For the past 25 years since Dr Kizza Besigye joined the opposition, the year leading up to a General Election has often been marked by trauma for him, his family, and his supporters.
Dr Besigye has spent much of the pre-election period in and out of court facing capital offences, arrests, and detentions.
Even ahead of the 2026 General Elections, he again found himself battling capital charges. What sets the current ordeal apart from previous prosecutions is that this has become the longest period he has ever spent in incarceration. It is now a year since Dr Besigye was arrested in Kenya, transported to Uganda, and charged before the General Court Martial on allegations of treason. Repeated attempts by his legal team to secure bail have been rejected on grounds that he is likely to interfere with investigations.
This marks the longest time he has been detained since his first arrest in 1981. According to a statement he made during the 2016 presidential debate, Dr Besigye was first detained by Milton Obote’s government in Nile Mansion, Kampala, due to his support for Mr Yoweri Museveni, then a presidential candidate for the Uganda Patriotic Movement.
He said he endured severe hardship for two months before escaping into exile. He later joined the National Resistance Army/Movement (NRA/M) rebels led by Mr Museveni, who captured power five years later. Dr Besigye served in government without major incident until 1999, when he authored a document accusing the NRM of deviating from its founding principles. This publication led to his arrest and prosecution in the General Court Martial.
The charges were dropped a year later after elders from Kigezi Sub-region intervened with President Museveni. When he announced his intention to run for president in 2001, he was swiftly hit with new criminal charges. After the elections that year, he was arrested in June on allegations of treason but released on bond. In August 2001, he fled to exile in South Africa, where he lived for four years. Dr Besigye returned to Uganda in October 2005 and declared his plan to run for president. Before he could be nominated, he was arrested on rape charges allegedly committed in 1997. He was remanded, but on November 25, 2005, the High Court granted him bail.
Immediately thereafter, he was re-arrested and taken before the General Court Martial, which charged him with illegal possession of weapons. He spent nearly six weeks in jail before securing bail on January 6, 2006. Another major arrest came in 2011, following the General Elections, during the Walk-to-Work protests that began in April. On April 28, he was arrested near Mulago Roundabout, pepper-sprayed in the eyes, and beaten.
Although he was arrested several times, he was often freed on police bond or court bail. In March 2012, Dr Besigye was again arrested, this time over allegations that he murdered an assistant inspector of police on Ben Kiwanuka Street during a protest. He was remanded but granted bail a few days later. The Walk-to-Work demonstrations continued, prompting a change in police tactics.
On October 18, 2011, police arrested Dr Besigye and returned him to his Kasangati home, where he was held under preventive arrest laws for eight months. Police finally withdrew from his residence in May 2022. His next major arrest occurred in 2016, a day before the presidential swearing-in ceremony in Kampala City. He was accused of declaring himself president. Security forces flew him to Moroto District in the Karamoja Sub-region, where he was detained. He was later produced in court and remanded for two months before being granted bail. One bail condition barred him from engaging in any ‘illegal activities.’ The latest incident happened on November 19, 2024, when he was abducted in Kenya, transported to Uganda, charged with treason, and remanded to prison.
Current charges
Dr Kizza Besigye and Obeid Lutale are facing treason-related charges. State prosecutors allege that the two men-together with several others, conspired to overthrow the Government of Uganda. The prosecution claims the alleged plot involved meetings in Nairobi, Geneva, and Athens.