A Ugandan TikTok user, Emmanuel Nabugodi, has been convicted for urging the public flogging of President Yoweri Museveni in a video he created, in which he staged a mock trial of the long-standing leader.
The 21-year-old pleaded guilty on Wednesday and now awaits sentencing on 18 November, with a possible prison term of up to seven years for “spreading hate speech.”
State attorney Paul Aheebwa Byamukama confirmed that the prosecution has requested the Entebbe court to impose the full sentence.
Nabugodi’s conviction makes him the fourth Ugandan recently detained for criticising Museveni or his family.
The case recalls a string of similar prosecutions.
Just last July, another young TikToker was sentenced to six years in prison for mocking Museveni, who has maintained a tight grip on Uganda since overthrowing Milton Obote in 1986.
Other critics, like author Kakwenza Rukirabashaija, have faced harsh repercussions; Rukirabashaija, who received the PEN Pinter Prize in 2021, was arrested and claims to have been tortured before fleeing to Germany.
In 2020, a satirical comedy troupe was imprisoned after releasing a video calling for prayers for Ugandan leaders, only to be freed following an online outcry.
Uganda’s clampdown on dissent is well documented.
The country ranks 128 out of 180 on the Reporters Without Borders press freedom index, underscoring the risks critics face in a media environment where backlash against the government rarely goes unanswered.
