Authorities Should Immediately Restore Full Internet Access; Uphold Election Integrity
- Photo: A member of the Ugandan police force gives instructions to supporters of Uganda’s incumbent president and National Resistance Movement (NRM) presidential candidate Yoweri Museveni entering the rally grounds ahead of the party’s closing campaign rally ahead of the 2026 Ugandan general elections, in Kampala on January 13, 2026. © 2026 AFP via Getty Images
Ugandan authorities should immediately restore internet access and refrain from imposing blanket shutdowns that undermine fundamental rights and threaten election integrity, Human Rights Watch said today.
“Uganda’s constitution and international human rights obligations guarantee access to information and freedom of expression, rights that are especially critical to protect during election periods,” said Tomiwa Ilori, senior technology, rights and investigations researcher at Human Rights Watch. “Immediate restoration of full connectivity, together with clear commitments against future shutdowns, is essential to safeguard transparency and the integrity of the vote in Uganda.”
On January 13, 2026, Uganda’s telecommunications regulator, the Uganda Communications Commission, ordered all mobile network operators and internet service providers to suspend public internet access nationwide starting at 6 p.m., two days before the general elections. The directive cited concerns about “online misinformation,” “electoral fraud,” and “preventing … incitement of violence that could affect public confidence and national security during the election period.”
The directive blocked social media platforms, web browsing, video streaming, personal email services, messaging applications, and most online services, leaving only a narrow list for critical services such as hospital systems, banking networks, tax platforms, utilities, and the electoral commission portal. It also halted SIM card sales and disabled outbound data roaming to One Network Area countries.
Multiple network measurement sources, including Cloudflare Radar and Internet Outage Detection Analysis, have confirmed a drop in internet traffic in Uganda.
The internet shutdown is part of a broader crackdown on rights. The government, on January 12, ordered at least 10 non-governmental organizations to immediately cease their operations indefinitely, and on December 30, 2025, arrested a prominent human rights activist and critic, Sarah Bireete.
This move follows a troubling pattern of election-related internet shutdowns in 2016 and 2021 by Ugandan authorities, blocking access to information and undermining transparency and public confidence in the electoral process.
Previous shutdowns in Uganda, including a five-day internet blackout during the 2021 elections, led to a ban on Facebook, which is still in effect. Previous shutdowns are estimated to have caused billions of Ugandan shillings in economic losses that harm livelihoods, particularly small businesses and informal traders who rely on the internet for survival.
Ugandan authorities have disregarded repeated calls from international and regional bodies to end this practice.
Blanket internet shutdowns during elections severely restrict communication and access to information at a critical moment for democracy, obstruct election monitoring, and silence the electorates’ voices. They fail the tests of legality, necessity, and proportionality and “can never be justified,” according to international human rights law.
These shutdowns also violate the provisions of article 9 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights. The Declaration of Principles on Freedom of Expression and Access to Information in Africa also provides that states shall not interfere with an individual’s right to internet access.
Ugandan authorities should restore internet access immediately and commit to refraining from future disruptions in line with Uganda’s Constitution and international human rights obligations, Human Rights Watch said. The authorities should ensure transparency and accountability during the electoral process, including protection for journalists, election observers, and human rights defenders.
Telecommunications companies should respect human rights and align their practices with the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. They should do everything within their power to push back against unjustified internet shutdowns, including demanding a legal basis for any shutdown order and interpreting requests to cause the least intrusive restrictions.
“Ugandan authorities’ repeated internet shutdowns during elections blatantly violate human rights,” Ilori said. “Uganda’s international partners, including the African Union and East African Community, should urge compliance with human rights standards and support independent monitoring during and after the election period.”
