[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 807 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
S. RES. 807

   Urging the Government of Uganda and all parties to respect human, 
   civil, and political rights and ensure free and fair elections in 
January 2021, and recognizing the importance of multiparty democracy in 
                                Uganda.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           December 18, 2020

Mr. Menendez submitted the following resolution; which was referred to 
                   the Committee on Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
   Urging the Government of Uganda and all parties to respect human, 
   civil, and political rights and ensure free and fair elections in 
January 2021, and recognizing the importance of multiparty democracy in 
                                Uganda.

Whereas the United States has an important interest in supporting democracy in 
        Uganda and has consistently demonstrated support for the people of 
        Uganda through efforts to advance good governance, economic growth, and 
        improved access to health and education;
Whereas Uganda has been an important security partner of the United States, 
        including through its contributions to the counter-terrorism efforts in 
        East Africa, and to the African Union Mission in Somalia;
Whereas Uganda remains one of the top refugee hosting countries in the world, a 
        contribution that plays an important role in regional stability and 
        humanitarian protection;
Whereas more than 75 percent of Uganda's population is younger than 30 years of 
        age, and the political, economic, and social stability of country will 
        be shaped by the welfare of its youth, and their access to opportunity, 
        equality, and dignified lives;
Whereas respect for human, civil, and political rights and deepening multiparty 
        democracy are essential to Uganda's long-term economic prosperity and 
        political stability;
Whereas the conduct of elections, particularly the January 2021 elections, will 
        have a significant impact on the trajectory of democratic growth in 
        Uganda and its relationship with the United States;
Whereas the National Resistance Movement (referred to in this preamble as 
        ``NRM'') took control of the Government of Uganda in 1986 after period 
        of protracted conflict and has dominated the political affairs in Uganda 
        ever since;
Whereas Yoweri Museveni has served as Uganda's head of state since 1986, making 
        him the third-longest actively serving head of state in Africa;
Whereas Uganda has had national elections since 1996, and multiparty elections 
        since 2006, all of which have been won by the NRM and President 
        Museveni;
Whereas the NRM has engineered changes to the Ugandan constitution in 2005 and 
        2017, which removed presidential term limits and age-limits 
        respectively, and have allowed President Museveni to remain in power for 
        more than 3 decades;
Whereas national elections in Uganda since 1996 have not met internationally 
        accepted standards for free and fair polls, as the ruling party has 
        leveraged access to, and influence over, state resources and 
        institutions to tilt the electoral balance in its favor;
Whereas Ugandan authorities have used coercive measures, including arbitrary 
        arrests and detentions, torture, extra-judicial killings, and intrusive 
        surveillance technology to intimidate and silence political opposition 
        in the country;
Whereas in March 2020, the Constitutional Court of Uganda annulled section 8 of 
        the repressive Public Order Management Act of 2013, but Ugandan 
        authorities continue to obstruct lawful assemblies by the political 
        opposition, often through violence;
Whereas the Museveni Administration has used arbitrary and partisan legal 
        action, enabled by its control of the courts, to intimidate and silence 
        members of the political opposition;
Whereas Ugandan authorities have not been held accountable for human rights 
        abuses, including those perpetrated against prominent members of the 
        political opposition, including members of parliament;
Whereas many Ugandan officials have not been held accountable for acts of gross 
        corruption, which have been documented by Human Rights Watch in 2013 and 
        other nongovernmental organizations (referred to in this preamble as 
        ``NGOs''), despite the existence of anti-corruption laws, including--

    (1) the Penal Code Act;

    (2) the Leadership Code Act, 2002;

    (3) the Inspectorate of Government Act, 2002;

    (4) the Anti-Corruption Act, 2009; and

    (5) the Public Finance Management Act, 2015;

Whereas Ugandan authorities continue to deploy a range of restrictive and 
        onerous administrative measures against NGOs, including--

    (1) the deregistration of more than 12,000 mostly local NGOs in 
November 2019;

    (2) the freezing of the bank accounts of some NGOs in December 2020; 
and

    (3) a broader range of actions designed to intimidate civil society, 
such as the denial of entry or deportation of some leaders of international 
NGOs in 2020;

Whereas independent media outlets in Uganda have been placed under increasing 
        duress by the Museveni Administration through regulatory and other 
        administrative and legal actions designed to intimidate journalists who 
        report independently;
Whereas journalists working for foreign media outlets are now required to re-
        register with Ugandan authorities or risk criminal penalties and some 
        foreign journalists have been deported from the country;
Whereas Ugandan authorities have sought to undermine digital rights, including 
        by--

    (1) subjecting people with large social media followings to onerous 
administrative regulation through the Uganda Communications Commission 
public notice of September 2020 and prior regulatory acts of the Uganda 
Communications Commission;

    (2) imposing burdensome taxes on social media users;

