The European Union has called for punishment for perpetrators of torture in Uganda, following the alleged torture of a recently detained author.

The EU delegation in Uganda said it shared the public anger about “reports of torture, arbitrary arrests, enforced disappearances, harassment as well as attacks against human rights defenders”.

“Those who violate the laws of Uganda should be held accountable and personally liable for their actions,” the delegation said in a statement on Monday.

Earlier, the media published images and accounts of award-winning author Kakwenza Rukirabashaija, 33, who narrated his ordeal of torture during his incarceration by the security services.

Mr Rukirabashaija’s lawyer said the author was held incommunicado in an ungazetted detention facility and was only produced in court after widespread domestic and international pressure including by the United States and the European Union.

The author told a television station he was punched in the stomach, kicked, hit with gun butts, and made to dance endlessly, adding that his torturers used pliers to tear pieces of flesh from parts of his body.

Police spokesperson Fred Enanga did not respond to a telephone call from Reuters seeking comment.

President Yoweri Museveni, who has ruled the east African country since 1986, has long been accused by the opposition, as well as some western governments and pressure groups of using security forces to intimidate and harass opponents, critics, and rights activists.

On Friday, the U.S. embassy issued a statement demanding prosecution of security personnel engaged in torture.

(Reuters/NAN)