NAIROBI, Kenya – A coalition of Kenyan civil society groups, legal organizations, and human rights defenders has announced plans to stage a protest march next Monday, February 24, demanding the release of detained Ugandan opposition leader Dr. Kizza Besigye.
The demonstration, initially planned for February 21, was postponed to allow Ugandan courts time to address concerns raised by the international community regarding Besigye’s detention.
The Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists Union (KMPDU), the Law Society of Kenya (LSK), Amnesty International, and the Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC) are among the key organizers.
Other groups participating include the Centre for Strategic Litigation (CSL), Independent Medico-Legal Unit (IMLU), International Commission of Jurists (ICJ), Pan African Lawyers Union (PALU), East Africa Law Society, Vocal Africa, and Change Tanzania Movement.
The march will start at 10 a.m. from Aga Khan Walk, proceed through Harambee Avenue, and culminate at the National Assembly, where activists will present a petition to the House Committee on Defense, Intelligence & Foreign Relations.
Later in the afternoon, protesters will march to the Uganda High Commission on Riverside Drive to deliver another petition.
In a joint statement, the organizers condemned Besigye’s continued detention and called for “a fair legal trial, the immediate release of Ugandan political prisoners, and justice and respect for human rights in Uganda.”
Besigye, a longtime critic of President Yoweri Museveni, was arrested in November along with his aide, Obed Lutale, in what his lawyers describe as a “kidnapping” from Nairobi.
He was later charged in Uganda with treason and concealment of treason—offenses that can only be tried by a higher court.
Appearing frail and in a wheelchair, the 68-year-old was denied medical transfer despite concerns over his health, which has deteriorated due to a hunger strike.
The Ugandan government acknowledged his condition as “alarming,” following his brief hospitalization last weekend.
Besigye’s detention has drawn widespread condemnation from regional and international human rights groups, with activists in Kenya vowing to continue pressuring authorities until his release.
