Dr. Kizza Besigye, the Ugandan opposition leader, has gone on hunger strike after nearly three months in detention while awaiting trial.
His wife, Winnie Byanyima, revealed the demonstration and chastised President Yoweri Museveni’s administration for his continuing detention.
Byanyima criticized Besigye’s incarceration as an illegal act committed by a dictatorship that fears his defiance more than it appreciates justice.
She emphasized that the government’s actions constitute an attack on the people of Uganda, not simply Besigye.
“This is not just an attack on him it’s an attack on every Ugandan demanding justice,” Byanyima said, vowing her support for her husband’s cause.
Besigye was kidnapped in Nairobi on November 16 while attending a Martha Karua-hosted book launch. He was eventually sent to a military prison in Kampala.
He and Haji Obeid Utale were charged in November with unlawful firearm possession and attempting to obtain weapons from overseas, both of which they deny.
The prosecution further says that they attempted to undermine Uganda’s security by holding meetings abroad.
Besigye was scheduled to appear for a hearing on February 11, 2025, but he was absent owing to health difficulties.
The court hearing was postponed, and officials were instructed to present him on February 14.
