National Unity Platform (NUP) Party President, Bobi Wine has been called to take action against his security team which is being accused of assaulting three journalists last weekend.
The Greater Masaka Journalists Association (GREMAJA) says Bobi Wine’s bodyguards beat up the scribes while they covered a burial in Manja Village, Lwengo.
According to GREMAJA, the victims of the assault were Gertrude Mutyaba of NTV, Magret Kayondo of Radio Simba, and Zainab Namusaazi of NBS TV.
The association identified one of the perpetrators as Achileo Kivumbi, one of Bobi Wine’s right hand bodyguard
The journalists were reportedly attacked and had some of their equipment destroyed by the group of private bodyguards led by Achileo.
“This act of brutality is not only an attack on the media but also a deliberate attempt to infringe upon freedom of expression,” said, Farish Magembe, the GREMAJA President.
GREMAJA has called for a thorough investigation by the police and urged media rights defenders, such as the Human Rights Network for Journalists (HRNJ) and other human rights organizations, to take an interest in the case.
“GREMAJA is committed to seeking justice for our fellow journalists and will pursue public prosecution to ensure that those responsible are held accountable for their actions.”
The journalists gave the NUP leaders 48 hours to issue a written apology and compensate the injured reporters.
Neither Bobi Wine nor the NUP leadership had responded to the matter
