Tensions are rising in Uganda following the verdict against eight environmental activists. Found guilty of "public nuisance," these opponents of the EACOP (East African Crude Oil Pipeline) mega-project were sentenced to 11 months in prison .

A detention deemed abusive

The activists were arrested during a rally targeting Stanbic Bank , one of the project's financial partners. Even before this verdict, they had already spent eight months in pretrial detention, a situation that has outraged human rights organizations.

The silence of the banks and TotalEnergies has been called out.

For supporters of those convicted, the responsibility is not only legal, but also economic. Abiud Onyach , a member of the StopEACOP coalition, denounces the hypocrisy of the financial institutions involved:

1. The ethics in question: According to him, banks (notably KCB , Stanbic and its parent company Standard Bank Group ) can no longer advocate "sustainability" or respect for social criteria when they finance a project leading citizens to prison.
2. The oil giant's responsibility: As the majority shareholder, TotalEnergies is directly targeted. The movement is astonished by the company's silence, given that it had previously boasted of intervening to secure the release of protesters.

“This silence is unacceptable. Why are they saying nothing today, while students are languishing in prison for opposing a project from which these companies reap all the profits?” — Abiud Onyach

Key points of the controversy

Actor	Role / Grievance
8 Activists	Sentenced to 11 months in prison for opposing the pipeline.
Banks (Stanbic, KCB)	Accused of turning a blind eye to the repression while funding the project.
TotalEnergies	Majority shareholder whose current silence contrasts sharply with his past actions.
EACOP	A giant oil project deemed devastating to the environment by activists.