By: Kim Aine (ChimpReport)
Ugandan authorities are holding a Rwandan woman for reportedly planning to eliminate a UPDF General. Jennifer Byukusenge was picked on April 5 from Kampala by operatives of the Chieftaincy of Military Intelligence (CMI). Officials who spoke to ChimpReports on condition of anonymity given the sensitivity of the matter, said Byukusenge was sent to Uganda on a mission to eliminate Luweero Industries boss, Maj Gen Sabiiti Muzeeyi Magyenyi.
Sabiiti, who previously served as Acting Special Forces commander; Military Police commander and Deputy Inspector General of Police, was not readily available for comment when we posted this article this Friday morning. “Byukusenge was given an elaborate plan to track down Afande Sabiiti and have him eliminated,” said the source. Byukusenge is said to be a final student of Mount Kenya University in Rwanda.
On the other hand, Rwandan authorities say Byukusenge traveled to Uganda to “share with her mother the good news of her upcoming nuptials and preparations.”
The development comes at a time Uganda and Rwanda are working around the clock to restore bilateral relations.
Espionage
This is not the first time Uganda is accusing Rwanda of aggressive espionage activities. In March 2019, President Museveni wrote to his Rwandan counterpart, criticizing Kigali for its agents attempting to operate in his homeland without the consent of Kampala authorities. It is “wrong” for “Rwanda agents to try to operate behind the government of Uganda,” Museveni said in a letter to Paul Kagame.
It was the first time communication between the leaders was made public, since Rwanda unilaterally decided to close its busiest border with Uganda in February 2019, disrupting trade. Following the assassination of AIGP Andrew Felix Kaweesi on March 17, 2017, Uganda decided to strengthen security of its senior security officials.
High ranking army officers such as Maj Gen Sabiiti are heavily guarded by commandos. It remains unclear how Byukusenge would penetrate Sabiiti’s security ring to harm him.
In a video, Byukusenge is seen aboard the Rwandair aircraft enroute to Uganda. Rwandans are not allowed to cross the border to Uganda. Kigali accuses Ugandan authorities of mistreating Rwandans. But Kampala says it’s cracking down on Kigali’s espionage activities in Uganda. Interestingly, Rwandans can easily fly with Rwandair to Uganda.
A recent investigative report by Freedom House accused the Rwanda government of conducting spying operations on Uganda. “Uganda is another apparent hotspot, though with less direct documentation,” said Freedom House, the oldest American organization devoted to the support and defense of democracy around the world.
“There are also a handful of well-documented cases from the past two decades, such as that of Charles Ingabire, a journalist assassinated in Kampala in 2011, and Joel Mutabazi, a former bodyguard of Kagame who was kidnapped from a UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) safe house in 2013.”
The report, dubbed, “Rwanda: Transnational Repression Case Study”, came just weeks after President Museveni indirectly warned Rwanda against interfering in Uganda’s domestic affairs. “There is a country in the region which has been sending agents to come meddle in our politics,” said Museveni. “But we have been counteracting them,” he added.
Museveni did not mention the country but it is understood he was referring to Rwanda. ChimpReports understands Ugandan authorities arrested suspected Rwandan agents on the eve of the January 14 election in Kampala.
Source: ChimpReports
