By eastafrican gazette
Two journalists from Uganda’s Grace Publication who operate the English online media Grave Vine and the local newspaper Ono Bwiino have been incarcerated at Luzira Prison for allegedly disseminating information without a valid operating license.
Dickson Mubiru and Alirabaki Sengooba were detained by Buganda Road Court Magistrate Ronald Kayizzi on Thursday, June 20, 2024.
The State, represented by attorney Ivan Kyazze, accused Mubiru, Sengooba, and others in Kampala of publishing a story titled “Inside Story: How Top Legislators Shared $5 Million Vitol Oil Deal Bribe” on Grape Vine online media without the necessary broadcasting license from the Uganda Communications Commission on June 13, 2024.
Prosecution further claims that on May 15, 2024, within Kampala district, they published a story titled “Lawyer Kalali, Justice Nkonge Clash Over Court Case File” on Grape Vine media without the required broadcasting license from the Uganda Communications Commission.
Despite the allegations, the journalists denied and pleaded not guilty to all charges during their initial court appearance.
The defense attorney for the accused, Nasser Kibazo, requested the court to consider their bail application after a temporary adjournment of the session, allowing them time to gather all the necessary documents.
As a result, the trial magistrate, Kayizzi, decided to remand the journalists to Luzira prison until their return to court on Friday, June 21, 2024, at 9:00 am, when their bail application will be considered.
To the surprise of the attending journalists, the ‘human rights’ lawyer, Steven Kalali, took the witness stand against the two accused journalists.
Meanwhile, earlier in the day, a group of journalists led by Emmanuel Kirunda, the Secretary General of the Uganda Journalists Association (UJA), gathered at the Kampala Central Police Station (CPS) to demand the unconditional release of their colleagues.
The action was taken as the detainees had been held for more than 48 hours, which goes against the constitution since their arrest on Tuesday, June 18th.
Kirunda, on the other hand, voiced his apprehension regarding the shrinking media landscape, which poses significant challenges to the preservation of an autonomous press in Uganda. He implored journalists to unite and steadfastly advocate for their freedom.
“Every valuable thing is fought for, so journalists must bear that in their mind” Kirunda emphasized.
The recent arrest and imprisonment of the Grace Publication journalist marks the sixth case of journalists being detained within a span of just four months, starting from February 2024 up to the present date.
This list includes individuals such as Moses Lemisa from Vision Group and Julius Tukacungurwa-Umoja Standards.
Leave a Reply