Pop star presidential candidate Bobi Wine released after dozens dead in Uganda protests

Hundreds more supporters arrested by police during violent clashes

A man prepares to throw a rock during clashes between security forces and protesters supporting Bobi Wine, in Kampala, Uganda (AP)

Pop star turned opposition presidential candidate, Bobi Wine, was reportedly released on bail after dozens protesting his arrest were killed in clashes with police. 

The police pathologist confirmed 37 bodies had been counted by Thursday morning, and between 350 and 500 people are reported to have been arrested during the demonstrations in the Ugandan capital.

Mr Wine was released on bail on Friday after authorities charged him over acts likely to spread coronavirus, a local online TV channel reported.

Supporters of Bobi Wine, whose real name is Robert Kyagulanyi, took to the streets, blocking roads and burning car tyres, after news spread of the 38-year-old’s arrest.

Police have used tear gas, water cannons, rubber bullets and live rounds in efforts to contain the protests and disperse those gathered to oppose the regime of long-serving president Yoweri Museveni.  

Mr Wine, who first found fame as a musician and film actor in Uganda, is now a leading opposition candidate for presidential elections due in January but claimed he was dragged from his car and arrested while campaigning in the east of the country.  

Police said he was breaking coronavirus rules that forbid organising mass rallies.

Mr Wine and his party, the National Unity Platform (NUP), have been repeatedly harangued by police raids and arrests since he formally launched his campaign for the presidency.  

After he was arrested on Wednesday, the pop star tweeted: “The price of freedom is high but we shall certainly overcome.”

A police spokesperson, Fred Enanga, claimed many of the protesters were detained because they began attacking members of the public who did not support Mr Wine’s NUP.

“What we have seen in the last few days, that is violence, vandalism, looting, intimidation and threats, are crimes that were being committed (against) people who are not pro-NUP. This is not something that we can tolerate,” he told reporters.  

Security minister General Elly Tumwine has also warned the demonstrators to leave the streets or face sterner consequences. 

“This was a deliberate and pre-planned move to cause chaos because we have evidence,” he asserted. “But I want to warn those inciting violence that they will reap what they sow.”

Mr Museveni has run Uganda since 1986 but his rule has been marked by authoritarianism and repression of political opposition.

Many of Uganda’s youth have in particular been inspired by Mr Wine’s upbeat efforts to end Mr Museveni’s reign. He won a seat in parliament 2017 and since then, candidates he backs have often won against both the governing National Resistance Movement and the traditional opposition party Forum for Democratic Change.

Additional reporting by agencies