The Commissioner General of Uganda Prisons Services, Johnson Byabashaija has been dragged to the high court over Kizza Besigye and Obeid Lutale.
The two were kidnapped from Nairobi, late 2024 over plots to kill Uganda’s Head of State.
They were arraigned before the General Court Martial in Makindye, and charged with treachery, and possession of firearms.
On January 31, 2025, the Supreme Court sitting in Kampala quashed the trials of civilians in the “military disciplinary committee,” and ordered the transfer of cases involving non-military suspects to civilian courts of competent jurisdiction.
Five days after the ruling, Besigye and Lutale are still held in detention at Luzira.
The lawyers, led by Martha Karua, Kenya’s former Justice Minister, and Kampala’s Lord Mayor Erias Lukwago have today applied for habeas corpus.
An application for habeas corpus seeks the presentation of a suspect’s body before court, whether the suspect is dead, or alive.
The Attorney General of Uganda, Kiryowa Kiwanuka, yesterday said that the government had officially begun implementing the Supreme Court’s orders regarding the trial of civilians in the General Court Martial.
Kiwanuka Kiryowa was responding to queries by Parliament on when the government will release the opposition leader (Kizza Besigye) and his co-accused.
The military court system has often been criticized for its harsh sentences, limited transparency, and political undertones.
High-profile opposition figures and activists have frequently found themselves before military judges, raising concerns about judicial impartiality.
Without giving a definite date, Kiryowa meant that Besigye and Lutale will stay in Luzira prison, without knowledge of when next they will have a chance to appear before a court.
Although Besigye and Lutale were scheduled to appear on February 03, 2025 before Court Martial, they had rejected the idea of taking plea before it.
The January 31 Supreme Court ruling also meant that their scheduled appearance in the disciplinary committee was null and void.
Lukwago speaking to the media emphasized that their remand warrants elapsed.
“The remand warrant issued by the defunct General Court Martial was quashed by the Supreme Court on January 31. But even if it had not been quashed, it lapsed on February 3, because there was no sitting to extend it.”
Byabashaija Sanctioned
The handling of the Besigye case by government functionaries has put Byabashaija in a tight corner.
The President, Yoweri Museveni, and the spokesperson of the Chief of Defense Forces, Col Chris Magezi, both made remarks against the Supreme Court in the aftermath of its ruling.
Museveni said the country is not led by judges, while Magezi, quoting the CDF, said the Court martial will never release Besigye. They will shoot him, or make him plead for leniency before the Commander in Chief.
The Attorney General’s remarks in Parliament made the situation worse, as Besigye does not know his fate now.
Byabashaija, the man holding Besigye is already a sanctioned individual.
In the December of 2024, the United States of America treasury department imposed visa restrictions on him.
The US said that since he took over the helm of the Prisons Setvice in 2005, the Service has served torture and other serious human rights abuses against prisoners in his facilities.
This Besigye case is another that has put him and his institution in international limelight for the wrong reasons.
