KAMPALA, Uganda – Two days after being deported from Tanzania, Kenyan politician and Senior Counsel Martha Karua has arrived in Uganda, where she will represent longtime Ugandan opposition figure Dr. Kizza Besigye in a treason case that has drawn regional and international attention.
Karua, the leader of Kenya’s People’s Liberation Party (PLP), confirmed her arrival in Uganda via a post on X on Tuesday, noting that she was “in Uganda with Lynn Ngugi for the Kizza Besigye and Obeid Lutale case. Our entry was without a hitch—in the spirit of Jumuiya.”
Human rights campaigner Lynn Ngugi accompanied Karua on the trip. T
he two had earlier been denied entry into Tanzania on Sunday, May 18, where they were part of a delegation of Kenyan lawyers and activists intending to observe the case of opposition leader Tundu Lissu.
In Uganda with @ngugi_lynn for @kizzabesigye1 &Obeid Lutale case , our entry was without a hitch in the spirit of @jumuiya
Karua is seeking a special license from a Ugandan court that would allow her to practice law in the country in order to formally join Besigye’s legal defense team.
The veteran opposition politician is currently facing treason charges in a civilian court after his case was controversially transferred from a military tribunal in April.
Treason is a capital offence in Uganda. If convicted, Besigye, 68, could face the death penalty.
The former presidential candidate and harsh critic of Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni has been detained since his abduction from Kenya in November 2024, a move that sparked condemnation from human rights groups across East Africa.
Karua’s regional advocacy and recent deportation have added a diplomatic twist to the legal proceedings.
Speaking after the Tanzania incident, she questioned what she termed a troubling pattern of restricted access across East African Community (EAC) countries.
“I am concerned that, as a citizen of Jumuiya, my access within the East African Community appears inexplicably restricted,” she said.
Karua previously served as Kenya’s Minister for Justice and was the running mate to opposition leader Raila Odinga in the 2022 presidential election.
Her trip to Uganda comes amid growing regional unease over shrinking civic space.
On Monday, Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu responded to the deportation incident by warning that her administration would not allow foreign activists to “cause trouble” within the country’s borders.
