Latest news with #Kampala-based
Yahoo
7 days ago
- Yahoo
Image from Uganda of dilapidated police homes misrepresented as being in Nigeria
'Self contained apartments of police officers killing peaceful protesters demonstrating against bad governance,' reads the caption of a photo published on X on May 6, 2025. The photo shows hut-like structures made of iron, with brown cone-shaped roofs clustered in an open space. The post, shared more than 1,800 times, was published by Rinu Oduala, a Nigerian social activist who has more than 800,000 followers on X. While the post does not explicitly say the photo was taken in Nigeria, many appeared to believe it was. 'The tragedy called Nigeria police force,' wrote one user. During the two-week EndSARS protests in October 2020, armed security operatives opened fire on protesters in Lagos, the epicentre of the demonstrations, resulting in fatalities (archived here). In August 2024, Amnesty International accused security officials of killing 21 people during the economic hardship protests, a claim the police disputed, claiming only seven deaths were noted and denying responsibility for them (archived here). The protests used the hashtag #EndbadGovernanceinNigeria online. However, the photo shared on X shows police quarters in Uganda, not Nigeria. A reverse image search established that the photo has appeared in older Facebook posts from Somalia, Kenya and Uganda, with each implying it originated in their respective countries. The earliest appearance of the photo we found was in a 2012 article published by the Ugandan edition of the Monitor, which reported on the poor living conditions of police officers (archived here). A 2019 article by Kampala-based news site ChimpReports also featured the photo, suggesting the location was the Naguru Police Barracks in Kampala, Uganda (archived here). This is corroborated by a Google Maps search of the barracks, which shows features and structures visually consistent with those in the photo shared on X. The trees and brown roofs of the cone-shaped and flat-roofed iron structures seen on Google Maps match those seen in the photo. A February 2025 tweet from the verified X account of the Uganda Police Force showcased the Old Bukwo Police Station, which, before its reconstruction, was housed in similar iron structures (archived here). Bukwo is in eastern Uganda. Furthermore, in April 2025, the Ugandan Police Force announced the construction of new apartments at the Naguru barracks (archived here). Read other debunks by AFP Fact Check on the EndSARS protests in Nigeria here.
AFP
7 days ago
- Politics
- AFP
Image from Uganda of dilapidated police homes misrepresented as being in Nigeria
'Self contained apartments of police officers killing peaceful protesters demonstrating against bad governance,' reads the caption of a photo published on X on May 6, 2025. The photo shows hut-like structures made of iron, with brown cone-shaped roofs clustered in an open space. Image Screenshot of the misleading X post, taken on May 20, 2025 The post, shared more than 1,800 times, was published by Rinu Oduala, a Nigerian social activist who has more than 800,000 followers on X. While the post does not explicitly say the photo was taken in Nigeria, many appeared to believe it was. 'The tragedy called Nigeria police force,' wrote one user. During the two-week EndSARS protests in October 2020, armed security operatives opened fire on protesters in Lagos, the epicentre of the demonstrations, resulting in fatalities (archived here). In August 2024, Amnesty International accused security officials of killing 21 people during the economic hardship protests, a claim the police disputed, claiming only seven deaths were noted and denying responsibility for them (archived here). The protests used the hashtag #EndbadGovernanceinNigeria online. However, the photo shared on X shows police quarters in Uganda, not Nigeria. Ugandan police quarters A reverse image search established that the photo has appeared in older Facebook posts from Somalia, Kenya and Uganda, with each implying it originated in their respective countries. The earliest appearance of the photo we found was in a 2012 article published by the Ugandan edition of the Monitor, which reported on the poor living conditions of police officers (archived here). A 2019 article by Kampala-based news site ChimpReports also featured the photo, suggesting the location was the Naguru Police Barracks in Kampala, Uganda (archived here). This is corroborated by a Google Maps search of the barracks, which shows features and structures visually consistent with those in the photo shared on X. The trees and brown roofs of the cone-shaped and flat-roofed iron structures seen on Google Maps match those seen in the photo. Image Screenshot showing similarities between the satellite imagery of Naguru Barracks on Google Maps (left) and the photo in the misleading X post (right) A February 2025 tweet from the verified X account of the Uganda Police Force showcased the Old Bukwo Police Station, which, before its reconstruction, was housed in similar iron structures (archived here). Bukwo is in eastern Uganda. Furthermore, in April 2025, the Ugandan Police Force announced the construction of new apartments at the Naguru barracks (archived here). Read other debunks by AFP Fact Check on the EndSARS protests in Nigeria here.
Time of India
26-05-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Uganda LGBTQ community in 'climate of fear' since anti-gay law: HRW
. NAIROBI:Uganda's LGBTQ community faces worsening persecution since the country passed one of the world's harshest anti-gay laws two years ago, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said on Monday. The Anti-Homosexuality Act of 2023 imposed penalties of up to life in prison for consensual same-sex relations and contained provisions that make "aggravated homosexuality" punishable by death. Rights groups and international partners pulled funding and condemned the law. HRW interviewed almost 60 people from the LGBTQ community, their families, activists and politicians for a report on the law's impact. "LGBT people, LGBT rights organisations, are basically living in a climate of fear because there's a law that justifies people taking out violence against them," HRW researcher Oyem Nyeko told AFP. "(The law) made homophobia legitimate. It institutionalised it." HRW said in the report that police had "harassed, extorted and arbitrarily arrested and detained people on the basis of their perceived or real sexual orientation or gender identity". Interviewees said threatening phone calls had hugely increased since the law was passed. "People would keep on calling you [saying]: 'We know where you stay. We know what you do'," one told HRW. Another activist said virtual threats had escalated until three men broke into her home in 2023, attacking her and sexually assaulting her friend. "One of the men said: 'I am not just beating you for your unholiness but because you make me ashamed to be [ethnically] Ankole. If we want, we can kill you and no one will look for you'," she told HRW, referring to one of Uganda's main ethnic groups. Other rights groups in Uganda witnessed a similar trend after the law was passed. "Within just 24 hours of parliament passing the law, they identified eight cases of physical and sexual violence, including cases of rape by men of people they presumed to be gay in order to 'convert' them to heterosexuality," said DefendDefenders, a Kampala-based organisation supporting activists. "The number of requests (for assistance) is overwhelming," a member of the group told HRW. The report noted that prominent LGBTQ organisations had been targeted, with groups banned and staff arrested or threatened. Lawyers representing LGBTQ people were also victims of "heightened harassment", HRW said. The NGO contacted the government, police and public prosecutors to request information and present their research findings but received no response.
Reuters
08-04-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Ugandan shilling stable, US tariffs increase interbank dollar demand
KAMPALA, April 8 (Reuters) - The Ugandan shilling was broadly stable on Tuesday, but was under a little pressure as U.S. President Donald Trump's trade tariffs triggered a surge in dollar demand among interbank players, traders said. At 0931 GMT commercial banks quoted the shilling at 3,704/3,714, compared to Monday's close of 3,702/3,712. The Reuters Tariff Watch newsletter is your daily guide to the latest global trade and tariff news. Sign up here. "The broad market view is that there will be dollar scarcity going forward on expectation that dollar flows will fall because of trade disruptions and hence the need to build long dollar positions," said a market note from Alpha Capital Partners, a Kampala-based fund manager.
Bloomberg
01-04-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Africa's Best-Performing Currency Helps Uganda Cut Power Prices
Uganda cut power prices by the most in two decades, helped in part by an appreciating currency that lowered the cost of imported fuel and components. The East African nation reduced power prices by an average 14% for the quarter ending June 30, the Kampala-based Electricity Regulatory Authority said in a statement on Tuesday.
