The Uganda Journalists Association (UJA) will on Friday hold a demonstration at Parliament as they hand a petition the Speaker of Parliament asking her to reign on the security forces that have mercilessly beaten, injured and wrongfully detained them in the course of their work.
According to Hajji Bashir Kazibwe, the association president, the petition we shall request the speaker of parliament and the entire legislature to prevail over the security agencies so that they refrain from the beastly acts against journalists.
“We shall also request parliament to compel the security agencies to openly prosecute its errant officers, compensate the damaged journalist’s equipment and foot the medical bills they incurred,” he said.
Kazibwe cited examples such as the August 13 Arua chaos, the #FreeBobiWine riots in Kampala and the recent detention of journalists in refugee camps as some of the incidents in the security forces behaved unprofessionally.
“On this ‘black’ Friday, all journalists are to put on black clothes to mourn their lost freedoms,” the UJA president said.