Group of women stripped down to their bras and marched through Uganda's capital in protest at breast-pinching incident
LONDON (TrustLaw) - More than 39,000 people have signed a petition calling on Uganda's inspector general of police to train officers to become more sensitive around the issue of sexual assault, after a policeman was videoed grabbing and pinching the breast of a high-profile opposition politician during a protest in Kampala.
A Ugandan police officer was suspended over last month's attack against Ingrid Turinawe, the head of the Women's League of the Forum for Democratic Change (FDC), who was manhandled as officers tried to arrest her.
The footage, which shows Turinawe shouting out in pain, prompted a group of women to strip down to their bras and march through the Ugandan capital in protest.
Some waved placards including one that read, "How would you feel if we squeezed your balls?" according to a BBC report.
"This is not an isolated event. Women are regularly sexually harassed and assaulted by Ugandan police during protests and removing one officer won't change that," said Ugandan filmmaker Zubedah Nanfuka, who launched the petition.
"This will only get worse as Ugandan police increasingly crack down on protesters and political dissent of any form," she said in a statement about the campaign on change.org, an online platform that allows individuals to start petitions.
Nanfuka said she was asking the Ugandan police to issue an apology to Turinawe and that they "institute a sexual assault sensitivity programme".
"No woman should go through what Ingrid Turinawe endured," she added.
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