Ahead of Uganda’s general elections, Media Rights Agenda (MRA) joined the #KeepItOn Coalition, a global network of more than 345 organisations across 106 countries dedicated to ending internet shutdowns, to call on President Yoweri Museveni of Uganda to ensure that telecommunications companies and Internet Service Providers (ISPs) provide high-quality, secure, and uninterrupted internet access throughout the election period and beyond.
The #KeepItOn coalition warned that governments around the world are increasingly using internet shutdowns to interfere with elections and weaken democratic participation. These actions, they warned, harm human rights and must not become normal practice.
The Coalition called on the President to direct relevant institutions, including the Uganda Communications Commission (UCC), the Ministry of ICT and National Guidance, and all internet service providers, not to disrupt internet access. “Authorities must ensure uninterrupted connectivity before, during, and after the electoral process,” they said.
The #KeepItOn Coalition said it is deeply concerned by reports of an increasing crackdown on opposition voices and the media ahead of the elections. Reports indicate arbitrary arrests, torture, enforced disappearances, and intimidation by security forces targeting opposition supporters, journalists, and activists.
Recall that in October 2025, journalists from NTV Uganda and The Daily Monitor reportedly had their accreditations revoked after critical reporting. Earlier this year, journalists covering a parliamentary by-election in Kawempe North were assaulted and had their equipment seized or destroyed. The #KeepItOn Coalition noted that these actions set a dangerous precedent for the conduct of the elections.
The #KeepItOn Coalition stressed that access to information and freedom of expression are essential for free, fair, and credible elections. The internet allows people to access election information, express opinions, engage with candidates, and participate in campaigns. Journalists, human rights defenders, and election observers also depend on the internet to monitor, document, and report on the electoral process.
The Coalition expressed concern over statements by authorities following the Uganda Communications Commission’s (UCC) commitment not to shut down the internet. Despite this assurance, the UCC threatened users against relying on VPNs to access Facebook, which has remained blocked since the 2021 elections. Election officials have also suggested that internet shutdowns may be necessary due to election misinformation. The Coalition said it was further alarmed by the UCC’s directive ordering Starlink to disable its services in Uganda shortly before the elections, raising serious concerns about connectivity during this critical period.
The #KeepItOn Coalition welcomed the statement by Commissioners of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR), which raised concerns about growing restrictions on freedom of expression, media freedom, and internet access ahead of Uganda’s elections.
The Coalition recalled that since 2011, Ugandan authorities have repeatedly restricted access to the internet, especially during elections. In 2016, the government ordered telecommunication companies to block social media, restrict mobile money services, and limit access to essential digital tools. Although legal challenges were brought by civil society organisations, court delays and dismissals failed to prevent future shutdowns.
It added that during the 2021 general elections, the government imposed a nationwide internet blackout lasting four days. Access to major platforms, including Facebook, WhatsApp, and Instagram, was blocked, along with more than 100 VPN services. While internet access was later restored, Facebook remains blocked in Uganda to this day.
Warning that these practices seriously undermine human rights and democracy, the #KeepItOn Coalition noted that authorities must engage openly with regulators, service providers, civil society, the media, and human rights groups to ensure an inclusive and transparent democratic process.
The #KeepItOn Coalition emphasised that internet shutdowns violate fundamental human rights, including freedom of expression, access to information, freedom of assembly, and the right to participate in elections. Shutdowns silence dissent, restrict scrutiny of the electoral process, and create information gaps that fuel misinformation and disinformation.
According to the #KeepItOn Coalition, shutdowns also make it difficult for journalists to report accurately and safely, and for human rights defenders to document abuses. Election observers rely on the internet to monitor voting, counting, and results transmission. When connectivity is disrupted, accountability is weakened.
Meanwhile, monitoring by the #KeepItOn coalition’s Election Watch initiative showed that internet shutdowns often distort election outcomes and favour incumbents. For example, election observers reported that Tanzania’s five-day internet blackout during the October 2025 elections severely limited public access to information and hindered election monitoring.
