Oilwatch Africa Shows Solidarity With Ugandan Activists
By Stella Peters
The National Association of Professional Environmentalists (NAPE) is concerned about the unlawful arrest of eight activists in Uganda. Following their march to the Chinese Embassy in Kampala to deliver a protest letter
against the East African Crude Oil Pipeline funding.
NAPE stated that instead of engaging meaningfully, they were arrested. It says this kind of humiliation and inhuman treatment is not only a human rights abuse but also has no place in the modern world and should be condemned at all costs.
The Executive Director of NAPE, Frank Muramuzi, stated that “Use of excessive force to arrest peaceful and unarmed civilians is a big shame to a civilian force like police and violates the Ugandan constitution. In any case, this EACOP and other oil development projects are public investments that should be kept under scrutiny by the citizens. If these
investments are to come at the cost of denying citizens their rights; then they must be fought at any cost.”
Also, “OilWatch Africa supports the call for the release of the detained activists and frowns at the harassment of citizens fighting for the rights of Africans the cost of denying citizens their rights; then to a safe environment as enshrined in Article 24 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights”.
NAPE strongly warns and calls upon the police to stop this harassment and intimidation of environmental activists and calls for unconditional release. NAPE maintains that detaining environmentalists for protesting is unlawful and culprits should be punished.”
