Edward Awebwa, a popular Ugandan TikToker, has been handed a six-year prison sentence for spreading “misleading and malicious” content about President Yoweri Museveni, his wife, and their son, military chief Muhoozi Kainerugaba.
Edward Awebwa was charged with hate speech and spreading “misleading and malicious” information against President Yoweri Museveni, First Lady Janet Museveni, and son Muhoozi Kainerugaba, who is the head of the military.
The court also heard that Awebwa had shared abusive information and had said there would be an increase in taxes under President Museveni.
Despite pleading guilty and seeking forgiveness, the magistrate observed that Awebwa did not seem genuinely remorseful. The court also condemned the language in Awebwa’s video as “really vulgar.”
“The accused deserves a punishment which will enable him learn from his past so that next time he will respect the person of the president, the first lady, and the first son,” Magistrate Stella Maris Amabilis said.
He was sentenced to six years for each of the four charges against him, which are to run concurrently.
Rights groups regularly denounce Ugandan authorities for violations of human rights and freedom of expression.
In 2022, award-winning Ugandan author Kakwenza Rukirabashaija was charged with two counts of “offensive communication” after making unflattering remarks about the president and his son on Twitter.
He fled the country to Germany after spending a month in jail, where he claimed he had been tortured.
Activist and writer Stella Nyanzi, who is also in exile, had earlier been jailed after publishing a poem that was critical against Mr Museveni.
President Museveni has been in power since 1986, and this incident is part of a broader pattern of severe consequences for those who criticize his regime. In 2022, Ugandan writer Kakwenza Rukirabashaija fled to Germany, claiming he was tortured in jail for insulting Museveni and his son. Activist and writer Stella Nyanzi, currently in exile, was previously imprisoned for publishing a critical poem about Museveni.
Source: All Africa, BBC
