Youth who demonstrated while holding placards said that the passing of this bill will enable the farmers to access planting seedlings with some technology to resist diseases and drought to benefit farming in terms of having better yields which are not affected by diseases. One of the youth who led others Jonan Tuinamasiko said that if this bill is passed into law, there will be better yields for farmers to sale and create jobs to unemployed people especially the youth. Victoria Nakimera , a student at Makerere University says, that government should hear their call on passing this bill

The  National  bio safety and technology bill has faced numerous challenges as many Ugandans both scientists and non scientists have come out strongly to oppose it on grounds that it will introduce un healthy consumable products into the country.

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Charles IngabireRIP, the editor of the Kinyarwanda Online media Inyenyeri magazine was gunned down by unidentified assailants on the 30^th of November 2010 in the gardens of Makies 2 Bar along Sir Apollo Kaggwa, a Kampala suburb.

However, fear has mounted onto both Rwandan community and journalists in Uganda over the increased operatives spying on their work. Ingabire is suspected to have been killed because of his journalistic work.

The 1951 Refugee Convention and its 1967 additional Protocols are the cornerstones of modern refugee protection wherein government guarantees the basic Human Rights and physical security of the refugees.

Therefore, the government of Uganda bears the prime responsibility  for protecting refugees within its territory and this includes promoting and providing legal and physical protection, and minimizing the threat of violence including deaths which many Rwandan refugees are prone to.

The committee set up by the community of Rwandan Refugees and Asylum seekers in Uganda had sought protection while holding a peaceful demonstration on 8^th of December between 10:00 am to 12:00pm en-route from Kisementi roundabout, through Kanjokya Street to Prince Charles drive where they would petition the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Refugees to look into their grievances.

A letter dated 6^th/Dec/2011  was written to the Inspector General of Police, Major General Kale Kaihura seeking for protection while peacefully demonstrating against the alarmingly rampant activities of intelligences that spy on their work in Uganda and the killings of Rwandan Refugees and Asylum Seekers.

The assassination of CHARLES INGABIRA epitomizes several other killings and security threats to the Rwandese community. The demonstration further sought to call on the International Community, especially UNHCR, the United Nations body in charge of protection of refugees and human rights defenders and the Government of the Republic of Uganda, the host country to take effective measures in ensuring the safety and protection of Rwandese refugees, journalists and other human rights defenders.  The demonstrators also wanted UNHCR to desist from riding roughshod to serious concerns of security threats and death of Rwandan refugees.

Also, the demo ultimately calls for vigilance, independence and thorough investigations by police and all other relevant security agencies into mishaps against Rwandese. These investigations should ensure that the cases are handled to their logical conclusions with the perpetrators being brought to book.

HRNJ–Uganda was reliably informed that Ugandan police force dilly-dallied with the leaders who had gone to police headquarters on 7^th/Dec/2011 to secure protection.

One of the leaders told HRNJ–Uganda that they reportedly went to police four times and appeared before different offices as they were being asked to go back after every three hours.

“Whenever we would go to police headquarters, officers there were telling us that nothing has matured and that’s how the day went without getting protection” said one leader whose name is withheld for security purposes.

Sources told HRNJ–Uganda that by 18:00 local time on 7^th/Dec/2011, there was still no response until the Inspector General of Police intervened, made a private call to the Rwandese leaders and managed to coerce them to postpone their intentions for a few days as they partake investigations into the matter in a meeting that lasted up to 21:00 o’clock. The IGP asked them to be patient and promised to grant permission at a future date.

“We were not surprised to hear that police blocked the demo. From our experiences with the Uganda Police Force, this is a normal routine! It was a hectic wild goose chase that yielded no result. The police’s response exhibits the high handedness, partisan, and repressive role the police is playing in abrogating the Constitution most especially Article 29 which provides for freedom of expression and peaceful demonstration” said HRNJ–Uganda Programs Coordinator Geoffrey Wokulira Ssebaggala

HRNJ–Uganda reiterates its former position that called for intervention from independent bodies like Interpol to investigate the gruesome murder of Charles Ingabire fearing for country relations that would jeopadise investigations.

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The deputy Attorney General Fred Ruhindi was asked to leave the committee when he told MPS that he wanted to first harmonize some issues in the bill which raise legalities like on the constitutional ruling of Muwanga kivumbi versus the Attorney General which said that the Inspector of police powers is regulative rather than prohibitive in relation to the exercise of freedom of assembly and peaceful demonstration.

The vice chairperson of the legal committee Baka mugabi thrown out Ruhindi on ground that the issues he was raising could propose for amendment of the bill.

The  MPS who included Abdu Katuntu , Lubega segoona ,  Stephen Baka Mugabi said that the deputy Attorney General should sit together and iron out legal and constitutional  issues in the Public order management Bill  and he comes back before the committee to defend the bill with the minister of internal Affairs who originated the bill next week.

Ruhindi said that he will return to the committee after giving legal advise to the internal Affairs minister on the bill.

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