Amnesty International has issued a strong statement calling for the immediate release of Edward Awebwa, a 24-year-old Ugandan man sentenced to six years in prison for insulting President Yoweri Museveni and his family in a TikTok video.
Awebwa was charged with hate speech and spreading “misleading and malicious” information against President Museveni, First Lady Janet Museveni, and their son Muhoozi Kainerugaba, who heads the military. The court found him guilty on four counts, with sentences to run concurrently.
The court also heard that Awebwa had shared abusive information and had said there would be an increase in taxes under President Museveni.
In their statement, Amnesty International declared, “Edward Awebwa must be immediately released and his sentence revoked. Ugandan authorities must respect and uphold the right to freedom of expression.”
Despite Awebwa pleading guilty and asking for forgiveness, the magistrate, Stella Maris Amabilis, deemed him unremorseful and described his words as “really vulgar.”
The case has sparked concern among human rights organizations, who view it as part of a broader pattern of suppressing free speech in Uganda.
This incident follows a series of similar cases in Uganda. In 2022, author Kakwenza Rukirabashaija was charged with “offensive communication” for remarks about the president and his son on Twitter. He later fled to Germany, claiming torture during his month-long imprisonment. Activist Stella Nyanzi was also jailed for a poem critical of President Museveni and is now in exile.
Human rights lawyer Michael Aboneka criticized the law under which Awebwa was charged, describing it as “vague” and arguing that the president and his family should expect criticism “at whatever angle.”
The case has reignited debates about freedom of expression in Uganda, where President Museveni has been in power since 1986.
Rights groups continue to denounce what they see as violations of human rights and freedom of expression by Ugandan authorities, calling for reforms to protect citizens’ right to criticize their leaders without fear of imprisonment.
