Friday 26 February 2016

EU and US delegations meet Besigye at his home



A delegation from the European Union (EU) Mission in Uganda and the US Embassy Kampala have met the Uganda opposition leader Kizza Besigye. 

Details of the meeting will be released later, although the US Mission released a statement (read below)

The team was initially stopped from proceeding, but after several phone calls, Police's AIGP Andrew Felix Kaweesi ushered in the team to meet Besigye.

Besigye has been stopped from leaving his home since election day and has since rejected the Presidential results as released by the Electoral Commission last Saturday.

The EU and US have called for Besigye to be released, but the Uganda police insist they are restricting his movement for security reasons.

The delegation meeting Besigye included the Irish ambassador, the French, British and US deputy ambassadors. 






He has been stopped three times from trying to leave his residence, and was on each occasion driven to Naggalama Police Station where he has spent the day before being returned home in the night.


US MISSION STATEMENT

In addition to our earlier statement, below is a summary of remarks made to the media by U.S. Deputy Chief of Mission Patricia Mahoney following her meeting earlier today with EU representatives and Dr. Kizza Besigye:

"Ugandan authorities should allow the opposition to play a legitimate role in the country's politics and respect the rights and freedoms of all Ugandans. The detention of Dr. Besigye, as well as the multiple occasions of police taking him into custody, is contrary to basic democratic principles and violates his fundamental human rights.


We expect all sides, government and opposition, to refrain from any actions or rhetoric that may incite or lead to violence, and call on all parties and their followers to abide by the law and resolve election-related disputes through dialogue. Any challenges to the election results should be addressed through all available legal means, not violence."

RELATED STORIES
1. The complete Uganda election results  - ALL polling stations

2. John Kerry calls Museveni







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