Police detained eight environmental activists outside the National Environment Management Authority offices after they protested wetland destruction along the Kampala-Masaka highway. Kampala Metropolitan Police spokesman Luke Oweyesigyire said officers charged the group with public nuisance following their demonstration against sand mining and agricultural expansion in the 20-kilometer Lwera Wetland.
Weka Afri Sustainable Biodiversity executive Joachim Mumbere said mining operations leave flooded pits that damage nearby villages, while rice farm chemicals sicken residents. The activist accused authorities of licensing destructive companies and protecting operators with military personnel despite presidential promises to revoke wetland titles.
President Yoweri Museveni pledged in 2020 to cancel all property documents issued in protected marshes. Sand trucks continue to remove material from Lwera, while farms expand into restricted areas that filter Lake Victoria water and prevent downstream flooding.
Authorities remanded the protesters until November 4. The wetland serves as a fish breeding habitat and regulates regional rainfall patterns, which support agriculture and provide water supplies for communities that depend on the ecosystem.
Weka Afri Sustainable Biodiversity executive Joachim Mumbere said mining operations leave flooded pits that damage nearby villages, while rice farm chemicals sicken residents. The activist accused authorities of licensing destructive companies and protecting operators with military personnel despite presidential promises to revoke wetland titles.
President Yoweri Museveni pledged in 2020 to cancel all property documents issued in protected marshes. Sand trucks continue to remove material from Lwera, while farms expand into restricted areas that filter Lake Victoria water and prevent downstream flooding.
Authorities remanded the protesters until November 4. The wetland serves as a fish breeding habitat and regulates regional rainfall patterns, which support agriculture and provide water supplies for communities that depend on the ecosystem.
