Where Can Public Intellectuals Do Their Work In Museveni’s Uganda?

For three decades, Janet Museveni, wife to Uganda's longest serving President Yoweri Museveni, has lived relatively out of the media's questioning reach. But things started to change when her husband appointed her the country’s minister of education after last year's (yet another) fraudulent election. This most nepotic move didn't surprise most Ugandans who have for decades seen the Musevenis cement their hold on power.

This year something changed. Academic, creative writer and human rights activist, Dr Stella Nyanzi, who is a research fellow at Uganda's oldest university, Makerere University, cracked the hard shell around the first lady. Well known for using her diction and erotic imagery, Dr Nyanzi picked a relatively ignored case of presidential promises to bring about debate on how out of touch the Musevenis are. 

She questioned why President Museveni had not provided poor Ugandan girls with sanitary pads as he had promised during election campaigns. The first lady, being the education minister, was automatically sucked into this query. She appeared before parliament and told the nation there was no budget for sanitary pads. For the last two months, Dr Nyanzi has used her Facebook page, which has over 130,000 followers, to criticize the power and privileges of Museveni and his family's rule.

After several appearances at police stations for questioning, Dr Nyanzi was arrested on April 7th and arraigned in court on April 10th. She has been charged with offensive communication and cyber harassment, and was sent to jail until April 25th. With new media making it possible for Ugandans to speak truth to power where traditional media tread carefully, government is moving to use both colonial laws and new cyber laws to curtail freedom of expression.

In this article, writer Bwesigye bwa Mwesigire ponders the place of intellectuals under the increasingly despotic regime in Uganda.