Burundi

• The Burundian opposition politician, Marie Claire Niyongere, was allegedly sexually assaulted, and then killed. Niyongere was the deputy leader of the women’s wing of the main opposition Congress for Freedom (CNL) party in Kiganda commune.

Eritrea

• On 25 November 2019, the Sudanese Prime Minister Hamdox visited Eritrea for discussions with President Isaias Afwerki on the development of bilateral relations between the two countries.
• The Eritrean Ministry of Information has accused the Government of Qatar of deploying religious, political, and guerrilla tactics to destabilise the country in a statement dated 28 November 2019.

Ethiopia

• Ethiopia’s Sidama people voted overwhelmingly to form their own self-governing region, as many of the country’s ethnic groups demand greater autonomy under sweeping reforms led by Prime Minister Abiy.
• The Federation of Somali Journalists (FESOJ) condemned the threats and intimidation against a journalist in Ethiopia’s Somali region, after the journalist interviewed some opposition members who were critical to the Regional State leaders.
• The Council of Ministers approved the Computer Crime Proclamation Bill, which, according to the Ministers, is aimed at preventing hate speech and dissemination of fake news. However, activists and oppositions claim the bill abuses free speech and access to information.
• Bogaletch Gebre, one of the first women in Ethiopia to speak up against female genital mutilation (FGM), passed away on 2 November 2019. Gebre’s work included preventing FGM and bridal abductions, the practice of kidnapping, and rape of young women to force them into marriage.

Kenya

• Kenyan activists were barred from attending a meeting organised by Muslims for Human Rights (Muhuri), as the hosts, the Technical University of Mombasa, cancelled the meeting based on alleged security concerns. The meeting, slated for 2 November 2019, was meant to address the economic status of the country.
• Kenya’s President Uhuru Kenyatta signed the controversial Data Protection Bill into law. The Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC), Nubian Rights Forum, and the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNHCR) had each filed separate cases challenging the bill.
• President Kenyatta has pledged to end FGM and child marriage by 2022. Kenyatta was among the African leaders who called for ending it at the International Conference on Population and Development in Nairobi from 12-14 November 2019.
• The Kenyan census report has been seen as a victory for intersex persons living in the country, as it’s the first time the report recognises intersex people. According to the report, released by the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS), are there 1524 intersex people living in the country.
• A video of police brutally, illustrating the attack on a student during a demonstration at the Jomo Kenyatta Institute of Agriculture and Technology, has elicited rage on social media. Amnesty International called for the investigation of police who carried out the attacks, while other human rights organisations claimed that this was proof that the recentpolice reforms had not been effective. The four police caught on camera have been suspended.
• Kenya Human Rights Commission, the International Commission of Jurists-Kenya Chapter, and International Centre for Policy and Conflict, who challenged President Kenyatta and Deputy President William Ruto’s eligibility during the 2013 elections, have been waved of a USD 1.7 million fine.

Rwanda

• President Kagame, the East Africa Community (EAC) Chair, has cancelled the EAC Heads of State Summit slated for end of November 2019. The EAC has denied the recent reports that the scheduled meeting was postponed due to tension in the country.

South Sudan:

• The government of South Sudan and the opposition postponed the creation of a unity government for 100 more days.President Salva Kiir and opposition leader Riek Machar met in Entebbe on 7 November 2019 where they appealed to the Intergovernmental Authority on Development(IGAD) to extend the 12 November deadline. This is the third delay in South Sudan’s peace process.
• In a statement published on 1 November 2019, Amnesty International expressed concerns that journalists are at riskahead of the establishment of the unity government. The statement comes in relation to the assault of two female journalists by a military officer.
• Human Rights Watch has called for the release of Emmanuel Monychol Akop, the managing editor of The Dawnnewspaper, who was detained by the National Security Service (NSS) on 21 October 2019 in Juba, South Sudan. The rights group claims that the arrest is as a result of a Facebook post in which he made fun of a dress worn by the Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Minister, Awut Deng Achuil.
• South Sudan has launched an action plan against sexual and gender based violence (SGBV), pledging speedy actions by the specialised groups of personnel formed to investigate these atrocities. A call to stand against SGBV spearheaded by UNFPA was also recently launched in the country.

