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Jailed Ugandan Opposition Leader Cleared For Presidential Nomination

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Uganda's electoral commission says opposition leader Kizza Besigye can be nominated for president despite being imprisoned.

The commission's ruling late Monday defies an advisory from the government's top lawyer, Khiddu Makubuya. The attorney general argued that the criminal proceedings against Mr. Besigye should bar him from standing in the 2006 presidential election.

The opposition leader was arrested in November, shortly after his return to Uganda following a four-year exile.

Mr. Besigya is widely seen as President Yoweri Museveni's main challenger in the election, scheduled for February.

He faces charges of terrorism and illegal arms possession before a military court, and charges of treason and rape before Uganda's civilian High Court. Both trials are set to start December 19.

On Monday, a High Court judge declined bail for Mr. Besigye.

Some information for this report provided by Reuters.

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