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Ugandan piglet protestors arrested

Kampala - Ugandan police on Wednesday arrested two men over an anti-unemployment protest where they paraded four piglets painted in the ruling party colours and branded the country's leaders "pigs."

"We have arrested the two youths for threatening violence, and the four piglets have been taken into custody pending investigations," local police chief Henry Kintu told AFP Wednesday.

Protestors in the capital Kampala carried banners and paraded the pigs to denounce a city carnival due on Sunday.

"We cannot celebrate Kampala Festival due to youth unemployment," one banner read, while another blasted the carnival as a "waste of money".

In June, two anti-corruption protesters sneaked two piglets into parliament. They too were arrested but deny charges of interrupting parliamentary activities and criminal trespass.

It was not immediately clear if the men arrested on Wednesday were connected to previous piglet protests staged by members of a group called the "Jobless Brotherhood".

Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni, 70, one of Africa's longest-serving leaders, is due to run for elections scheduled for 2016, which will be his 30th year in power.

Close to 80% of Uganda's population is under 30 and at least 60% of youths are unemployed, according to a 2012 report by NGO Action Aid Uganda.

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