Uganda protests as Museveni sworn in
Uganda President Yoweri Museveni, right, greets Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe, left, who came to Kampala for the swearing in ceremony of Museveni on May 12,2011. Museveni vowed during his swearing-in ceremony for a fourth term Thursday to ‘defeat disrupting schemes’, in an apparent reference to opposition protests. Meanwhile opposition leader Kizza Besigye returned home from Kenya to a triumphant welcome.
Uganda is still in the news.
Protests erupted as Yoweri Museveni is sworn in for a fourth term as president. Museveni vowed to stamp out opposition to his rule. Museveni is looking more and more like a heavy-handed, oppressive African leader who will resort to whatever means to continue ruling his country and at whatever cost.
Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe attended the swearing in ceremony. Need we say anything more?
Meanwhile opposition leader Kizza Besigye made a surprise return to Uganda Thursday and encoutered riot police as crowds came to welcome him back on the 20-mile journey from Entebbe airport to Kampala.
And Uganda's notorious Ant-Homosexuality Bill also made a dramatic comeback. After being shelved at the close of parliament on Wednesday, a special session of parliament was scheduled for Friday for discussion of the proposed legislation. Will the death penalty for some homosexuals be taken out? Will prison sentences for family members who do not report homosexuals be deleted? Can a bill like that be made acceptable?
Museveni's increasingly violent campaign against Besigye and the opposition appears to be part and parcel of the repression of the Anti-Homosexuality Bill. This significant development in Ugandan politics has been encouraged by several American Christian evangelical preachers who have built up connections in Uganda.
Here's a look at the fascinating relationship between Museveni and Besigye, which has gone from friendship to archenemies.