The coalition also notes the economic harm caused by shutdowns. During Uganda’s 2016 and 2021 shutdowns, businesses were disrupted, and people were unable to access mobile money services needed for healthcare, utilities, school fees, and daily transactions.
The #KeepItOn coalition stresses that internet shutdowns violate Uganda’s Constitution and international human rights obligations, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR). The Declaration of Principles on Freedom of Expression and Access to Information in Africa calls on states not to disrupt internet access for the public.
The ACHPR has repeatedly affirmed the importance of internet access during elections. In Resolution 580 (2024), it urged states to ensure open and secure internet access before, during, and after elections. The Commission has also raised concerns about election-related shutdowns elsewhere in Africa.
International bodies, including the Freedom Online Coalition and the United Nations, have consistently stated that blanket internet shutdowns violate international human rights law. Courts in Africa, including the ECOWAS Court of Justice and national courts in Sudan and Zimbabwe, have ruled that shutdowns are unlawful or unconstitutional.
The #KeepItOn coalition reminds telecommunications companies of their responsibility under the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights and the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises. Telecommunication companies and ISPs in Uganda, including MTN Uganda, Airtel Uganda, and others, must resist unlawful shutdown orders and ensure open, secure, and reliable internet access throughout the elections.
“Internet shutdowns must never become the norm in Uganda or anywhere else. Businesses should apply international human rights standards when responding to government requests for censorship or network disruptions,” the Coalition stated.
The #KeepItOn coalition calls on President Museveni to publicly guarantee that internet access, including social media and digital platforms, will remain unrestricted during and after the elections; direct all relevant authorities to refrain from ordering any disruption to internet or telecommunications services; and require service providers to clearly inform the public of any technical disruptions and take prompt steps to resolve them.
The #KeepItOn Coalition said it was ready to support efforts to uphold an open, secure, and inclusive internet for everyone in Uganda.
Signatories to the statement include Access Now, Activate Rights, Afghanistan Democracy and Development Organisation (ADDO), Afia-Amani Grands-Lacs, Africa Internet Rights Alliance, Africa Open Data and Internet Research Foundation (AODIRF)), African Freedom of Expression Exchange (AFEX), AfricTivistes, ARTICLE 19 Eastern Africa, Bloggers of Kenya (BAKE) Coalition, Collaboration on International ICT Policy for East and Southern Africa (CIPESA), Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), Digital Rights Kashmir, Digital Woman Uganda FaiberTek, Forumvert, Fundación Karisma, Human Rights Consulting Group, KazakhstanHuman Rights Journalists Network Nigeria, Imagined Spaces Initiative Uganda, Initiative for Embracing Humanity in African (IEHA), International Press Institute, Internet Governance Tanzania Working Group (IGTWG), Internet Protection Society (ex-Russia), Internet Society DR Congo chapter, JCA-NET(Japan), Jonction, Senegal, KICTANet, Kijiji Yeetu, Kurdistan Organisations Network to Abolish Nuclear and Mass Destruction Weapons-KONW, Kurdistan without Genocide and Life campaign to abolish the death sentence in Kurdistan Network.
Others are Lim Nguen Foundation-South Sudan, Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA), Media Rights Agenda (MRA), Myanmar Internet Project, Office of Civil Freedoms, Open Observatory of Network Interference (OONI), Opening Central Africa coalition, Organisation of the Justice Campaign, Paradigm Initiative, PEN America, PEN Uganda, Robert & Ethel Kennedy Human Rights Center, Sassoufit Collective, SMEX, SMSWithoutBorders, Southeast Asia Freedom of Expression Network (SAFEnet), Tech & Media Convergency (TMC), The Tor Project, Ubunteam, VE sin Filtro – Conexión Segura y Libre (CSL), West African Digital Rights Defenders, Women Empower and Mentor All (WEmpower), Women of Uganda Network (WOUGNET) and Zaina Foundation.
