Human Rights Watch (HRW) [advocacy website] called Wednesday for an independent investigation [HRW report] into the violent deaths of more than 155 people, including children, that occurred in the Kasese region of Uganda in November. The killings were reportedly committed by Ugandan military and police against people loyal to a tribal king known as Omusinga. The government has also arrested and charged 180 people, including the tribal king, for murder, treason and terrorism. None of those who were arrested is military or police. A spokesperson for Uganda’s military told HRW that there has been no investigation into the military’s conduct, nor is one planned. HRW urged investigations into these arrests and said that it is possible criminal charges should be filed under Uganda’s Prevention and Prohibition of Torture Act of 2012 [text, PDF]. The Ugandan government also denied [AP report] the allegations that children were among those who were killed and insists only armed fighters were killed. HRW spoke to the families of 15 missing children who were last seen in the palace compound on November 27. According to HRW, further investigation is proving difficult as many witnesses “voiced significant fears of reprisals, including possible arrest, for speaking about what” they saw. On the day of the attacks, police arrested a prominent journalist, Joy Doreen Biira, and four others on charges of “abetting terrorism.”

The two days of violence that began on the morning of November 26 were the culmination of tension between a local cultural kingdom and the central government of Uganda. The role of Ugandan royalty has long been debated and remains a controversial topic. In 1966 President Milton Obote [Biography profile] outlawed all cultural royals. In 1995 President Yoweri Museveni [campaign website] allowed them to return, allegedly to gain political support. Although the cultural leaders have significant influence in their communities, they are not permitted to partake in partisan politics as stated in the 1995 Constitution [text, PDF]. Leading up to the November killings, the Ugandan government said “it was trying to break up an alleged armed movement in the region, known as Kirumiramutima (the Strong-Hearted), which it contends includes at least to some extent, members of the royal guards in the service of the Omusinga.” The Ugandan Human Rights Commission urged [UHRC statement] both sides to adhere to the law, but gave no instructions to the military and police to investigate their own involvement.