Somalia and Somaliland

• The killing of the prominent Somali-Canadian human rights activist Almaas Elman on 20 November 2019 has increased the security concerns in Somalia. It is still unknown who is behind the murder.
• The Federation of Somali Journalists (FESOJ) has condemned the suspension of Horncable TV by the Somaliland Ministry of Information. The station was shut on 18 November 2019, the latest in a string of censorship of journalists and the media in Somaliland.
• The Somali Journalist Syndicate (SJS) has condemned the harassment and beating of four Al Jazeera and Reuters journalists at Aden Adde International Airport. The police officers were later arrested in connection with the incident.
• Somali Police officers, accompanied by employees from a private business, assaulted and beat up two TV reporters who were covering a protest by local traders against unpaid dues against Deero Group in Hargeisa.
• At a forum, organised by the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM), the AU and Somalia urged to end violenceagainst women and children in conflict.

Sudan

• Sudan postponed its peace talks until December 2019. Khartoum’s new transitional government began peace talks with several rebel groups in October 2019, after the ousting of former President al-Bashir and his forces in Darfur, Blue Nile, and South Kordofan. In addition, Sudan’s Forces for Freedom and Change Coalition (FFC) is urging the country’s government to hand over former President Omar al-Bashir to the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague.
• Sudan Sudan’s Minister of Information and Culture is filtering those media outlets set-up by officials of the former National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS), according to a press statement released on 1 November 2019.
• The Attorney General of Sudan, Tajelsir El Hibir, has called for the formation of a commission of inquiry to investigate the extrajudicial killing of army officers who led the ‘Ramadan coup’ in 1990.
• Police in Port Sudan have issued night curfew after three people were killed and 24 others injured in tribal clashes after a political rally. It is not specified when the curfew will be lifted.
• A new report by Human Rights Watch has claimed that the heavy-handed repression of the Sudan protests could amount to crimes against humanity. They called for justice for the 3 June 2019 massacre, where Sudanese security forces attacked protesters at a sit-in camp in Khartoum, reportedly killing more than 100 people.

Tanzania

• A recent Human Rights Watch report indicated that the repression of the media, HRDs, and opposition parties has increased since 2015.
• The court case against journalist Erick Kabendera, who has been in police custody since July 2019, has been postponed for the eight time.
• Tanzania’s government spokesman, Hassan Abbas, issued a warning to local journalists about quoting foreign organisations and representatives in their reporting just a few hours after American and British diplomats released a statement criticising the process of the recent local elections in the country.
• Maxence Melo, an online rights activist, was honoured by the Committee to Protect Journalist Press Awards, for his fight to give youth a voice, and offer a space for free expression, as well as his fight against corruption.
• The legal marital age for women has been changed to 18 years. However, grave challenges to girls rights remain, as recent reports state that 200 girls have dropped out of school due to pregnancy.

Uganda

• Chairperson of the Uganda Human Rights Commission (UHRC), Med Kaggwa, died on 20 November 2019. In his condolence message, President Yoweri Museveni described Kaggwa as a hard-working civil servant who always put his country before himself.
• 67 people were arrested at a gay-friendly bar in Kampala and charged with “common nuisance.” Their lawyer, Patricia Kimera, dismissed the charges as petty, but said that they faced a maximum sentence of one year. According to Nicholas Opiyo, a human rights lawyer, police released 50 other people after a raid on the bar. On 17 November, Human Rights Watch called on the Ugandan police to stop the harassment of LGBT+ people in the country.
• Uganda has banned 12,000 charities in a recent crackdown. HRDs raise concern that this could be an attempt to gag civil rights movements.
• WHRDN-U has decried the increasing harassment by law enforcement officers saying some of their members have been forced to abandon their work. The activists are concerned that police disperse their gatherings on noble causes.
• Eight journalists were detained by police on 4 November 2019, while attempting to present a petition opposing what they termed as police abuses.
• In a statement on 4 November 2019, Human Rights Watch called for investigations and accountability of the police and military crackdown on students and journalists.
• The UHRC has criticised the Uganda People’s Defence Forces Fisheries Protection Unit after the killing of two fishermen during an operation against illegal fishing on Lake Kyoga. Six other people were injured.