Kampala 06/March/2025: In a blatant attack on press freedom, two (2) NTV Uganda senior journalists, Stephen Mbidde and Stephen Kibwika, were violently beaten by security operatives on March 3rd and 4th, 2025, respectively.
The incident occurred while journalists were executing their duties, covering the events surrounding campaigns for the Kawempe North by-election. The voting is scheduled for 13th March 2025.
Mbidde, who was manhandled by police officers at Wandegeya Police Station on 4th March, recounted his ordeal to HRNJ-Uganda.
“There were NUP supporters, including two MPs, who had been arrested as the NUP leader was en-route to Kawempe to campaign for the party flag bearer in the by-election [on March 3, 2025].”
Despite introducing himself and following instructions as issued by the same police officers, Mbidde was manhandled and wrestled to the ground, leaving him with bruises, elbow pain, and a headache.
Kibwika, a cameraperson at NTV Uganda, faced a similar fate on March 3rd, 2025. While filming the security operatives’ actions, he was pursued, ganged up on, and severely beaten.
“They [security operatives] asked me to give them my camera, but I refused,” Kibwika explained. “They continued to beat me, and my crime was refusing to remove the footage. They confiscated my work identity card.”
Kibwika said it took the intervention of “their commander who asked them why they were beating me inside their drone, before ordering them to let me free.”
However, by the time they let him free, he had serious bodily injuries that left him limping to this date.
The security operatives’ actions are a blatant attempt to kill news dissemination by journalists. By directing reporters to delete footage or hand over their gadgets, they aim to control the narrative and suppress the truth.
“Security operatives targeting journalists for their work is a clear attempt to intimidate and silence them. Journalists’ work entirely depends on the information gathered from the field using their gadgets. Taking those away is akin to taking away their voice,” said Robert Ssempala, the Executive Director of HRNJ-Uganda.
According to Ssempala, Kibwika’s resilience and boldness in refusing to surrender his camera are commendable. “His actions demonstrate the unwavering commitment of journalists to their work, despite the risks and challenges they face,” Ssempala added.
The attacks on Mbidde and Kibwika are not isolated incidents. They are part of a larger pattern of intimidation and harassment of journalists, which are on the rise in Uganda, mainly at the hands of the security forces. This comes just days after some Joint Anti-Terrorism Task Force (JATT) officers brutally assaulted a Top TV journalist, Ibrahim Miracle, who was admitted to Nsambya hospital for treatment.
Speaking to HRNJ-Uganda, the deputy police spokesperson in charge of Kampala Metropolitan Police (KMP) Luke Oweyesigire said “Kibwika’s incident, I do not think he has formally complained, but Mbidde’s incident is something which the District Police Commander [DPC] also intervened in because there was an issue of mistaken identity,” Oweyesigire said.
“Officers were trying to arrest someone else, but Mbidde was mistakenly involved in the mix, and we think it was uncalled for. Nevertheless, I saw that he plans to sue the Inspector General of Police [IGP]. So, let us wait for the views from the management, I cannot comment so much about it because I saw he demanded an apology from the IGP,” he added.
