The by-elections in Kawempe North constituency in Kampala held on Thursday, March 13, 2025, have brought to the fore concerns of safety for media practitioners. A number of journalists were injured in circumstances that are still being investigated.
I wish to express and extend sympathies to all journalists who were caught in the fracas, and wish them quick recovery. The same goes to whoever was caught in the same tense situation, on either side of the political divide as well as residents who happened to be in the constituency at the time these events played out. The wish is that all those involved in violence against and harassment of any Ugandan should be brought to book.
Journalists doing their duty to collect news and keep the world informed on how the campaigns and, later, elections were progressing, deserved free reign to operate.
As we await result of investigations into the fracas to establish “who did what, when, where and why,” we ought to remind ourselves of the rules of something. For one’s own good and for purposes of ease of follow-up in case of a problem, journalists should always seek accreditation to cover news around an organised activity. In this case, it was an election, and the Electoral Commission had the responsibility of accrediting different participants in the exercise. With accreditation, one is able to access the activities with confidence and have protection while on duty. Accreditation isn’t meant to lock out anyone or to bias their reporting but to provide them with clear identification and cover.
The “mediascape” is rife with masqueraders posing as journalists. These include people with ulterior motives like conning unsuspecting candidates, playing mercenary and taking sides in the contest, while others use the cover of electioneering to cause disruption, to incite and to carry out acts that breach the peace. Journalists should endeavour to avoid actions that compromise their immunity. That seriously dents your credibility at the same time as your safety.
One should assess the risk in the field they are to cover and determine if it’s worth it. Journalists reporting in potentially dangerous situations should have safety gear. This can include body armor (soft or hard), ballistic helmets, goggles, umbrellas, gas masks, sturdy shoes or boots, and first-aid kits, along with essential items like water, energy bars, and a torch.
Unfortunately, this gear isn’t easy to come by for most media practitioners but it is up to the respective media houses to take precaution to safeguard their reporters and ground teams. It’s better not to deploy them than sending them into perilous situations.
On occasions, I have seen journalists without basic things like tags, some even without identity cards.
It is my hope that none of my brothers and sisters in the media stepped on the ground in the highly contested constituency without basic precautions in an unpredictable environment. I heard of reports of journalists actively engaged in campaigns and others in confrontation with security teams and other duty bearers doing their work. Others allegedly engaged in actions that directly affected the process of conducting the elections and the outcomes, like tampering with electoral materials such as ballot boxes. This is certainly not “journalistic”. It goes against the ethics of the profession and as noted earlier, it compromises one’s immunity facing enforcement measures when a tense situation arises.
The journalists’ professional stance remains that of an unbiased/impartial, independent and objective observer taking record of what the “protagonists” are doing on the ground. Being biased and an active participant means that you have abdicated the professional call in preference of partisanship.
With issues of accreditation; there is a good standard way how we do it at State House. All journalists to cover a given activity are registered and given accreditation so as to ease coordination with protocol and other teams on the ground such as security. It’s not possible, no matter how competent or connected you may be, to just access the occasion and cover news. Media houses submit names of their journalists then we ensure that they are cleared for the event. This arrangement has created a well-coordinated and mutually respectful relationship between the Presidential Press Unit (PPU) and the press.
Parliament also has an arrangement where journalists at the August House are accredited.
The Kawempe North events came at a time President Yoweri Museveni is continuing with his performance assessment tour of the flagship wealth creation strategy, the Parish Development Model (PDM). He had just returned from Ankole, and headed to Bunyoro as of yesterday, March 18, 2025.
While in the sub-regions, among the key categories he has met with are journalists. On top of the discussions around Wealth Creation programmes, the President has supported organised groups of journalists with seed capital to empower them, like all other Ugandans benefitting from Government’s fast-tracked financial support. This is a sign of commitment by the President to support the media in performing its function of informing the public at all times, while thriving at individual level. They also benefit under the Emyooga, another brainchild initiative of the President.
The President remains the most media friendly leader ever. When a journalist is hurt, the President is affected because that threatens the gains of the media freedoms that he fought for. As long as journalists maintain a professional line and take necessary precautions, Uganda is the best place to work. Stakeholders should continue to engage on how to make the work environment even better, without forgetting the responsibilities that come with serving in the “fourth estate”.
Elections should not cause much anxiety, leading to panic which results in violent outbreaks that could have regrettable and irreversible outcomes. Elections will always come and go but professionalism, orderliness and tranquility must always prevail.
The author is the Special Presidential Assistant-Press & Mobilisation/Deputy Spokesperson
Email: faruk.kirunda@statehouse.go.ug
0776980486/0783990861
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