Barbara Ann Allimadi (c. 1972 – 27 April 2020) was a Ugandan politician and human rights activist. She was known for organising the "bra protest" and for her arrest after staging a demonstration in parliament with the Concerned Citizens group.

Early life

Allimadi was born in Uganda and her parents were Eriphas Otema Allimadi, the third

Prime Minister of Uganda The prime minister of Uganda chairs the Cabinet of Uganda, although the President of Uganda, president is the effective head of government. The prime minister is appointed by the president with the approval of Parliament of Uganda, Parliament. ...

(1980–1985), and Alice Lamunu Allimadi. She was one of her fathers seventeen children. Her brother is

Milton Allimadi Milton Allimadi is a Ugandan-American author, journalist, professor, and a co-founder of ''Black Star News''. He is known for his critique of racist writing by white authors about Africa and Africans, in his 2003 book ''The Hearts of Darkness'' ...

, the professor, journalist and newspaper founder. Allimadi was educated at

Gayaza High School Gayaza High School is the oldest all-girls boarding secondary school covering grades 8 to 13 (Secondary 1 to 6) in Uganda. The school is Church of Uganda, Church-founded, government of Uganda, government-aided and accredited by the Ministry of Ed ...

, before her family went into exile when the Obote II government was overthrown. She studied for a degree in electronics and communications engineering at the

London Metropolitan University London Metropolitan University, commonly known as London Met, is a public university, public research university in London, England. The University of North London and London Guildhall University merged in 2002 to create the university. The Un ...

. Allimadi practiced engineering in England, then returned to Uganda in 2007.

Activism

In 2012, Allimadi co-organized a protest after Ingrid Turinawe, an opposition politician known as the "Iron Lady" of the

Forum for Democratic Change The Forum for Democratic Change (; FDC), founded on 16 December 2004, is one of the main opposition parties in Uganda. The FDC was founded as an umbrella body called Reform Agenda, mostly for disenchanted former members and followers of Preside ...

(FDC), had her breast pulled and squeezed by a police officer and the assault was televised. The protest marched to Kampala Central Police Station and became known as the "bra protest" in Uganda. Allimadi said that "I was seriously offended that a police force that is supposed to protect us had assaulted a woman in front of everyone." Also in 2012, Allimadi was arrested after staging a demonstration in parliament with the Concerned Citizens group and her t-shirts with anti-corruption slogans were confiscated. Allimadi was an activist for the political party FDC, and in 2019 joined newly formed

Alliance for National Transformation The Alliance for National Transformation (ANT), founded on 19 March 2019, is a political party in Uganda. Background The Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) was the leading opposition party in Uganda during the 2000s and 2010s. On three consecu ...

(ANT) and became their International Affairs Secretary, coordinating Ugandans in the

diaspora A diaspora ( ) is a population that is scattered across regions which are separate from its geographic place of birth, place of origin. The word is used in reference to people who identify with a specific geographic location, but currently resi ...

. She achieved a masters degree from

Makerere University Makerere University (; Mak) is Uganda's largest and oldest institution of higher learning, first established as a technical school in 1922, and the oldest currently active university in East Africa. It became an independent national university in ...

and was planning to travel abroad for her ANT role shortly before her death in 2020.

Death and legacy

Allimadi was found dead in her home in

Kiwaatule Kiwaatule is a township within the city of Kampala, Uganda's capital. Location Kiwaatule is bordered by Najjera to the north, Naalya to the east, Banda to the south, Ntinda to the south-west, Kigoowa to the west, and Kulambiro to the north-west ...

Kampala Kampala (, ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Uganda. The city proper has a population of 1,875,834 (2024) and is divided into the five political divisions of Kampala Central Division, Kampala, Kawempe Division, Kawempe, Makindy ...

on 27 April 2020. The police opened an investigation into her death.

Mugisha Muntu Gregory Mugisha Muntuyera, commonly referred to as Mugisha Muntu (born October 1958), is a Ugandan politician and retired military officer. He is the current president of the Alliance for National Transformation (ANT), a political party he founde ...

, national coordinator of the ANT, spoke at her funeral. The Barbara Allimadi Foundation was launched in her memory in 2021, to provide college and university scholarships to students, especially girls.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Allimadi, Barbara 1972 births 2020 deaths People educated at Gayaza High School Alumni of London Metropolitan University Makerere University alumni Ugandan women engineers Ugandan women activists Ugandan women's rights activists 21st-century Ugandan women politicians Forum for Democratic Change politicians