Jinja to host International Human Rights Defenders Day celebrations

Prior to this, the National Coalition of Human Rights Defenders Uganda (NCHRD-U) will hold a series of events in Jinja City on December 7 and 8, 2023, gearing up for D-Day.

According to the executive director of NCHRD-U, Robert R. Kirenga, the two-day event is aimed at celebrating, empowering, and raising awareness about the crucial work undertaken by human rights defenders in Uganda.

Kirenga, who made the remarks during a press conference at Jinja City Hall in Jinja City on Monday, December 4, 2023, said the day will be commemorated under the theme “Reinforcing the Protection and Promotion of Human Rights Defenders.”

The Jinja Uganda Human Rights Commission (UHRC) regional head, Betty Enangu, while addressing the media during the press conference, emphasised the need to defend human rights peacefully.

“The key issue that we need to take note of as we work as human rights defenders is the fact that we need to defend human rights peacefully. This calls for us to know our duties; it calls for us to know our responsibilities; but it also calls for us to know what our rights are. So let us not forget that we need to be peaceful while defending human rights so then we will be able to respect the rights of others,” she said.

Enangu also highlighted some of the work UHRC has done with NCHRD-U to ensure human rights are defended, such as organising high-level meetings that have discussed the challenges of human rights defenders and also resulted in serious interventions to address them. She said UHRC is working hand in hand with NCRD-U to draft and advocate for a legal document that protects the rights of human rights defenders in Uganda.

Faith Juliet Namasa, who is part of the organising committee, said there will be activities such as tree planting, blood donation, a walk, and cancer screening, which will take place on the first day, December 7, and a conference on the second day.