On June 26th, 2024, Students Against EACOP Uganda organized a non-violent demonstration at the Chinese Embassy in Kampala. The demonstration aimed to petition China not to lend over $3 billion to the shareholders of EACOP Ltd—Total Energies, the governments of Uganda and Tanzania, and the Chinese state-owned firm CNOOC Ltd. This funding is intended for the construction of the East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP), a project that protestors argue would exacerbate the climate crisis through increased carbon emissions.
The protest march began around 10:00 AM, with dozens of supporters marching peacefully to deliver their petition. However, the demonstration was met with a harsh response from the Uganda police, who violently arrested and detained 30 supporters and members due to their dissenting views. The detainees were held at Jinja Road Police Station and later released under stringent conditions. Despite the intimidation, the demonstrators remain committed to opposing the pipeline project.
“We continue to face a societal breakdown as the world grapples with the increasing carbon emissions resulting from new fossil fuel infrastructure. Climate science calls us to heed the Paris Agreement, which mandates keeping global warming below 1.5 degrees Celsius. Our generation cannot agree with the construction of the East African Crude Oil Pipeline, which endangers the lives of millions of Ugandans and wildlife,” said Kaye Yuda, a 23-year-old student from Makerere Business School