A Uganda MP submitted a document that pointed a finger at several ministers, including Prime Minister Amama Mbabazi, as having pocketed billions of shillings in commissions as the House opened a stormy debate on what they called the 'shameless corruption' ripping through the oil sector. The dossier titled: 'Brief on Uganda’s Oil deals' was tabled by the Youth MP for Western Uganda, Mr Gerald Karuhanga, containing alleged details of dates and bank transactions through which the illegal payments were reportedly made.

Former Vice President Gilbert Bukenya has been granted bail pending trial, after spending a week on remand. Bukenya is charged with abuse of office for his role in the award of a deal worth Shs9.4b to supply 204 executive vehicles four years ago during the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting to Motorcare.

The African Gender Institute (AGI) and the Women and Gender Studies programme of the University of the Western Cape will on the 11th and the 12th of October 2011, co-host Professor Sylvia Tamale. Professor Tamale will be launching the book, 'African Sexualities, A Reader' and also presenting a seminar on the politics of sexualities in African contexts. The book launch will be on the 11th of October at the Book Lounge (71 Roeland Street, Cape Town) from 17:30hrs to 20:00hrs while the seminar will be on the 12th of October at the Graduate School of Humanities Building at the University of Cape Town from 13:00hrs to 14:30hrs.

Government has secured 300 acres of land to set up a multi-functional prison for terror suspects.
The disclosure was made by the Commissioner General of Prisons, Dr. Johnson Byabashaija. He said the new detention centre would also accommodate cyber crime suspects and drug traffickers.

The Inspector General of Government has forwarded charges against Foreign Affairs Minister Sam Kutesa, together with Government Chief Whip John Nasasira and junior labour minister Mwesigwa Rukutana to the Anti-corruption Court in relation to the Shs14b tender for fixing Speke Resort Munyonyo, ahead of the 2007 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Kampala. The trio, are facing two charges of abuse of office and causing financial loss, according to a charge sheet presented to the court Wednesday morning before the anti-corruption court, by the IGG prosecutor Rogers Kinobe.

Detailed updates about the activity of the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) are now available in near real-time, thanks to a partnership between two US-based NGOs. The LRA Crisis Tracker, a joint venture between Invisible Children and Resolve provides data on attacks, killings, abductions, injuries and looting by the LRA, an insurgency that began in northern Uganda in the 1980s, whose fighters are now scattered across remote areas of South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Central African Republic. Data is published on the tracker's website as well as on social media such as Twitter and Facebook and via apps for iPad and iPhone.

The Justice and Reconciliation in Africa programme at the Institute for Justice and Reconciliation has recently released four new policy briefs, together with the Justice and Reconciliation Project. The briefs focus on Northern Uganda, as the region tries to recover after more than two decades of war.

A new report by the British charity Oxfam suggests that over 22,000 Ugandans have been forced out of their homes since 2004. Oxfam claims many of them have been left homeless after being evicted in so-called land-grabs, to clear the way for timber plantations. One eviction case involves the British company New Forest Company, who have denied the accusations.

Frank Mugisha, a Ugandan LGBTI human rights defender has been selected for the 2011 Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Award. He has been commended for his work in the LGBTI community especially in Uganda. Mugisha is the Executive Director of Sexual Minorities Uganda (SMUG), an umbrella organisation that protects and recognises LGBTI people in the country.

Amnesty International has welcomed the release of Kenyan human rights activist, Al-Amin Kimathi by a Ugandan court. The charges against NGO director Al-Amin Kimathi and four other defendants were dropped by the Kampala High Court at the start of their trial.

The work of Bishop Christopher Senyonjo, a retired Anglican Bishop from the Diocese of Western Uganda, has become increasingly vital over time, heightened by the intensifying persecution of homosexuals in his country. Taking the courageous step of ministering to LGBT people in his country, the Bishop is calling on America to 'stop exporting hatred' as he continues to advocate for the global decriminalisation of homosexuality.

The Komo Learning Centres (KLC) was established in 2008 as a non-profit (501c3) corporation dedicated to providing community-based educational opportunities for vulnerable and disadvantaged children in Uganda. With the third highest fertility rate in the world, Uganda’s education system is burdened with overcrowded classrooms, a scarcity of teachers and dilapidated schoolhouses.

Tumusiime Kabwende Deo investigates the current malaise in Uganda's education sector which has seen teachers going on strike for the second time this year after fruitless month-long talks with the government for a 100 per cent pay rise.

The high rate of HIV/AIDS prevalence in Nebbi district has been attributed to lack of sensitisation of the community on the danger of the disease, says Rev. Fr. Juvenile Ayelangom, the Nebbi director of Caritas, a Catholic church organisation.

A ‘family’ campaign in Uganda is urging lawmakers to pass the notorious anti-homosexuality bill. The Family Life Network and Uganda Coalition for Moral Values says the government should do the 'right' thing, rather than bow to international pressure.

The Refugee Law Project, under its video advocacy programme, has produced documentaries to show the work being done at RLP, as well as highlight the plight of forced migrants in Uganda. Research looked into the nature and dynamics of land ownership, land access, and land use as well as how political perceptions and considerations factored as important elements in the land conflicts and how the question of investment played out in the context of ongoing conflicts associated with land in Amuru district.

NAPE and other members of Save Mabira Crusade, in collaboration with other citizens of Uganda and Friends of the Earth International (FoEI) have submitted a petition opposing the proposed giveaway of Mabira and other forest reserves in Uganda. Save Mabira Crusade is a network of individuals, NGOs, civic leaders, religious, cultural and academic institutions, political organisations and local communities that have come together to save one of Uganda’s most valuable rainforests.

Tank versus protest placard…

Kenya is losing its grip in the battle for foreign direct investments (FDI) to Uganda and Tanzania as heightened political tensions and restrictions on foreign ownership in some sectors turn away multinationals. The FDI inflows to Kenya dipped from Sh67.8 billion in 2007 to Sh13.1 billion in 2009 and Sh12.4 billion last year, according to the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD). Last year, Uganda’s FDI inflows jumped to Sh78.8 billion from Sh75.9 million while Tanzania’s increased from Sh60 billion to Sh65.1 billion—making the twin countries the key beneficiaries of the region’s common market.

The British government is facing unprecedented court claims from its former African colonies for various atrocities committed by its officers. The once mighty Bunyoro-Kitara Kingdom in western Uganda now joins the Mau Mau of Kenya in lodging court proceedings in which they are demanding £1.5 billion ($2.4 billion) as general damages and reparations. In a case that also raises questions about what should constitute the scope of a colonial power, lawyers representing Bunyoro-Kitara Kingdom have served the British government with a statutory notice of intention to sue for invasion, atrocious human-rights abuses and grabbing of their land in the colonial era.