Ugandan police suspend 13 officers for torturing Muslims

By Godfrey Olukya

KAMPALA, Uganda (AA) - Police in Uganda have suspended 13 officers for torturing Muslims.

According to Uganda Police spokesperson Fred Enanga, the move came after CCTV footage showed the officers beating and kicking 45 Muslim youths at a rehabilitation center on the outskirts of the capital, Kampala, managed by a local Muslim leader, Sheikh Muhammad Yunus Kamoga.

The officers arrested the youths on suspicion that they were being trained to become anti-government rebels.

Speaking at a press conference at Uganda Police Headquarters in Kampala, Enanga said the officers involved in the raid on June 2 are facing the Police Professional Standards Unit over their actions and investigations into the detention of the 45 youths are ongoing.

“The police officers’ actions during the raid on the rehabilitation center in Kawempe…were deemed inappropriate by the police leadership. The raid involved kicking and slapping youths who were found at the center,” he added

The Uganda Muslim Lawyers Association (UMLAS) has condemned the actions of the police and threatened to petition the Uganda Human Rights Commission over the matter.