NAIROBI, Kenya — Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni and his son, General Muhoozi Kainerugaba, the commander of the Ugandan People’s Defence Forces (UPDF), are facing mounting international pressure after a coalition of regional women leaders accused them of overseeing widespread human rights violations following Uganda’s January 2026 elections.
In a letter dated Sunday, February 8, the Pan-African Progressive Leaders Solidarity Network accused the Ugandan state of using sexual violence, unlawful detention, humiliation, and enforced disappearances as tools of political repression, particularly against women linked to the opposition.
The network, which brings together women leaders from across the region, including Kenyan politician Martha Karua, said the alleged abuses amount to atrocities and warrant urgent global intervention.
“We write this letter in a state of profound shock and shared grief,” the group said. “The atrocities currently visited upon the women of Uganda are not merely a Ugandan crisis. They are a stain on the conscience of the African continent.”
At the centre of the allegations is an alleged assault on Barbara Kyagulanyi, the wife of opposition leader Robert Kyagulanyi, popularly known as Bobi Wine. The letter claims that security forces forcibly entered her home, vandalised property, and subjected her to sexual violence and torture.
“On the night of Friday, January 22, 2026, dozens of security personnel forcibly breached the residence of Robert Kyagulanyi,” the letter states. “Barbara was tortured until she lost consciousness, leading to hospitalisation.”
The group alleges the incident followed weeks of house arrest imposed on Kyagulanyi and restrictions on access to family members, lawyers, and medical care after the elections. Museveni was declared the winner of the poll, results which the opposition disputed, citing alleged irregularities.
Beyond the Kyagulanyi case, the letter outlines multiple allegations involving the invasion of women’s private spaces, targeted humiliation, and abuse during detention. It names Zahara Bampewo and Doreen Kaija as victims of alleged privacy violations, and Sauda Madada and Olivia Lutaaya as among those who reported assault during arrest and while in custody.
The group said the alleged conduct of security agencies violates Uganda’s Constitution, the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, and the Protocol on the Rights of Women in Africa.
As a result, the network has called for urgent intervention by regional and international bodies, including the African Union (AU), the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights, the United Nations, the East African Community, and the Southern African Development Community (SADC).
They demanded independent investigations, accountability for those responsible, and immediate protection for victims and witnesses.
The letter also directly addressed President Museveni, urging him to act in his capacity as head of state and commander-in-chief of the UPDF.
“The buck stops with you,” the group said. “The time for you to act decisively is now.”
In a pointed appeal, the women leaders also called on Uganda’s First Lady, Janet Museveni, to break her silence, describing her failure to speak out as troubling in light of the gravity of the allegations.
The group criticised what it described as the African Union’s silence, warning that Uganda’s current trajectory “violates every tenet” of continental human rights instruments. They called for an extraordinary AU session to address the situation.
