Amnesty International Report 2017/18

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Amnesty International Report 2017/18

In Zambia, the Public Order Act was used to repress the rights to freedom of expression, 

association and peaceful assembly, particularly against critical civil society activists and 

opposition political party leaders. Police used excessive force against peaceful protesters while 

ignoring violence by ruling party loyalists against civil society activists.

In Zimbabwe, Pastor Evan Mawarire – founder of the #Thisflag movement – suffered political 

persecution and harassment, until he was acquitted following the change in government in 

November.

Ugandan academic Stella Nyanzi was detained for over one month for Facebook posts 

criticizing the President and his wife, who was the Minister for Education.

EMERGING REGRESSIVE LAWS AND SHRINKING POLITICAL SPACE

Some governments moved to introduce new laws to restrict the activities of human rights 

defenders, journalists and opponents.

Angola’s Parliament adopted five bills containing provisions restricting freedom of expression, 

establishing a media regulatory body with broad oversight powers.

Legislation adopted in Côte d’Ivoire contained provisions curtailing the right to freedom of 

expression – including in relation to defamation, offending the President and disseminating 

false news.

A draft bill in Nigeria and draft amendments to Malawi’s NGO law introduced excessive, 

intrusive and arbitrary controls on the activities of NGOs, including human rights groups.

MEDIA FREEDOM

In at least 30 countries – more than half the countries monitored – media freedom was 

curtailed and journalists faced criminalization.

Misuse of the justice system to silence dissent was common in Angola where the government 

used defamation laws, especially against journalists and academics.

In Uganda, journalist Gertrude Uwitware was arrested for supporting Stella Nyanzi.

In Botswana, journalists faced continued harassment and intimidation for their investigative 

journalism; three journalists were detained and threatened with death by security agents in 

plain clothes after they investigated the construction of President Ian Khama’s holiday home.

Cameroon and Togo blocked the internet to prevent journalists from doing their jobs and 

closed media outlets.

Activists including journalists and bloggers were detained in Ethiopia and many were 

convicted under the Anti-Terrorism Proclamation which provided vague definitions of terrorist 

acts.

A military court in Cameroon sentenced Radio France Internationale journalist Ahmed Abba 

to 10 years’ imprisonment after an unfair trial, for exercising his right to freedom of expression. 

He was released in December following a decision by an appellate tribunal which reduced his 

sentence to 24 months.

POLITICAL REPRESSION AND VIOLATIONS IN THE CONTEXT OF ELECTIONS

Fear, intimidation and violence marred Kenya’s presidential elections. Police used excessive 

force against opposition protesters following the elections leaving dozens dead, including at 

least 33 shot by the police. Senior ruling party officials repeatedly threatened the 

independence of the judiciary after the Supreme Court annulled the election results. The 

NGOs Coordination Board threatened human rights and governance organizations with closure 

and other punitive measures after they criticized the electoral process.

In Rwanda’s August presidential election, incumbent Paul Kagame won a landslide victory, 

following constitutional changes that allowed him to contest a third term; the election took 

place in a climate of fear created by two decades of attacks on political opposition, 

independent media and human rights defenders. Potential presidential candidates were also 

targeted, including by smear campaigns.

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Amnesty International Report 2017/18

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The run-up to Angola’s elections in August was marked by human rights abuses – journalists 

and human rights defenders were repeatedly intimidated for exposing corruption and human 

rights violations. Protesters faced arrest and excessive use of force by police.

Political repression was rife in Burundi, with unlawful killings, arbitrary arrests, and enforced 

disappearances across the country.

ARMED CONFLICT AND VIOLENCE

Although the nature and intensity of Africa’s conflicts varied, they were generally characterized 

by gross human rights violations and violations of international humanitarian law – including 

acts constituting crimes under international law.

Amid the paralysis of regional efforts to resolve the political deadlock, intense suffering and 

loss of life continued in South Sudan’s four-year armed conflict, which forced millions from 

their homes. In the Upper Nile region, tens of thousands of civilians were forcibly displaced as 

government forces burned, shelled and systematically looted homes; sexual violence 

continued unabated. A cessation of hostilities agreement was signed in December following 

the forum launched by the intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) to revitalize 

the previous peace agreement. However, soon after, renewed fighting broke out in different 

parts of the country.

In Sudan, the security and humanitarian situation in Darfur, Blue Nile and South Kordofan 

states remained dire, with widespread violations of international humanitarian and human 

rights law.

There was renewed conflict in the Central African Republic (CAR), which led to large-scale 

human rights violations and abuses and crimes under international law. Outside the 

government-controlled capital, armed groups carried out a range of abuses, and reports of 

sexual exploitation and abuses by UN peacekeeping troops continued.

In DRC, unprecedented violence in the Kasaï region left thousands dead and as of 25 

September 1 million were internally displaced; over 35,000 people fled to neighbouring 

Angola. Congolese army soldiers used excessive force, killing scores of suspected members 

and sympathizers of the armed insurgent group Kamuena Nsapu, which, in turn, recruited 

children and carried out attacks on civilians and government forces. The government proxy-

militia group Bana Mura was responsible for dozens of ethnic-based attacks including killings, 

rapes and destruction of civilian property.

In response to threats by the armed group Boko Haram and its ongoing commission of war 

crimes, security forces in Cameroon and Nigeria continued to commit gross human rights 

violations and crimes under international law. These included extrajudicial executions, 

enforced disappearances, arbitrary arrests, incommunicado detentions, torture and other ill-

treatment, which, in some cases, led to deaths in custody. People accused of supporting Boko 

Haram were sentenced to death in Cameroon following unfair trials in military courts, although 

none were executed during the year. In Nigeria, the military arbitrarily arrested and detained 

incommunicado thousands of women, men and children in harsh conditions. In Niger – where 

the government declared a state of emergency in the western areas bordering Mali and 

renewed the state of emergency in the Diffa region – more than 700 suspected Boko Haram 

members went on trial.

ABUSES BY ARMED GROUPS

Armed groups including al-Shabaab and Boko Haram perpetrated abuses and attacks against 

civilians in countries including Cameroon, CAR, DRC, Mali, Niger, Nigeria and Somalia. In 

some cases, the attacks constituted serious abuses of international humanitarian and human 

rights law.

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