Ugandan oil project backed by China linked to human rights abuses

The Chinese-backed Ugandan oil project, being developed by China’s CNOOC, has been associated with human rights abuses. Rights organisations have accused local authorities of repression and forced evictions, while also highlighting issues such as sexual violence and environmental harm linked to the project, as reported by the Radio Free Asia.

According to Radio Free Asia, the oil project is a crucial component of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s Belt and Road initiative, which aims to enhance global supply chains and infrastructure. China claims the program has helped over 150 countries build seaports, railways, and bridges, while critics argue that it has increased Beijing’s geopolitical influence and created debt burdens for its partner nations.

The International Federation for Human Rights, Civic Response on Environment and Development and Lawyers Without Borders has reported that the oil project which China backs is “disproportionate security measures, repression, land rights violations, forced evictions and corruption.”

The report alleges that Ugandan soldiers have beaten and intimidated fishing communities, and it also highlights instances of sexual and gender-based violence carried out by both soldiers and company staff, reported by RFA.

Led by Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni, despite persistent opposition from environmentalists, the Ugandan project includes oil drilling in the northwestern Lake Albert region and the construction of a 1,443-kilometer (900-mile) heated pipeline to transport the crude to Tanzania’s Tanga port on the Indian Ocean.

The report further stated that around 12,000 families have been displaced from their homes to make way for the project. According to the report, the worst abuses occurred in and around the Kingfisher oil fields, with a “high level of fear” reported in the area.

It found that sexual exploitation and gender-based violence are increasing in the project area, with rising prostitution near Kingfisher and Tilenga. It also noted that women are being excluded from employment opportunities related to the project.