MBALE — A number of journalists and bloggers were forced by military and police to delete their footage in Mbale as Military unleashed violence on National Unity Platform (NUP) supporters on Sunday November 15.
The journalists had gathered footage of a military and police’s brutal conduct on the NUP Presidential candidate, Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu also known as Bobi Wine.
Soldiers forced them to delete the footage and also threatened to beat them up if they continued filming.
A number of bloggers that publish content supportive of Bobi Wine including Tamie Imagez, Rhokhan Media and The New Times Uganda were all ordered to delete content.
The UCC recently blocked The New Times website in Uganda
Officers in Military attires questioned Raymond Tamale of The New Times Uganda about why he had been filming them and forced him to delete footage that he had recorded.
Tamale said that officers beat him after he had taken photos of them manhandling Bobi Wine supporters.
In another incident, at Bobi Wine event in Mbale, military officers approached Juliet Nalukenge, who works for a foreign media outlet and asked why she was taking pictures before confiscating her camera and phone.
When she went to retrieve her gears on Monday morning, officers forced her to unlock her phone and deleted photos she had taken during the fracas.
Mbale police disputed the accounts.
The rate at which journalists have been harassed, threatened, arrested and assaulted during election period has reached alarming levels.
The members of the security forces are showing clear disregard of media freedom and subsequently the Constitution of Uganda.
Media rights groups worry that security agents are making it a common practice to assault journalists who refuse to delete photos and footage of officers caught in the act of beating civilians.