KAMPALA – The Uganda Journalists Association (UJA) has strongly condemned the heinous acts of torture inflicted upon journalists Hillary Twinamatsiko and Sympathy Magezi in Kashensheero, Mitooma District.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!The UJA’s condemnation follows the brutal torture of the two journalists by police officers attached to Kashensheero Police Station on Monday, 15 June 2026, while they were executing their professional duties.
Sources confirm that Twinamatsiko (NMG) and Magezi (Voice of Ruhinda) were pursuing a legitimate journalistic inquiry into allegations of persistent absenteeism by officers at Kashensheero Police Station during working hours.
During the course of their investigations, the two were intercepted by a police patrol that had tracked them through informers, effectively blocking them from conducting scheduled field interviews.
The officers subsequently apprehended the journalists and drove them to Kashensheero Police Station, where they were detained from approximately 3:00 PM to 6:00 PM, a period during which the situation escalated into a harrowing ordeal.
Twinamatsiko was allegedly subjected to a vicious 30-minute assault by police constables, involving harsh beating, neck strangulation, nose squeezing, stomach punching, head blows, and being knocked against a concrete wall.
The attack left him with serious bodily injuries, most notably to one of his eyes, and in agonizing pain. He was subsequently rushed to Kampala International Teaching Hospital for urgent medical care.
The Secretary General of UJA, Emmanuel Kirunda, condemned the conduct as a flagrant violation of constitutional press freedom and information access rights under Articles 29(1)(a) and 41 of Uganda’s Constitution.
He stressed that taxpayer-funded police officers must operate transparently and accountably, yet the Kashensheero officers deliberately sought to silence journalism and shield their absenteeism from scrutiny.
“The Kashensheero officers’ actions violate constitutional press freedom rights. Taxpayer-funded police must operate transparently, not through intimidation. We view this as a calculated attempt to silence journalism and hide their absenteeism from scrutiny, and we condemn it strongly,” Kirunda remarked.
The Uganda Journalists Association urgently demands that the Inspector General of Police initiates an immediate, independent, and transparent investigation into this incident.
The body also demands that all errant officers involved in the arrest, detention, and torture of the journalists be identified and held individually accountable as prescribed by law.
UJA further calls on the Uganda Police Force to cover all medical expenses incurred by the injured journalists and to issue a formal public clarification to end speculation that the institution sanctions such brutality.
UJA has since warned that failure to act on these demands within a reasonable timeframe will prompt the Association to explore all available legal and administrative remedies to ensure justice is served.
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