By Daniel M. Austin
Impunity Watch Reporter, Africa

KAMPALA, Uganda – On Wednesday, January 26, a prominent gay rights activist was found murdered in his home on the outskirts of Kampala.  The activist, Mr. David Kato was thrown into the international spotlight when Rolling Stone, a Ugandan newspaper, identified him as a homosexual by publishing his name and picture. Above the picture was the caption “Hang Them”. The newspaper article as well as Mr. Kato’s murder has drawn widespread condemnation along with calls for a thorough investigation.  Statements condemning the murder have come from officials in the United States as well as human rights group like Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch.

Ugandan security forces have already arrested one suspect and continue to look for additional perpetrators. Investigators believe that the killing took place around noon on January 26, when an intruder entered Mr. Kato’s residence and struck him in the head with a hammer. In Uganda, being killed by an iron instrument like a hammer or tire iron is called “iron-bar killings”. The police have speculated that Mr. Kato’s roommate could have committed this crime however they are unable to locate him. Additionally, the police have noted this crime could be tied in with a series of murders that have taken place in Mr. Kato’s neighborhood.

After the newspaper article was published, Mr. Kato began to receive death threats. Police officials in Kampala have speculated that the murder is related to a theft or burglary and not related to the publication of the article.

In response to the publishing of his picture, Mr. Kato sued the newspaper and had recently won a court battle. The victory provided Mr. Kato with an injunction that prevented the Rolling Stone newspaper from publishing the names and photographs of other prominent homosexuals in Uganda.  It was exactly three weeks after the court ruled in Mr. Kato’s favor that he was found bludgeoned to death.

Homosexual acts are forbidden in Uganda. If a citizen is charged with a homosexual act, the punishment is a prison term up to 14 years. A member of the Ugandan Parliament had recently proposed a law that would make the penalties for committing homosexual acts even more severe. In some cases, the punishment would be death.

For more information:

AFP — Uganda gay rights activist murdered: lawyer – 27 January 2011

BBC – Uganda gay rights activist David Kato killed – 27 January 2011

Bloomberg — Ugandan Gay-Rights Activist Kato Beaten to Death by Unknown Attackers – 27 January 2011

Daily Monitor– Police mounts hunt for killers of Ugandan gay rights activist – 27 January 2011

Indian Express — Ugandan gay rights activist killed — 27 January 2011

By Polly Johnson
Impunity Watch Reporter, Africa

CAIRO, Egypt – Protestors were beat with fists and sticks, sprayed with tear gas, killed by police and burned to death, amidst unprecedented anti-government demonstrations in Cairo.

Activists took to the streets yesterday, demanding an end to President Hosni Mubarak’s nearly thirty-year rule and a solution to such issues as poverty, rising prices and high unemployment.

Despite the massive police presence and response, powerful security forces, and international calls to avoid violence, more than two thousand demonstrators continued to march on a major downtown boulevard along the Nile on Wednesday night, marking the second day of protests.

Inspired by the uprising in Tunisia, chanters shouted, “Mubarek, Saudi Arabia awaits you. Out! Out! Revolution until victory,” and “Down with Hosni Mubarek, down with the tyrant. We don’t want you!”

On Tuesday, at least four people died and one hundred security personnel were injured. In anticipation of continued riots on Wednesday, thousands of policemen in riot gear gathered in major areas such as intersections and squares, outside the state television building and at Mubarek’s National Democratic Party headquarters. The largest protest took place in Tahrir Square.

The Interior Ministry urged “citizens to renounce attempts to bid and trade their problems and not lose sight of the consequences of provocation for those who attempt to try to open the door to a state of chaos or portray the situation in the country this way.”

The size and strength of the protest was in part fueled by activists’ use of social networking sites. A Facebook group listed places around Cairo where demonstrations would take place and posted, “All of Egypt must move, at one time.” By Tuesday night, Twitter had shut down, and Facebook was partially blocked by Wednesday afternoon.

The demonstrations come in a presidential election year. Mubarek, who is eighty-two years old, has not said whether he intends to run for another six-year term. Some think that his son, Gamal, will succeed him, a thought that both father and son deny.

The United States has taken a careful stance on the situation, as Egypt is a strong ally. Both White House spokesman Robert Gibbs and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton emphasized that all parties should refrain from violence. Clinton called on authorities not to block social media sites.

Clinton added that Washington believed that the Egyptian government was “stable” and “looking for ways to respond to the legitimate needs and interests of the Egyptian people.”

For more information, please see:

BBC – Egypt protests: Police disperse Cairo crowds – 26 January 2011

CNN – Protesters in Egypt greeted by a police crackdown – 26 January 2011

Guardian – Egypt protests are breaking new ground – 25 January 2011

NPR – Egypt says it will smash further political protests – 26 January 2011

Reuters – Egypt’s protests deepen uncertainty over leadership – 26 January 2011