The East African Crude Oil Pipeline project (EACOP) is one of the largest fossil fuel infrastructure projects currently under development globally. Environmental defenders in Uganda have heavily criticised the project because of the risks it poses to the environment, local communities, and its contribution to climate change.

Human rights defenders (HRDs), including civil society organizations raising concerns and providing support to affected communities about the oil project, describe being subjected to harassment, arrests, and threats in Uganda. At least 30 protesters and HRDs, many of them students, have been arrested since 2021.

In November 2023, Human Rights Watch published a report about the crackdown on environmental defenders in Uganda. TotalEnergies responded to Human Rights Watch about these allegations; their response is available below.