    (3) blocking access to social media during the 2016 elections; and

    (4) prosecuting some individuals who have criticized the Museveni 
Administration on social media platforms;

Whereas although Uganda is home to one of the premiere institutions of higher 
        education in Africa (Makerere University), Ugandan authorities have 
        taken repeated action to suppress academic freedom and intimidate 
        students and faculty that have been critical of the Museveni 
        Administration, including by firing and jailing professors who criticize 
        the regime;
Whereas same-sex relations in Uganda remain criminalized under section 145 of 
        the Penal Code Act, and people who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, 
        transgender, or queer (referred to in this preamble as ``LGBTQ 
        persons'') face a range of direct punitive action from Ugandan 
        authorities, such as arrest and detention, and a permissive environment 
        that encourages impunity for attacks against LGBTQ persons;
Whereas the Museveni Administration has deployed an escalating array of 
        repressive measures before the January 2021 elections, including placing 
        uneven and partisan limits on the campaign activity of leading 
        opposition candidates and arresting some candidates, which have 
        triggered protests and the subsequent use of force by the security 
        apparatus to put down the protests, which led to the deaths of at least 
        28 people in November 2020:
Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the Senate--
            (1) condemns the Museveni Administration's assault on 
        democratic freedoms, including attacks on opposition 
        politicians, assaults on journalists and media freedoms, and 
        burdensome restrictions on nongovernmental organizations;
            (2) urges the Government of Uganda--
                    (A) to respect the rights enshrined in the 
                Constitution of the Republic of Uganda (referred to in 
                this resolution as the ``Constitution'') and relevant 
                international obligations, particularly the rights to 
                freedom of movement, expression, information, religion, 
                association, equality, privacy, and personal security; 
                and
                    (B) to take immediate steps to improve the pre-
                election environment and to create conditions for 
                credible democratic elections in January 2021 that 
                enable Ugandan citizens the opportunity to freely 
                exercise their right to vote;
            (3) calls upon the Government of Uganda and President 
        Museveni--
                    (A) to repeal repressive laws and administrative 
                actions that are contrary to the principles of good 
                governance, a healthy democracy, and the rights 
                enumerated in the Constitution, such as--
                            (i) colonial-era laws that target the LGBTQ 
                        community; and
                            (ii) the Uganda Communications Commission's 
                        September 2020 public notice that, in 
                        conjunction with other regulations, undermines 
                        digital rights;
                    (B) to allow citizens, civil society organizations, 
                and political parties to assemble peacefully and to 
                freely express their views;
                    (C) to immediately lift uneven and partisan 
                restrictions on political activities, including the 
                uneven, partisan, and violent application of COVID-19 
                restrictions on opposition political gatherings and 
                rallies, and to safely allow opposition parties to hold 
                political rallies, meetings, and demonstrations at 
                times of their choosing;
                    (D) to provide transparent, consistent, and 
                nonintrusive procedures for nongovernmental 
                organizations to register, and to enable them to carry 
                out programs and other legal activity without 
                interference from the state authorities;
                    (E) to safeguard press and academic freedom, in 
                accordance with the Constitution and the Universal 
                Declaration of Human Rights, adopted in Paris December 
                10, 1948;
                    (F) to condemn threats and attacks against 
                opposition political parties and civil society, and to 
                ensure accountability for harassment, intimidation, or 
                physical attacks on members of the opposition;
                    (G) to end the escalating campaign of repression 
                against opposition candidates and their parties before 
                the January 2021 elections; and
                    (H) to guarantee the ability of domestic and 
                international election observers to monitor the January 
                2021 polls without hindrance;
            (4) calls on the Secretary of State, and the heads of 
        relevant departments and agencies of the United States 
        Government to continue--
                    (A) to speak out against the Government of Uganda's 
                efforts to undermine democracy; and
                    (B) to hold the Government of Uganda accountable 
                for respecting the rights of its citizens, in 
                accordance with its Constitution and international 
                obligations, including by--
                            (i) considering the imposition of targeted 
                        sanctions and visa restrictions on actors 
                        involved in undermining credible, transparent 
                        elections, or for perpetrating or abetting 
                        human rights abuses;
                            (ii) leading international partners and 
                        institutions, including those in Africa, in 
                        developing and implementing strategies and 
                        actions to promote and defend human, civil, and 
                        political rights and multiparty democracy in 
                        Uganda;
                            (iii) immediately conducting a review of 
                        United States Government assistance and 
                        cooperation with the Government of Uganda for 
                        the purposes of reprioritizing areas and 
                        sectors of assistance should neutral observers 
                        determine that the January 2021 polls do not 
                        meet internationally accepted standards for 
                        credible elections; and
                            (iv) insisting on full and public 
                        investigations that ensure accountability for 
                        acts of violence, harassment and intimidation 
                        perpetrated against political opposition, 
                        journalists, and members of civil society, 
                        especially before and after the January 2021 
                        elections.
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