Human rights activists and a section of Ugandans living in Kenya have threatened to organise a Nationwide demonstration over the continued detention of opposition veteran Dr. Kizza Besigye and his lawyer, Erias Lukwago who remain incarcerated on treason charges in Uganda.
According to Muteti Mulinge, a human rights defender who is also a social media influencer based in Kenya, tomorrow, Thursday, September 3rd, 2026, activists and other categories of people will occupy the Ministry of Foreign and Diaspora Affairs and the Ministry of Interior to continue demanding the release of Comrade Kizza Besigye.
He added that the demonstration will be focused on demanding Besigye’s unconditional immediate release, dropping of all charges against him, and accountability from the Kenyan government for its role in his abduction since it has admitted that it participated in the abduction of Besigye.
“It has been more than 650 days since Mr Kizza Besigye was abducted in Nairobi and forcibly returned to Uganda. His health has seriously deteriorated. We demand that it take responsibility by participating in efforts to secure his release,” Mulinge said.
While addressing the media on Tuesday evening, September 1st, 2026, in Kenya, Mulinge called upon Kenyans, Ugandans, and all East Africans to join the national demonstration on Thursday, September 3rd, 2026, demanding Besigye’s release, access to specialised medical treatment, an end to enforced disappearances and political repression.
Kenyan Human rights activists have many times come out to express their dissatisfaction with the continued detention of Besigye, but it seems their efforts have been disregarded as the Ugandan High Court continues to prosecute Besigye based on available evidence that implicates him in the famous embattled treason case.
However, Kenya’s declaration of demonstrations has collided with that of Besigye’s People’s Front for Freedom (PFF) party, which appears to be a combined effort between Uganda and Kenya to see Besigye out of prison.
Recently, PFF declared weekly days, including every Wednesday, for Ugandans to wear national flag colours as an act that demonstrates their salient and peaceful demand for the release of Besigye, Lukwago and other alleged political prisoners, but the move has since faced hurdles, citing poor mobilisation and lack of resources to provide T-shirts.
Political commentators, however, have doubts about the effectiveness of these demonstrations, stating that activists have time and again used poor approaches in terms of mobilisation to create political awareness among the people of East Africa.
Besigye was arrested in Nairobi, Kenya, in November 2024, and deported back to Uganda, where the state accused him of conducting secret meetings and trying to negotiate for weapons with contacts in Geneva, Athens, and Nairobi with the intention to unconstitutionally overthrow Uganda government.
Besigye’s fate in the ongoing famous treason case in Uganda High Court is not yet known as the state continues to provide evidence that implicates Besigye. Meanwhile, in Uganda, a person convicted of treason is liable to the death penalty (death by hanging).
