With presidential and parliamentary elections scheduled to take place on 14 January, SecretaryGeneral António Guterres
raised concern over reports of violence and tensions inparts of the country and implored all political actors and their
supportersto “refrain from the use of hate speech, intimidation and violence”.
“Any electoral disputes should be resolved through legal and peaceful means”, he said in a statement.Election credibility
One of Africa’s longest-serving leaders, Yoweri Museveni, is seeking his sixth term in office, and competing against 10
other candidates to retain the presidency, including the popular singer Bobi Wine.
Last week, the UN human rights office, OHCHR, noted the “deteriorating human rights situation” ahead of Thursday’s vote, calling on the Government to take measures
to prevent electoral violence.
OHCHR reported numerous rights violations including cases of arbitrary arrest, detention and torture. At least 55 people
were killed in November during riots and protests over the arrest of Mr. Wine, whose real name is Robert Kyagulanyi.
According to news reports, the European Union said on Tuesday that the electoral process had been seriously tarnished by
the use of excessive force.
In a television address on Tuesday, President Museveni said that foreign partners did not understand that Uganda’s
strength came from the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM), the army and the economy.
At the same time, hundreds of Ugandan civil society organizations have reported that only 10 of their 1,900
accreditation requests had been granted.
On Tuesday, according to news reports., Uganda’s communications regulator ordered telecoms companies to block access to
messaging and social media apps, shortly after Facebook said that it had closed “fake” accounts, it said were linked to
the Government.A plea for ‘maximum restraint’
In his statement, Secretary-General Guterres called on the Ugandan authorities, particularly the security forces, to
“show maximum restraint during this period and act according to established human rights principles”.
He concluded by reiterating the UN’s commitment “to support the country’s efforts to promote sustainable development and
build a prosperous future”.