Opposition seeks reversal of political parties bill

Ugandan opposition groups have vowed to press ahead with their campaigns opposing a new bill, recently passed in parliament to govern political parties, but have divided views of whether to obey or defy it if and when it becomes law. Clause 21 of the bill, Political Parties and Organisations Bill (POB), prohibits political parties from opening offices below the national level, restricts their activities to their respective headquarters and allows them only one delegates conference per year. The bill also requires existing political parties to register afresh within six months of its enactment, or risk banning, according to media sources. The bill is awaiting presidential assent to become law. The passing of the bill has outraged the Ugandan opposition, which has termed it as "draconian" and intended to curb freedom of association and expression. Cecilia Ogwal, a Uganda People's Congress (UPC) member of parliament, told IRIN she was dismayed by the passing of the bill, which, she said, raised deep doubts about the Ugandan parliament's credibility. "The bill has been passed without some of us. We thought the amendment of section 269 [of the constitution which restricts the operations of political parties] was to have made much difference, but we made it worse. Some are sending a very wrong message," Ogwal said. However, Ogwal said she disagreed with the position, fronted by the faction of the UPC led by deposed former President Milton Obote, currently in exile in Zambia, of boycotting the registration requirement for political parties under the new law. According to the Ugandan media, some UPC members have been calling for countrywide protests, and urging all political parties to defy the new law by not registering within six months as required by the POB. James Rwanyarare, the UPC's presidential policy commission chairman, directed members of his party to defy the POB while "operating normally and obeying reasonable laws", the independent Monitor newspaper reported on 25 May. Ogwal said that she favoured political parties remaining within the system, so as to be able to influence changes from within. "If you say you don't want to register, you must come up with alternatives that will keep the party going," she said. "This is what I would expect from those who are pushing this view. I don't want members to be forced to cling to the [ruling National Resistance] Movement." Paul Ssemogerere, leader of the Democratic Party (DP), told IRIN on Tuesday that his party had condemned the passing of the controversial bill in parliament, but had not yet decided on the next plan of action. "We haven't reached that position yet, but we have put out a statement to oppose the bill," Ssemogerere told IRIN. "As of now, we leave our options open. We are carrying out necessary consultations, then we will be able to answer the question when we reach that bridge." Ssemogerere said the manner in which the bill had been conducted through parliament was "not transparent" and was "tantamount to interfering with the integrity of parliament". According to him, parliamentary procedures required that a bill which has been tabled to be "thoroughly" examined by the Select Committee, which in turn makes its report to the House. In this case, however, the government had made "fundamental" changes to the Select Committee's report, contrary to House rules. Moreover, Ssemogerere said, the Speaker of Parliament had rejected a motion by the opposition seeking a secret ballot for the bill, as normally provided for by parliamentary rules when voting on controversial matters, thereby distorting the outcome of the vote. "The bill was brought in bad faith. The procedure used was a bad one. There was a lot of intimidation and bribery of MPs. Many didn't turn up. Others only voted because of fear," he added. Ssemogerere said the law's coming into effect would confine political parties to their headquarters in the capital, while the NRM, which he and many critics considered to be a form of political party, continued to operate countrywide with funds from the Treasury. "This is a discriminatory law," he said. "For the Movement, people can consult everywhere. But political parties can only hold meetings at party headquarters. Can you imagine, 40 years after independence, political parties cannot hold meetings in their districts?" Donors too have expressed concern over the bill, according to the local media. The New Vision government-owned newspaper reported on 25 May that 13 heads of mission accredited to Uganda, led by the Irish charge d'affaires, Martin O'Fainin, had voiced their concerns at a meeting with Gilbert Bukenya, the presidency minister. "They were concerned about the need to have more dialogue with the opposition and the slowness towards the constitutional review," the paper quoted Bukenya as saying. Responding to the donors' concerns, Ogwal said: "I think it's good that the donors have agreed on my position. Each of us should work on dialogue," she said. According to Ogwal, the latest developments on the status of political parties in Uganda are part of a "wider scheme" by President Yoweri Museveni to retain power after his mandate expires in 2006. To bring this about, she said, the government was planning to effect changes in the constitution, converting the NRM into a political party. The current Ugandan constitution, which came into effect in 1995, restricts the retention of office by a president to two consecutive five-year terms. "I think Museveni wants to stand again. He is trying to keep the ground firm for his come-back in 2006. The Movement has been using the government to entrench itself. He [Museveni] wants to try and circumvent the constitution to allow him to come back," Ogwal told IRIN on Tuesday.