Treason charges against Ugandan regional king dropped

Uganda’s Director of Public Prosecutions has dropped all charges against King Charles Wesley Mumbere of the Rwenzururu kingdom and 217 other people, who had been facing prosecution for treason since 2016.

Under law, anyone who denounces rebellion and asks for a pardon qualifies for amnesty in Uganda.

The government had accused the monarch, known as the Omusinga in the local Lhukonzo language, of trying to incite his people and of recruiting and arming fighters to form a breakaway "republic", known an as Yiira.

At the time, when security forces raided the office of the prime minister of the Rwenzururu kingdom, a number of people were killed and their families never received justice.

The government says 60 people died in the raids but Human Rights Watch reported that at least 153 people were killed.

When King Mumbere was granted bail in 2017, he was restricted from visiting his home region in western Uganda or carrying out any of his royal duties.

This article originally appeared on BBC News.

Image via LSE Blogs.