Security agencies in Uganda storm Muslim school, 26 arrested

By Godfrey Olukya

KAMPALA, Uganda (AA) – Twenty-six people were arrested when security agencies in Uganda raided a Muslim-founded school on Monday night, police said on Tuesday.

The arrests were made at the Imam Ridha Islamic School, belonging to the former Supreme Mufti Sheikh Zubair Kayongo, which located at the Buloba village in the outskirts of the capital Kampala.

Among the arrested people were seven men, two women and 17 children under the age of 17, according to Luke Oweyesigyire, deputy spokesman for police.

“They are being held at the Kasangati police station and we are investigating them,” he said, adding that they are going to take the children to a children’s home soon.

The arrests came at a time when most Muslims in the East African country are complaining about the raids by the security agencies of mosques and the arrests of some mosque leaders over their alleged links to the Allied Democratic Front (ADF), a rebel group based in Congo.

Ashraf Muvawala, a spokesman for the Uganda Muslim Supreme Council, said on Tuesday that children were supposed to be at their homes since it is a period of holidays.

He condemned the school administration for being with children during holidays without first consulting the Council or the government to get permission or be guided on what to do.

Muvawala told Anadolu Agency that there are some Muslims who start up schools without following the right procedures. He, however, requested the government to treat well those who have been arrested.

“They do not register their schools. They claim that they are teaching Islam, but we are not aware of what they are teaching. What they are teaching is not verified. Some people hide in religion yet they are practicing politics,” he said.

Imam Abdul Isabirye of Ikubya Mosque in eastern Uganda said the government is witch hunting Muslims as they do not support it.

But Aggrey Bogere, a senior cadre of the ruling National Resistance Movement party, said it is not true that the government is against Muslims. He said security agencies go for only those suspected to be dealing with the ADF rebels and other wrong elements.