{"id":12053,"date":"2026-01-02T19:04:12","date_gmt":"2026-01-02T19:04:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ahead.africa\/?p=12053"},"modified":"2026-01-21T13:29:07","modified_gmt":"2026-01-21T13:29:07","slug":"freesarahbireete","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ahead.africa\/fr\/freesarahbireete\/","title":{"rendered":"#FreeSarahBireete"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"has-primary-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-e879a8b6ee10bc90536acac6d05f46f9 wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"font-size:clamp(14px, 0.875rem + ((1vw - 3.2px) * 0.612), 20px);\"><strong>Condemnation statement<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-be9bc540025d7e2fa2335f55bb2c5d13 wp-block-paragraph\">Dr. Sarah Bireete is a respected Ugandan human rights lawyer, civil society leader, and election observer. On 30 December 2025, she was arrested without formal charges and has since been remanded to prison until 21 January 2026.<br><br>AHEAD Africa strongly <a href=\"https:\/\/ahead.africa\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Statement-Dr.-Sarah-Bireete.pdf\">condemns<\/a> the arbitrary arrest, continued detention, and remand to custody of Dr. Sarah Bireete until 21 January 2026, both a colleague and\u00a0Chairperson of our partner, the <a href=\"https:\/\/ahead.africa\/en\/partners\/east-and-horn-of-africa-election-observers-network\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">East and Horn of Africa Election Observation Network<\/a> (E-HORN) and Vice Chairperson of the <a href=\"https:\/\/ahead.africa\/en\/partners\/afeonet\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">African Election Observers Network<\/a> (AfEONet). Jailing an election observer ahead of Uganda\u2019s January 2026 elections is an attack on due process, civic space, and democracy itself. We demand her immediate release.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns has-primary-alt-background-color has-background is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-7387b849 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\" style=\"border-radius:15px\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-7387b849 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-large is-resized has-custom-border\"><a href=\"https:\/\/ahead.africa\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Statement-Dr.-Sarah-Bireete.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"724\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/ahead.africa\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/1-724x1024.png\" alt=\"#FreeSarahBireete\" class=\"wp-image-12054\" style=\"border-radius:3px;width:190px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahead.africa\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/1-724x1024.png 724w, https:\/\/ahead.africa\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/1-212x300.png 212w, https:\/\/ahead.africa\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/1-768x1086.png 768w, https:\/\/ahead.africa\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/1-1086x1536.png 1086w, https:\/\/ahead.africa\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/1-1448x2048.png 1448w, https:\/\/ahead.africa\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/1-8x12.png 8w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 724px) 100vw, 724px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons is-content-justification-center is-layout-flex wp-container-core-buttons-is-layout-3e41869c wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button has-custom-width wp-block-button__width-100\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link has-text-color has-tertiary-background-color has-text-color has-background has-link-color has-custom-font-size wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/ahead.africa\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Statement-Dr.-Sarah-Bireete.pdf\" style=\"font-size:14px\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>Read statement condemning the continued detention of Dr. Sarah Bireete<\/strong> [EN]<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-stackable-spacer stk-block-spacer stk--no-padding stk-block stk-e79dbfe\" data-block-id=\"e79dbfe\"><style>.stk-e79dbfe {height:50px !important;}<\/style><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-primary-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-d44c1d484e2f8afe34550c389f22810f wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"font-size:clamp(14px, 0.875rem + ((1vw - 3.2px) * 0.612), 20px);\"><strong>Fundraising<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Dr. Bireete has dedicated her life to supporting others and defending human rights. Today, she needs our solidarity and support.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Her detention has placed a sudden and heavy burden on her family, who are now facing significant legal costs and financial strain. Her community is raising funds to support Dr. Bireete\u2019s legal defense and ensure that her family and dependents are cared for while she remains in custody.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Her family is now managing urgent and unexpected challenges, including legal fees, daily living expenses, and the care of her children while she is in custody. In addition, Dr. Bireete\u2019s personal bank accounts, including those used to manage household and family expenses, have been frozen, leaving her dependents without access to essential funds. Support from friends, colleagues, and the broader community is critical at this time to ensure they can navigate this difficult situation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>All funds raised (10,000 EUR) will be used to support:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Legal representation and court-related expenses;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Immediate financial support for Dr. Bireete\u2019s dependants;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Essential subsistence costs during her detention.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Dr. Bireete appeared in court on 21 January 2026 for a bail hearing, but she is now remanded until 28 January 2026. Support is needed now to ensure her dependents can manage this unexpected and difficult situation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons has-custom-font-size is-content-justification-center is-layout-flex wp-container-core-buttons-is-layout-3e41869c wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\" style=\"font-size:clamp(14px, 0.875rem + ((1vw - 3.2px) * 0.204), 16px);\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button has-custom-width wp-block-button__width-100\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link has-text-color has-tertiary-background-color has-text-color has-background has-link-color has-custom-font-size wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/www.gofundme.com\/f\/freesarahbireete\" style=\"font-size:14px\"><strong>Donate to help cover her legal and subsistence costs<\/strong><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Nous condamnons le maintien en d\u00e9tention de notre amie et coll\u00e8gue Sarah Bireete. <\/p>","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":12064,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"blog","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[60,1],"tags":[49],"grantees":[],"partner":[5,11],"region":[45],"class_list":["post-12053","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-advocacy","category-uncategorized","tag-statement","partner-afeonet","partner-e-horn","region-continental"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ahead.africa\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12053","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ahead.africa\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ahead.africa\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ahead.africa\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ahead.africa\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12053"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/ahead.africa\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12053\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12109,"href":"https:\/\/ahead.africa\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12053\/revisions\/12109"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ahead.africa\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12064"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ahead.africa\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12053"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ahead.africa\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12053"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ahead.africa\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12053"},{"taxonomy":"grantees","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ahead.africa\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/grantees?post=12053"},{"taxonomy":"partner","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ahead.africa\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/partner?post=12053"},{"taxonomy":"region","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ahead.africa\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/region?post=12053"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}