A Ugandan magistrate’s court is expected to issue a sentence to eight anti-EACOP activists after convicting them on a nuisance on road charge. The activists (some of whom are students) have already spent over eight months in remand since their arrest on 1st August 2025 while peacefully protesting Stanbic Bank Uganda’s decision to finance the controversial East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP). Repeated requests for bail have been denied. This follows an earlier incident in 2025, when 11 StopEACOP activists protesting KCB Bank Uganda’s involvement in EACOP were arrested and spent three months in remand, with bail also being repeatedly denied. Uganda is well known for its repression of civic protest and freedom of speech, with the UN Human Rights Office frequently documenting acts of stifled dissent and the targeting of activists through police action, detention, legislation and the courts.
