Fwd: No. 27446: DRC: Ugandan political activist at risk of torture -- Central Region

AfricaFiles

Action: DRC: Ugandan political activist at risk of torture
Act By: 12/27/2014
Sponsor: Amnesty International
Other Contact Info: UrgentAction@amnesty.ca
Action Site: www.amnesty.ca/urgentaction

African Charter Article# 5: Everyone shall have the right to dignity and legal status; all forms of exploitation, slavery, and torture are prohibited.

Summary & Comment: DRC authorities suspect Ugandan political activist Sam Mugumya of trying to plan an uprising. He is in incommunicado detention and in danger of torture. Please intervene on his behalf as suggested below. JS

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DRC: Ugandan political activist at risk of torture

Ugandan political activist Sam Mugumya is detained incommunicado by the army in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The Ugandan government has accused him of planning a rebellion against them. He is at risk of torture and other ill-treatment.

Sam Mugumya, a Ugandan national, is a member of the Ugandan opposition party Forum for Democratic Change (FDC). He is believed to have been arrested in late October at the DRC-Uganda border, together with four other Ugandans.

A high-ranking Congolese military officer has confirmed that Sam Mugumya is in the custody of DRC officials, as reported in the Ugandan media on 13 November 2014. However his family and political party do not know where he is. The Ugandan army spokesperson told journalists on 31 October 2014 that the Ugandan authorities were working with their Congolese counterparts to extradite Sam Mugumya to Uganda.

Sam Mugumya is detained incommunicado at an unknown location. This puts him at increased risk of torture and other ill-treatment, which are frequently used in DRC to extract confessions.

Please send a fax or email without delay, otherwise a letter. (Postage is $2.50.)

* Call on the authorities to reveal where Samuel Mugumya is detained and ensure that he has full and immediate access to legal assistance, to his family, to medical attention he may require and to consular representation.

* Ask them to ensure that Samuel Mugumya is either charged in a court of law or released.

* Urge them to guarantee Sam Mugumya will not be subjected to torture or other ill-treatment.

Here is the contact information you need:

Minister of Justice and Human Rights:
Wivine Mumba Matipa
Ministry of Justice and Human Rights
P.O Box 3137
Kinshasa/Gombe
République Démocratique du Congo
E-mail: minijustdh@gmail.com or minijustdh@gmail.com
Fax: 011 243 880 5521
Salutation: Dear Minister

Attorney General:
Flory Kabange Numbi
Office of the Attorney General
P.O. Box 7016
Kinshasa 1, République Démocratique du Congo
E-mail: pgr_rdc@yahoo.fr or pgr_rdcongo15@yahoo.com
Salutation: Dear Attorney General

Please send a copy to:

His Excellency Dominique Kilufya Kamfwa
Ambassador for the Democratic Republic of Congo
18 Range Road
Ottawa, Ontario K1N 8J3
Fax: (613) 230-1945
E-mail: info@ambardcongocanada.ca

Prime Minister:
His Excellency Augustin Matata Ponyo
Office of the Prime Minister
5, avenue Roi Baudoin
Kinshasa/Gombe
République Démocratique du Congo
E-mail: contact@primature.cd, primaturerdc@yahoo.fr or cabinet@primature.cd
Salutation: Your Excellency

Additional information:

Sam Mugumya is a Ugandan political activist. Born in 1979, he started political activism when he was a student of political science at Makerere University, where he served as the Secretary General of the Youth League of the FDC. He later became the personal assistant to former FDC president Dr Kizza Besigye.

He has been arrested and detained without charge several times by the police. In 2011, when the lobby group Activists for Change called on people to walk to work instead of using motor vehicles, in protest against the rising prices of fuel and other essential commodities, he was arrested and charged with treason for taking part in that protest. He was remanded in prison for two months. The treason charge was later dismissed by the Chief Magistrates Court.

<><><><><><><>
Urgent Action Network
Amnesty International Canada
3 - 1992 Yonge Street, Toronto ON M4S 1Z7
416 363 9933 ext. 325 / Fax 416 363 3103
E-mail: UrgentAction@amnesty.ca
www.amnesty.ca/urgentaction
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Keywords: Human Rights, Congo, Uganda, torture, incommunicado detention, army, police, extradition, Activists for Change (Congo), Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) (Uganda)

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