Anti-riot police deployed ahead of planned demos

Dozens of anti-riot police were mobilised and deployed to various places in Nairobi on Friday ahead of the anticipated protest to call for the release of Uganda opposition leader Kizza Besigye.

However, there was confusion about whether the protests will proceed.

This is after a poster circulated showed the protests had been pushed to Monday, February 24, but police said they are not taking any chances on the issue.

Police said the move is a precaution to mitigate any other issues that may emerge in the day.

The anti-riot team was positioned at among others the Ugandan Embassy, residence, Ministry of Foreign Affairs headquarters in Nairobi, and outside State House.

Water cannons were also seen parked at the sites in readiness for a clash.

Nairobi police commander George Sedah said a group had informed them of the planned protests.

“They said they would come yes but we are deploying the teams to address any issue that may emerge,” he said.

He did not indicate if the police will disperse the group planning the protests.

Human rights activists, lawyers and medical practitioners in East Africa hve called on the Ugandan government to release Besigye, who has spent the past three months in military detention.

The 12 organisations have called for people to join a march on Friday to the Ugandan Embassy in Nairobi and the Parliament Buildings to present a petition for justice and the release of Besigye and those detained alongside him.

Besigye, who was abducted while on a trip to Kenya in November, was recently rushed to a hospital after going on a hunger strike to protest his imprisonment.

“We call on Ugandan authorities to immediately release Kizza Besigye, Hajj Obeid Lutale, Eron Kiiza and others unlawfully detained,” Hussein Khalid said.

“The abduction and rendition of Kizza Besigye and Hajj Obeid Lutale blatantly violated international human rights law and the principles of extradition treaties.”

A politician who ran against Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni in three elections, Besigye was abducted by unidentified men while on a visit to Kenya in November 2024 and taken to Luzira Maximum Security Prison in the Ugandan capital, Kampala.

He appeared before a military court, where former Kenyan justice minister and lawyer Martha Karua defended him.

He is charged with treason, illegal possession of a firearm, and threatening national security.

Last week, the 68-year-old fell ill and was taken to a hospital after going on a hunger strike to protest his arrest and the charges.

On January 31, the Ugandan Supreme Court ruled that the trial of civilians in a military court is unconstitutional and that such cases must be transferred to ordinary courts.

But the government rejected the ruling, saying such trials protect the country from criminals.

In a statement posted on X, Museveni called on those demanding the release of Besigye to instead demand a quick trial to establish the facts. Otherwise, he said, such demands promote insecurity, which is dangerous for the country.

Amnesty International East African regional researcher Roland Ebole said a united voice against human rights violations can help end abuses.

“We are having cross-border repression,” Ebole said. “We are having a transnational repression where we are seeing abductions happening beyond borders. And these abductions are happening sanctioned or blessed by presidents, blessed by heads of state. And they are taking advantage of the fact that on the ground, we are not as united against them.”

Rights groups say they will circulate petitions and reach out to other nations and organizations to demand the release of unlawfully detained Ugandans.