Violence in the election campaign

The situation for opposition parties are getting worse because of the coming election in 2011. UYD experienced this on a rally recently. The presidential candidate for UYDs mother party Democratic Party (DP) Mr Norbert Mao where supposed to have a rally in Kampala. They had applied for the rally, and the police where notified.

Many UYD- members where at the rally, and in the beginning everything looked good for the speech. But suddenly the police and the military showed up, and told them to end the rally immediately because of security. The UYD/DP showed their papers of approval for the rally, but the police said the had not been notified.
They disused and came to an agreement, so Mr. Mao continued.

But then the policed and military opened fire. They where shooting live bullets from behind the stage, and UYD member John Marry had to protect the president. Everybody on stage had to hid, and the crowd was naturally scared. Luckily nobody was inured or killed in the attack.

UYD- member Brenda was standing on stage when the bullets came. Two television channels where there, and one of the camera men was beaten. But the other one managed to get away, so Brenda could see her self on television later that night.

- I can see that I suddenly gets scared, and that we dont know whats going on. We though everything was clear, but then the police changed their minds. But we will continue the campaigning; the struggle is our life, says Brenda.



Mr. Norbert Mao, the presidential candidate for DP

Women can do it seminar in Kampala

For four whole days 30 participants from the UYD Women League are meeting in Hotel Nexus to have Woman Can Do it (WCDI) seminar. All the women participating are young woman leaders, and some are even candidates for the election in 2011.

The program includes gender, women in politics, the situation within UYD/AUF, networking, working successfully with media, building confidence, communications technics, public speaking, argumentation, body language, representation and presentation of women in the society, women leaders in the struggle against HIV/AIDS, advocacy, campaigning, and how to train other women in the future.


The WCDI seminar is an exchange of experience, both between ugandan women, but also sharing experiences with the norwegian youth politicians. The group are all spending time togheter during the seminar, and its only women speakers on the program.


The women attending are from all over Uganda, and from different backgrounds. The capacity building are meant to strengthen and empower young women leaders. The seminar is sponsored by LNU and the Norwegian Labour Party.

The human right situation in Uganda

The AUF & UYD delegation visited FHRI (Foundation for Human Right Initiative) to discuss the human right situation i Uganda. The delegation received reports, and got information of the current challenges.

The human rights situation in the north is still an issue due to the conditions in the camps, the psychological trauma caused by the war, and the resettlement of refuges.

The unemployment is high (some say as high as 60%), and the youths are the once most effected. But generally poverty is the biggest human right issue.

The group naturally focused mostly on the political human rights.
Because of the coming election the situation is becoming worse. The foundation director told stories of imprisonment, torture and even killings of politicians.

Åsmund Aukrust had earlier been to visit UYD- members in prison, so we also discussed the health situation and the overcrowding in the prisons.

The director finished of the meeting by emphasizing that in order to achieve change in the human right conditions, one need to change the leadership from the grasroots.



The UYD and the AUF delegation (Tore Eikeland, Ida Spjelkavik, Tonje Kristensen, Hilde F. Fjellså and Åsmund Åukrust) with FHRI

Grasroot meetings in Uganda

To engage with democratic, non-violent political activities in a country that has never had a peaceful change of power, can be challenging. AUF has for nearly ten years has had a project going with a youth organization, Uganda Young Democrats (UYD) in Uganda.

In front of the election next year (in February / March), UYD together with its mother party Democratic Party (DP) tries to mobilize large amounts of people for change in Uganda, to throw the opposition repressive President Museveni out from the Chesterfield lounge in the presidential palace, so they can create stable democratic structures.

The recent days AUF have together with our comrades in UYD, participated in major meetings in the capital Kampala, as well as in several of the districts east of the city (Gomba, Mityana og Mubende). The aim has been to strengthen local branches, and to discuss the power structures in the regions, in order and strengthen the organization as a whole.



Rita giving a speech about empowering women, youth and the grasroot