Agather Atuhaire

Agather Atuhaire wears many hats: journalist, lawyer, human-­rights activist, and whistle-blower. She worked as a journalist and used social media activism to expose maladministration, high-­profile corruption, and malfeasance by public officials in Uganda. As co-leader of a powerful and growing online human-rights movement called AGORA, Agather uses social media to crowd­source information on rights abuses by those in power, and to demand accountability from government, parliament, and civil society in Uganda. Her powerful activism stands out especially in Uganda, where female human-rights defenders have been targeted by authorities with trumped-up charges, arrests, and convictions based on draconian cyberlaws. For her bravery, she was given the E.U. Human Rights Defenders Award in 2023 and a 2024 International Women of Courage Award. Agather’s incredible courage will continue to be a formidable challenge to public institutions and officials that have long conducted themselves with impunity in Uganda. 

Chagutah is Amnesty International’s regional director for East and Southern Africa