U.S. Embassy Calls for Man's Release After 'Offensive Communication' Charge

By Lora Korpar

Fellow

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After making Twitter statements against Uganda's president, author Kakwenza Rukirabashaija was charged with "offensive communication" on Tuesday and continues to be held in a maximum-security prison, sparking opposition from the United States Embassy.

Rukirabashaija, a satirical fiction writer, was imprisoned for a string of tweets calling President Yoweri Museveni an election thief and his son Lieutenant General Muhoozi Kainerugaba overweight and "intellectually bankrupt," adding that Kainerugaba wanted to follow his father as the country's next president.

The two counts of offensive communication are criminal charges, with Ugandan authorities alleging Rukirabashaija meant to "disturb the peace" by writing these tweets.

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During his December 28 arrest, Rukirabashaija tweeted, "Gunmen are breaking into my house by force."

Since his detainment, several local and international groups have called for Rukirabashaija's release. These calls grew after reports emerged that he had been tortured in prison.

The U.S. Embassy in Uganda said writers like Rukirabashaija are part of a group that "all play critical roles in a democratic society & should be able to carry out their work free of harassment."

Police said Rukirabashaija is being held outside the capital of Kampala. His next court appearance is scheduled for January 21.

Eron Kiiza, Rukirabashaija's lawyer, told the Associated Press that when he saw his client in the court room, he looked frail.

"It's unfair and irregular," Kiiza said. "He's a sick man."

Yoweri Museveni, Uganda, president

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Kiiza told the Associated Press that his client had been "secretly remanded" after being charged without notice to defense attorneys.

Rukirabashaija's case has renewed focus on the alleged excesses of the security forces in enforcing Museveni's authority.

Ugandan authorities were under pressure to free Rukirabashaija or produce him in court after two judicial orders, including one by a high court judge, for security officials to present the suspect in public.

Rukirabashaija has been detained twice before over his work highlighting the failures of Museveni, Uganda's leader since 1986.

Kiiza said he believed his client had previously been in the hands of the Special Forces Command, an army unit that protects the first family. The Special Forces Command has not commented on allegations it held the writer.

Rukirabashaija, 33, last year was awarded the PEN Pinter Prize for an international writer of courage.

English PEN, a human rights organization for writers, said in a statement last week that it was "gravely concerned" about the author's detention.

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