UPDATE Wednesday, November 20: Kizza Besigye was taken to Makindye Military Court alongside Haji Obed Kamulegeya whom they were both abducted together in Nairobi. Besigye claimed he had not spoken to anyone since his arrest in Kenya, including his lawyers.
The opposition leader was remanded to prison till December 2, 2024, pending trial on security-related charges. One of them is the possession of an illegal firearm and ammunition. Prosecutors allege the offences occurred in multiple international locations.
NARC Kenya party leader Martha Karua on Wednesday shed light on the events that transpired before the abduction of Ugandan opposition leader Kizza Besigye on Kenyan soil.
In a press statement by the Pan African Opposition Leaders Solidarity Network, Karua confirmed that Besigye was invited to attend the launch of her book Against the Tide on Sunday, November 17, but he did not show up
“Besigye was scheduled to attend and speak at Martha Karua's book launch on Sunday, November 17 where he was a no-show. His family and friends have not been able to trace him since he was dropped at riverside apartments and calls on his phone have gone unanswered,” read the statement in part.
The statement further revealed that Besigye checked into the Waridi Paradise Hotel on Saturday. Later he left with a taxi driver to attend a meeting at 108 Riverside Apartments on Sunday, upon which his taxi driver waited for him until 4 am when he gave up having received no response to his several messages.
It is suspected that Besigye may have been abducted after he was dropped at the premises.
Karua, in a separate interview, divulged that they received distressed calls from Besigye’s supporters who were inquiring about the safety of their leader.
Aides to Besigye said he was scheduled to meet senior Ugandan officials before his disappearance.
The Pan-African opposition leaders challenged the Kenyan security agencies, especially the Nation Police Service (NPS) to account for Bessigye’s abduction while on Kenyan soil.
“We hold both the Governments of Kenya and Uganda responsible for the safety and whereabouts of Besigye and challenge them to conduct their cross-border operations in accordance with their respective laws and international Human rights law,” the Network demanded.
It strongly condemned the incident, terming the abductions as blatant violations of national, regional and international law with impunity.
“Why would governments connive to abduct their citizens across the borders when they have the opportunity to make a formal arrest at home, if unless it is as we suspect, they have no justifiable reasons for doing so. We demand the immediate and unconditional release of Dr Besigye by his captors who we believe are Kenyan and Ugandan security agencies and an end.”
It comes as the Ugandan government maintained it was working to establish the whereabouts of the opposition leader claiming they were not involved in any way.
