org Team Five people including an entire village leadership have been arrested by police in Mityana district after the murder of Mulinde Kamada Kimbugwe who was passing off as a landlord. Those arrested

Court jails community land defenders, local council leader on attempted murder charges
By witnessradio.org Team A court in Mityana district has jailed three community land defenders including local council chairperson on charges of attempted murder however, their imprisonment is linked to their involvement in defending

Support the Evictees Against the Neumann Kaffee Gruppe and Government of Uganda
Almost eighteen years after the evictees were expelled from their lands, the court has finally ordered a mediation until 28 August 2019. We urge you to support the evictees’ demands for the full restitution

Judicial officers propose land eviction guidelines
KAMPALA – Judicial officers want soldiers to be barred from carrying out evictions in the country. They also recommend that the role of police should be limited to observing evictions in addition to keeping law

Mubende Land Rights Defenders Case Transferred to Kampala
By witnessradio.org Team A civil suit plus a criminal case file against 28 human rights Defenders in Mubende district have taken a new twist as Kampala High Court calls both files for scrutiny and

Court To Determine Whether To Stop An Illegal Eviction Of 3000 People In Mubende
By Witnessradio.org Team Days after Mubende High Court resident Judge Joseph Murangira recused himself from the matter against 28 human rights defenders, Court will tomorrow sit to determine whether to pass an injunction stopping

LAND EVICTIONS: Judge recuse himself from a case against 28 human rights defenders
By witnessradio.org Team Mubende district resident Judge Joseph Murangira has recused himself from a hearing case involving 28 land rights defenders among others. The 28 human rights defenders were arrested and charged with nine

Uganda Law Society asks lawyer to ‘pull down’ Facebook post
A human rights lawyer and activist, Eron Kiiza has come under fire for allegedly writing offensive Facebook posts against the Mubende resident judge, Joseph Murangira.Uganda Law Society (ULS) a body charged with ensuring high

LAND EVICTIONS: Judicial body opens investigations into Justice Murangira’s conduct
By witnessradio.org Team The Judicial Service Commission (JSC) has announced that its investigating Mubende High Court justice Joseph Murangira over his conduct. The development stems from a complaint filed by Mr. Ronald Mugwambya and

Lawyers protest Justice Murangira’s conduct
By witnessradio.org Team Human Rights Lawyers representing over 3000 people challenging their illegal eviction from five villages in Mubende district have protested the manner in which High Court judge Joseph Murangira is conducting this

Estate manager grilled for illegally evicting 70 households in Kassanda district
By witnessradio.org Team Nicholas Kabagambe, a resident of Mengo in Kampala has come under fire from the Land Commission for evicting 70 households in Kassanda District. Kabagambe told the Commission Chaired by Justice, Catherine

Investigate Mubende Police Commander And Entire District Police Leadership For Aiding Illegal Land Evictions
Kampala-Mubende, 19th/01/2019; witnessradio.org, a civil society organisation advocating for natives’ land rights has petitioned the office of the Inspector General of Police and Police’s Professional Standards Unit, calling for independent investigations into the role

Land defender forced to sign a land sell agreement in prison to be saved from serving a jail sentence.
Bukenya Paul in a green shirt By witnessradio.org Team Having been sentenced to three years in prison by the Mubende Chief Magistrate’s court for attempting to murder a one Matia Muhanguzi, Bukenya Paul never

Setback: Land Defenders Remanded as Court Allows in Supplementary Affidavits
By witnessradio.org Team The High Court sitting in Mubende district has allowed lawyers representing land defenders to file in supplementary affidavits introducing more sureties to support the bail application filed earlier. witnessradio.org ’s staff

Justice institutions should protect land defenders and communities’ land rights
Mubende, 07th/01/2019; witnessradio.org is calling upon justice institutions in Uganda, particularly in Mubende district to protect frontline land defenders from persecution and malicious imprisonment to save family land which is being targeted by ‘investors’.

World Bank Group – International Monitory Fund its role in the global land grabs
By witnessradio.org/farmlandgrab.org The World Bank Group between 2006 and 2016, has directly funded at least 14 large land deals spanning at least 900,000 hectares and provided securities financing to over 700,000 more in Africa,

Violence is taking toll to solving land governance challenges in Uganda
By witnessradio.org team Uganda joins the rest of the world to commemorate World Food Day, 2018, it’s worrying to note increasing acts of violence from native communities in a bid to fight back their

Tears as Museveni halts evictions in Kasangati
On the ground. President Museveni addresses residents of Sekanyonyi-Lusanja in Kasangati Town Council, Wakiso District, yesterday. Wakiso. Emotions ran high yesterday as President Museveni toured a 75-acre land where hundreds of families were violently evicted

Gov’t concedes perpetuating Land disputes – UHRC Report
By witnessradio.org Team A report by the Uganda Human Rights Commission indicates that government institutions are responsible for fueling land disputes as poverty levels continue to rise amongst citizens. Uganda Human Rights Commission (UHRC)

Oil palm plantations in Amazonia inhospitable to tropical forest biodiversity: Study
According to a study published in the journal PloS One late last year, the Brazilian Amazon has about 2.3 million square kilometers (nearly 900,000 square miles) of land suitable for oil palm cultivation, making

Uganda; Land for smallholder farmers is vanishing unbated
By witnessradio.org Team, “…Land in Uganda belongs to the citizens of Uganda and shall vest in them in accordance with the land tenure systems provided for in this Constitution…” states article 237 of the

