Karua demands Besigye’s release as jailed Ugandan opposition leader’s health deteriorates
Besigye, 70, has suffered a series of health setbacks since his detention, with his family repeatedly raising concerns over his condition and demanding that he receive specialised treatment.
People’s Liberation Party (PLP) leader and Senior Counsel Martha Karua has called on Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni to immediately release veteran opposition leader Dr Kizza Besigye, warning that his prolonged detention and deteriorating health could put his life at risk.
Karua said Besigye, who has been in detention since November 2024, should be allowed to access specialised medical treatment, his family and lawyers of his choice as questions mount over the circumstances of his continued incarceration.
In a strongly worded statement released today, Thursday, September 3, 2026, Karua questioned why the Ugandan government was restricting Besigye’s access to his preferred legal team and family while his health continued to deteriorate.
“If Dr Besigye’s case is just, why make it harder for him to have the lawyers of his choice and keep him behind bars while his health is failing, separated from his family and those fighting for his rights?” Karua posed.
She said she had watched the former presidential candidate spend decades standing up for Uganda, only to see his freedom, health and access to those supporting him increasingly curtailed.
Karua also raised concerns over the treatment of Besigye’s legal representatives, citing the alleged abduction and subsequent charging of his counsel, Erias Lukwago.
“That is deeply painful to witness,” she said, questioning what Museveni and his administration were afraid of.
Karua urged the Ugandan president to put human life above political differences and release Besigye so that he can receive appropriate medical care and reunite with his family.
“President Museveni, release Dr Besigye. Let him receive the medical care he urgently needs. Let him be with his family. Let him live his life with dignity,” she said.
She warned that East Africa could not afford to lose another prominent voice to fear and repression, arguing that democratic values should not be reduced to political rhetoric while those advocating for them are subjected to suffering.
“East Africa cannot afford to lose another voice to fear,” Karua said.
Besigye’s health crisis
Besigye, 70, has suffered a series of health setbacks since his detention, with his family repeatedly raising concerns over his condition and demanding that he receive specialised treatment.
His latest deterioration reportedly followed a hunger strike while he was being held at Luzira Prison. He was subsequently transferred to a hospital in Bugolobi under heavy security after developing a high fever, severe stomach pain and dehydration.
His wife, Winnie Byanyima, said his condition had become alarming, reporting that he was extremely weak and had struggled to walk, speak, write or hold objects steadily.
Doctors were reported to suspect a bacterial infection, while Byanyima and Besigye’s political allies complained that access to his preferred medical team had been restricted.
“Every hour they delay is a cost on his life because his condition is not under control,” Byanyima warned.
Besigye has reportedly been taken to hospital four times since his arrest.
On July 29, he collapsed during a court appearance in Kampala and was taken for treatment, including intensive care. He was later returned to Luzira Prison on August 8, reportedly against medical advice, according to his wife.
Byanyima has repeatedly appealed for her husband to be allowed to receive specialised treatment outside Uganda, questioning why authorities continued moving him between prison and hospital despite his fragile condition.
“Why drag a sick man from place to place? Why deny him the care of his family? Why force a trial on a man too ill to defend himself?” she asked.
Abduction from Nairobi
Besigye’s detention followed his controversial arrest in Nairobi on November 16, 2024, while he was in Kenya to attend a book launch involving Karua.
Besigye and his political aide, Hajj Obeid Lutale, were intercepted by plainclothes operatives before being taken to Uganda.
The circumstances surrounding the operation sparked controversy, particularly because the transfer was carried out outside the conventional extradition process.
The incident raised questions about Kenya’s role in the transfer, the legality of cross-border operations and the application of international protections, including the principle of non-refoulement.
The Kenyan government subsequently acknowledged that it had cooperated with Ugandan authorities.
In May 2025, Prime Cabinet Secretary and Foreign Affairs Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi said Kenya had cooperated with Uganda in returning Besigye, arguing that the opposition leader had not sought asylum while in the country.
Speaking on Citizen TV, Mudavadi said Besigye’s visit to Kenya had been surrounded by circumstances that were unclear to authorities at the time.
“Kenya cooperated with the Ugandan authorities,” Mudavadi said, adding that the circumstances could have been different had Besigye formally sought asylum.
Mudavadi, however, distanced the Kenyan government from responsibility for Besigye’s subsequent prosecution, saying the opposition leader was now under the authority of the Ugandan government.
Besigye had travelled to Kenya shortly before his arrest and was subsequently transferred to Uganda, where he was initially brought before a military court and accused of plotting against Museveni.
The case was later transferred to a civilian court.
From Museveni’s doctor to his fiercest critic
Besigye is a former personal physician to Museveni but broke ranks with the Ugandan president more than two decades ago and became one of his most persistent political opponents.
He has unsuccessfully challenged Museveni in several presidential elections and has endured repeated arrests, detentions and legal battles during his long political career.
His latest detention has therefore become both a legal and political flashpoint, with human rights advocates, opposition figures and his family questioning whether his continued prosecution is compatible with his deteriorating health.
Karua’s intervention adds a prominent Kenyan voice to growing regional concern over Besigye’s treatment.
