Magistrate James Eremye Mawanda of the Nakawa Chief Magistrate Court [court website] on Wednesday released a jailed academic on bail after she had been arrested for criticizing Ugandan leader Yoweri Museveni [BBC profile]. Stella Nyanzi, who teaches at a local college in Kampala, was arrested after criticizing the Ugandan leader over failing to deliver on a promise to provide female students with feminine hygiene products to help them to attend all their classes. Nyanzi was granted bail [Reuters report] after her health deteriorated. She was also ordered to turn over her passport will receive a psychiatric examination to determine if she is fit tostand trial.

Museveni has been in power in the country since becoming president in 1986. His time in charge has led to many rights groups criticizing the leader for a lack of democracy in the African nation. In March Human Rights Watch [advocacy website] called for an investigation [JURIST report] into the deaths of over 150 people in the country in what some believe to be an exercise of the leader’s power. In 2016 it seemed as though as there was another attempt to eliminate vocal threats to power when the country jailed the main opposition [JURIST report] leader after an election in which Museveni won.