20,000 People Allegedly Displaced in Uganda for UK Forestry Company’s Carbon-Offset Program
Extracted from treehugger , September 23, 2011 Nzabakulisiza Sirasi, 32, is one of over 20,000 people to have been evicted from their homes in Mubende District, Uganda, since the government licensed land to the

UK and Germany firms use government officials to grab 20,000 peasants’ land
Extracted from the Independent , January, 2012. As people celebrate Christmas, it is a luxury that others can even hardly afford to think about and have spent their last 10 Christmas like that—sad, poor

Oxfam Report Says Thousands Evicted in Uganda Land Grab
The British charity Oxfam has released a new report detailing the forced eviction of people from forests in Uganda to make way for a British timber company. The Ugandan government denies the allegations, and says the

British forest firm that evicted Ugandan peasants closes shop
By TABU BUTAGIRA KAMPALA A British firm accused by Oxfam International of illegally evicting some 20,000 Ugandan peasants from arable land to plant trees yesterday suspended operations, a decision it said stemmed from loss

In Scramble for Land, Group Says, Company Pushed Ugandans Out
KICUCULA, Uganda — According to the company’s proposal to join a United Nations clean-air program, the settlers living in this area left in a “peaceful” and “voluntary” manner. People here remember it quite differently.

UK company evicts 20,000 in Uganda
Over 20,000 people were forced from their homes the central districts of Mubende and Kiboga to pave way for a tree planting project by a British company, Oxfam said in a report and called

Oxfam Report 2011: When Indigenous communities named Rwanda nationals by investor to run away from corporate accountability
By witnessradio.org Team as extracted from Author’s report… A very different story was told by the New Forest company sent to audit NFC for the FSC certification of its Namwasa plantation in Mubende. The

Oxfam report 2011: Court orders were too weak to stop an investor in Mubende and Kiboga
By witnessradio.org Team, a Third Series The story of neighbouring Mubende just months later echoes the events of the 2008– 2010 Kiboga evictions. In both cases, the local people believed they had legal claims

Oxfam Report 2011: How government and investor named bonafide occupants ‘illegal encroachers” to justify the eviction
By witnessradio.org Team, as extracted from Oxfam report Oxfam research indicated that around 7,400 people were living on the Namwasa plantation and at least 15,191 people on the Luwunga plantation. NFC and government officials

Oxfam Report 2011: Money from the west; financed displacement of over 20000 families both in Mubende and Kiboga districts
witnessradio.org is running the report in series When the New Forests Company (NFC) was formed in 2004 its management’s aim was for it to become East Africa’s biggest forester. The UK registered company has

Ugandan farmer: ‘My land gave me everything. Now I’m one of the poorest’
Francis Longoli, a small farmer from Kiboga district of central Uganda, is tearful: “I remember my land, three acres of coffee, many trees – mangoes and avocados. I had five acres of bananas, 10

The New Forests Company and its Uganda plantations
London-based New Forests Company (NFC) would seem to be the design blueprint of how a young modern company should conduct a major land investment in Africa in a responsible way. Oxfam’s investigations reveal, however,

Justice is victim in Choudry, ULS fight
Written by Observer Media Ltd Uganda Law Society High Court judge Justice Anup Singh Choudry has stirred controversy with a judgment in which he slapped a Shs 37bn bill on

Judge slaps Shs 37bn bill on lawyers
Written by Edris Kiggundu March 31, 2013 Uganda Law Society declares war on him Justice Anup Singh Choudry has ordered two prominent lawyers to pay Shs 37 billion for allegedly being ‘dishonest’ in a case

Kaweri Coffee (part of Neumann Gruppe) lawsuit (re forced eviction in Uganda)
Author: Business & Human rights centre Para la versión en español de este perfil de las demandas judiciales, haga clic acá. In August 2002 a group of Ugandans filed a criminal complaint against Kaweri

Claims of illegal eviction in Uganda haunt German firm
By Chrispin Mwakideu and Leylah Ndinda : 26/08/2013 In 2001, more than 4,000 people were evicted from land in Uganda after it had been acquired by a German coffee firm on a 99-year lease. The

Victims of human rights violations in Uganda still waiting for redress
Progress achieved in addressing the situation of the 4000 evictees in Mubende will again be under review, at the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural and Social Rights. For the first time compliance with

Coffee investor accused of evicting 400 peasants
July 22, 2009 Written by joomlasupport Mubende-based Kaweri Coffee Plantation Ltd. is embroiled in controversy after its parent company, the Neumann Kaffee Gruppe (NKG) of Hamburg, Germany, was accused of unlawfully evicting peasants from their

Uganda urged to give land back to Mubende’s evicted community
The UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural and Social Rights (CESCR) calls on the State of Uganda to take immediate measures to ensure that the rights of those forcibly evicted from Mubende District

15 years without remedy
Despite more than a decade of mobilization and legal struggle, Mubende evictees have not yet seen justice and continue to suffer the collateral consequences of this brutal act. Today, 15 years ago, the Uganda

Organized patterns of violent land evictions in Mubende
By witnessradio.org Team To an outsider or a less interested person in what’s going on in Mubende might think targeting and incarcerating community leaders opposed to illegal land evictions is a new method. This

Land Grabbing: Cases that opened doors for violent land evictions and promoted impunity in Mubende district
By witnessradio.org Mubende district being of the oldest district established in 1905, it hadn’t experience until the 20th century when the demand for land at global level

IDP camps in a 21st Century
Rwamutonga residents confined in an IDP camp setting after being evicted to pave way for the oil treatment plant.