Rights office reports hundreds of opposition supporters detained, rising allegations of torture and disappearances, and mounting pressure on journalists.

The United Nations on Wednesday denounced an intensifying crackdown on Uganda’s opposition and media ahead of next month’s general election, urging impartial investigations into reports of arbitrary arrests, disappearances and torture.

The UN rights office said it had received credible reports that at least 550 people, including supporters of the National Unity Platform and its presidential candidate Bobi Wine, had been arrested since the start of the year.

CBI News reports that more than 300 of those arrests came after campaigning began in September for the January 15 vote, as President Yoweri Museveni seeks to extend his 40 year rule.

Many detainees remain in custody on charges ranging from public nuisance to assault, obstruction and incitement.

The rights office also cited the deployment of heavily armed security forces at NUP rally sites, where tear gas, batons, water cannon and other crowd control weapons were used, injuring numerous supporters.

Security forces reportedly fired live ammunition at a Wine rally in Iganga last week, killing at least one person.

UN human rights chief Volker Turk called the situation deeply regrettable, saying the campaign period has again been marked by arbitrary arrests, detentions and excessive force against the opposition. He urged authorities to abandon repressive tactics.

The UN also noted a rise in reports of enforced disappearances, torture and other mistreatment of opposition activists over the past year.

Turk called for full and impartial investigations, the release of those arbitrarily detained and accountability for those responsible.

Press freedoms have also come under strain, with journalists facing accreditation withdrawals, assaults and confiscation of equipment, including during the Kawempe North byelection in March.

Turk urged Uganda to halt all violence against the media and the opposition and to meet its obligations under international human rights law.