It should be noted that all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and

rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one
another in a spirit of brotherhood. Under our constitution of the republic of
Uganda , it should be noted that the law confers upon citizens or individuals that
all rights are inherent are not provided for by the state. It should not be
forgotten that the constitutions which is the supreme law of the land, is to the
same effect that, all persons shall be protected of freedom of consciences,
expression , movement, religion and assembly, which is in line with the notion of
media freedom which falls under the journalist profession, and other private
citizens, not only.

Freedom of the Press

Although a cherished right of the people, freedom of the press is different from
other liberties of the people in that it is both individual and institutional. It
applies not just to a single person's right to publish ideas, but also to the
right of print and broadcast media to express political views and to cover and
publish news. A free press is, therefore, one of the foundations of a democratic
society, "A free press is not a privilege, but an organic necessity in a great
society." Indeed, as society has grown increasingly complex, people rely more and
more on newspapers, radio, and television to keep abreast with world news,
opinion, and political ideas.

One sign of the importance of a free press is that when antidemocratic forces take
over a country, their first act is often to muzzle the press . The paradoxical
contrast in Uganda between a vocal and diverse press and the regular arrests and
prosecutions of leading media figures results in part from the draconian press
laws which remain on the books, despite the constitutionally guaranteed right to
freedom of the press. Some of the laws used to prosecute journalists, such as the
law on seditious libel, date back to the colonial era. The sedition statutes give
the government draconian powers to arrest and prosecute journalists.
In my own assertion I would prefer to take the stand that media freedom in Uganda
is not absolute so far as looking at the various occurrences as it shall be
discussed below
There has been an adoption of the law which requires all journalists to be
licensed , and provides for a media council which monitors and disciplines
journalists and editors.
While the media council is empowered to arbitrate disputes between the media and
the State, to discipline journalists, and "to regulate the conduct and promote
good ethical standards and discipline of journalists," the government rarely
resorts to the Council for the resolution of disputes with the media, preferring
to rely on more severe criminal sanctions instead.
This can be evident with the closure of several radio stations in Uganda like
Central Broadcasting Service (CBS), which is owned by the Buganda Kingdom, has
been off air since around 6 p.m, Later on Friday, the council agents backed by
soldiers also raided the studios of Radio Sapientia; a Catholic Church-run
station. The station had aired a morning talk show during which callers reacted to
Thursday's deadly riots. A similar raid took place at Radio One , a community
station popularly known as Akaboozi Ku Biiri.
However it should be noted that, despite the presence of given laws, the Uganda
Communication Commission has the mandate to supervise media houses," Specifically,
Section 4(L) the commission is mandate to receive, investigate and take action on
complaints against media houses. This role should be done fairly and justly,
however it’s evident that from the various occurrences, the government of Uganda
on several occasions has abused this, to act, fairly and only resorting to closure
of media houses, thus it is evident that media freedom in Uganda is a myth.
The other point to keep in mind, is the nature of Uganda’s laws, the national
assembly passed a new anti-terrorism bill on 20 March 2002 providing for sentences
of up to 10 years in prison for publishing news "likely to promote terrorism for
acts of terrorism or financial support for terrorist organizations . The
authorities said Uganda was just implementing UN Security Council resolution
Further it should be noted that there arouse a petition by the journalist
committees as far as the laws on sedition and libel, sections of the penal code
were concerned, and the courts only dismissed the petition , however it should not
be left out that with matters of human rights violation, the courts were wrong,
since every body has aright to be heard, this would also follow, the proper
demarcation of what would amount to sedition and libel, in the media world, which
would help to limit such mixtures or confusion as far as media freedom was
concerned

It can also be further argued as number of laws that are not conducive to media
freedom and whose provisions are a direct affront on press and media freedom
remained on the statute books from where they could be invoked anytime.
Journalists and other citizens have been arrested and detained merely on
allegations of sedition. “Also, threatening to withdraw operating licenses of
broadcasters has caused panic, especially when such threats are issued after
warnings from some sections of the executive arm of government. This results in
self-censorship

.Several arrests of journalist has been evident in Uganda, for example Robert
Kalundi Sserumaga, a talk-show host with Radio One, was arrested and beaten on
Friday night while leaving the studios of the WBS TV station, where he had just
participated in a live discussion about the riots, according to Peter Kibazo, who
hosts the show on which Sserumaga appeared and was there when the arrest took
place.
As far as human rights are concerned, which entails the freedom of expression, it
should be noted that they are inherent and the state has no obligation to regulate
such rights, and thus on evidence of its regulation is a clear evidence of
violation of such rights.

By
OBAM ANDREW
Justice and constitutional affairs minister
Makerere student’s guild and chairman St Mary’s Kitende Old Students Association

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