Uganda journalist Enoch Matovu had to be hospitalised after being violently assaulted by soldiers and injected with an unknown substance.
This statement was originally published on hrnjuganda.org on 24 April 2021.
Officers from the Uganda People’s Defense Forces assaulted Enock Matovu, an NTV correspondent in Mityana District on 22 April 2021.
Matovu who was returning from a clinic where he had taken his daughter for treatment, was intercepted by army officers as he approached Busimbe located in Mityana District at about 9:15 pm. The officers did not have name tags on their uniforms and therefore could not be identified.
He told HRNJ-Uganda, represented by the Executive Director Mr. Ssempala Robert and Ms. Nandudu Diana (programme officer) who visited him in Mityana Hospital on 23 April 2021, that on the fateful day, he was returning from the clinic with his ten-year-old daughter when army officers called him by name and said “Matovu, today we have got you. We are tired of journalists in Mityana and we shall make sure we finish all of you. We also want your president [president of the Mityana Journalists’ Association] who will lead us to other journalists.”
Matovu who sustained severe bodily injuries said he was injected with an unknown substance and was feeling a lot of heat in the stomach.
According to one of the journalists in Mityana Mr. Kagiri Luke, Matovu’s attack was a targeted move and is linked to his journalistic work. The Mityana District Police Commander Martin Okoyo who visited Matovu in hospital condemned the attack and promised to investigate the matter to ensure that the journalist gets justice.
The attack comes barely a week after the media and the Uganda People’s Defense Forces had a friendly match aimed at mending fences between the two sectors.
“We condemn the attack on the journalist. We implore the Uganda Police to expeditiously handle the matter to ensure that justice prevails,” said the HRNJ-Uganda Executive Director Robert Ssempala.
