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Ugandan police say 48 arrested age-limit protesters to be processed for court

Ugandan police say 48 arrested age-limit protesters to be processed for court

Uganda

Ugandan police say they have arrested 48 people including 25 students of the Makerere University for protesting on Thursday against the removal of the presidential age limit.

The 48 arrested in the capital Kampala are yet to be charged and will be processed for court next week after screening, the Wandegeya Division police commander Joseph Nsabimana told local media.

“I was hit with a stone on my left leg. I am now limping. The stone was thrown from Douglas Villa hostel. They also beat up other civilians. They have to be taken to court to account for their actions. What they did was criminal,” he was quoted by the Daily Monitor.

The students gathered around their campus to embark on a banned procession to parliament where a debate was to be held on Thursday on the presidential age limit.

The police had on Wednesday banned all processions to allow parliament to “debate in peace”.

The Inspector General of Police Kale Kayihura said they received information about groups planning to use the cover of processions to “cause violence and mayhem” and that the police is obligated to keep law and order.

The police arrested the students after firing teargas to disperse them.

On the same day, the Kampala City Lord Mayor Erias Lukwago was also picked up from his home and sent to the Kira police station over plans to march from the city hall to the city square with other city leaders to campaign against the removal of age-limit.

The police also sealed off the offices of the opposition Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) to prevent them from staging a similar march to parliament.

There was heavy deployment of security services including the military around the parliament and other parts of the city with members of the House forced to walk to the debate.

The speaker of parliament Jacob Oulanyah deferred the presidential age limit debate to next week after the opposition filed a motion for adjournment due to the heavy police deployment.

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