After the siege of their head office in Namanve, the police carried the proprietors and editors of Red Pepper Newspaper to the dreaded Nalufenya police in Jinja, as investigations into the paper’s publication of a story on Uganda-Rwanda relations continue.
All phones and other gadgets of the five directors and two editors were confiscated.
Red Pepper directors are James Mujuni, Patrick Mugumya, Arinaitwe Otim Rugyendo, Johnson Byarabaha Musinguzi, and Richard Tusiime.
The editors are Ben Byarabaha (Managing Editor), Richard Kintu (News Editor) and Tumusiime Francis (who heads Bwino Newspaper).
One of Pepper Publications lawyers, Mr Dickens Byamukama said that they were driven to Nalufenya at midnight Tuesday and were returned to Kampala on Wednesday.
The police also prevented staff of the newspaper to enter the premises, as they continued their search of the materials. They also confiscated all their mobile phones and computers.
It is also reported that the police did not stop at Namanve, they also went to the homes of the directors and editors arrested to carry out further search.
“We hope that the police will observe the rule of law, in the pursuit of this matter,” Denis Nyombi, Corporation Secretary of the Red Pepper said to this newspaper.
He added that by Thursday morning, the directors and editors were still held at Nalufenya, although they had recorded a charge and caution statement. In the statement, they are accused of treason, annoying the person of Salim Saleh, Gen. Henry Tumukunde, Offensive communication and publication of a story that’s prejudicial to the security of the country.
In their Monday edition of Red Pepper, they wrote that Uganda was planning to overthrow President Paul Kagame of Rwanda. They added that the plot includes France, which has historically had poor relations with Rwanda.
