Uganda law society decries public arrest of refugee officials as NGO crackdown intensifies

Uganda Law Society President Isaac Ssemakadde accused the Inspectorate of Government (IGG) of conducting a "trial by media" after the agency publicly paraded six senior officials from the Office of the Prime Minister’s Department of Refugees. The officials, including Commissioner for Refugee Management Patrick Okello and Assistant Commissioner Douglas Asiimwe, were arrested in Old Kampala on allegations of extorting $5,000‑$10,000 from asylum seekers from Pakistan, Afghanistan, Eritrea, Somalia and other conflict‑affected nations. The IGG seized laptops, phones and files during the operation. The Law Society warned that such public exposure undermines the constitutional presumption of innocence and could prejudice future court proceedings.

In a related crackdown, investigative journalist Solomon Sserwanja, executive director of the African Centre for Investigative Journalism, was arrested by plain‑clothes officers in Kira Municipality. His detention follows the Financial Intelligence Authority’s freezing of bank accounts belonging to several NGOs—including the African Centre for Investigative Journalism, the Agora Centre for Research and Chapter Four Uganda—over alleged money‑laundering and questionable foreign funding. Authorities are investigating the flow of more than UGX 70 billion received by these groups and have handed the case to police for further inquiry. Both incidents reflect a broader government effort to combat corruption while raising concerns about due process and civil‑society freedoms in Uganda.