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APPENDIX II: SELECTED ARTICLES OF THE UGANDA PENAL CODE

Chapter VII: Treason and Offences Against the State

25. [Treason]

(1) Any person who,

(a) levies war against the Republic of Uganda;

(b) unlawfully causes or attempt to cause the death of the President or, with intent to maim or disfigure or disable, unlawfully wounds or does any harm to the person of the President, or aims at the person of the President any gun, offensive weapon, pistol or any description of firearms, whether the same contains any explosive or destructive substance or not;

(c) contrives any plot, act or matter and expresses or declares such plot, act or matter by any utterance or by any overt act in order, by force of arms, to overturn the Government as by law established;

(d) aids or abets another person in the commission of the foregoing acts, or becomes an accessory before or after the fact to any of the foregoing acts, or conceals any of the foregoing acts,

commits an offence and shall suffer death.

(2) Any person who forms an intention to effect any of the following purposes, that is to say,

(a) to compel by force or constraint the Government as by law established to change its measures or counsels or to intimidate or overawe the National Assembly; or

(b) to instigate any person to invade the Republic of Uganda with an armed force, and manifest any such intention by an overt act or by any utterance or by publishing any printing or writing,

commits an offence and shall suffer death.

(3) Any person who advisedly attempts to affect any of the following purposes, that is to say,

(a) to incite any person to commit an act of mutiny or any treacherous or mutinous act; or

(b) to incite any such person to make or endeavor to make a mutinous assembly,

commits an offence and shall be liable to suffer death.

...

27. [Concealment of Treason]

Any person who,

(a) (repealed by Act 29 of 1970, section 1(c)),

(b) knowing that any person intends to commit treason does not give information thereof with all reasonable despatch to the Minister, an administrative officer, a magistrate or an officer in charge of a police station, or use all reasonable endeavours to prevent the commission of the offence of treason,

commits the offence of misprision of treason, and shall be liable on conviction to imprisonment for life.

28. [Terrorism]

(1) Any person who engages in or carries out acts of terrorism is guilty of an offence and is liable to imprisonment for life.

(2) Any person who aids, finances, harbours or in any other way renders support to any other person, knowing or having reason to believe that such support will be applied or used for or in connection with the commission, preparation or instigation of acts of terrorism is guilty of an offence and is liable to imprisonment for life.

(3) Any person who either,

(a) belongs or professes to belong to a terrorist organisation; or

(b) solicits or invites financial or other support for a terrorist organisation, or knowingly makes or receives any contribution of money or otherwise to the resources of a terrorist organisation,

is guilty of an offence and is liable to imprisonment for ten years:

provided that a person belonging to a terrorist organisation shall not be guilty of an offence under this subsection by reason of belonging to the organisation if he shows that he became a member when it was not a terrorist organisation and that he has not since he became a member taken part in any of its activities at any time while it was a terrorist organisation.

(4) Without prejudice to the right to adduce evidence in rebuttal, any person who imports, sells, distributes, manufactures or is in the possession of any firearm, explosives or ammunition without a valid licence or reasonable excuse shall be deemed to be engaged in acts of terrorism.

(5) The Minister responsible for internal security may, with the prior approval of the Cabinet, declare any organisation engaged in or carrying out acts of terrorism to be a terrorist organisation for the purposes of this section.

(6) In this section the word "terrorism" means the use of violence or threat thereof with intent to promote or achieve political ends in an unlawful manner and includes the use of violence or threat thereof calculated to put the public in such fear as may cause discontent against the government.

...

41. [Seditious Intention]

(1) A seditious intention shall be an intention-

(a) to bring into hatred or contempt or to excite disaffection against the person of the President, the Government as by law established or the Constitution;

(b) to excite any person to attempt to procure the alteration, otherwise than by lawful means, of any matter of State as by law established;

(c) to bring into hatred or contempt or to excite disaffection against the administration of justice;

(d) to raise discontent or disaffection among any body or group of persons;

(e) to promote feelings of ill-will and hostility, religious animosity or communal ill-feeling among any body or group of persons;

(f) (repealed by Statutory Instrument 135 of 1968);

(g) to subvert or promote the subversion of the Government or the Administration of a District.

(2) For the purposes of this section an act, speech or publication shall not be deemed to be seditious by reason only that it intends-

(a) to show that the Government has been misled or mistaken in any of its measures;

(b) to point out errors or defects in the Government or the Constitution, or in legislation or in the administration of justice with a view to the remedying of such errors or defects;

(c) to persuade any person to attempt to procure by lawful means the alteration of any matters as by law established; or

(d) to point out, with a view to their removal, any matters which are producing or have a tendency to produce feelings of ill-will and anmity among anybody or group of persons.

(3) (Consequently repealed by Statutory Instrument 135 of 1968.)

(4) For the purposes of this section in determining whether the intention with which any act was done, any words were spoken, or any document was published, was or was not seditious, every person shall be deemed to intend the consequences which would naturally follow from his conduct at the time and in the circumstances in which he was conducting himself.

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