Uganda Court Dismisses Besigye Case Against Gen Muhoozi

Kampala, 12 August 2026 - Uganda’s High Court has dismissed a case filed by opposition politician Dr Kizza Besigye and Obeid Lutale against Chief of Defence Forces Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba and the Attorney General over alleged interference with their legal representation.

The case followed the 22 June expulsion of Kenyan lawyer Martha Karua from Uganda and the arrest of another member of Besigye and Lutale’s legal team, Erias Lukwago. The applicants argued that the actions were part of an attempt to weaken their defence team.

Justice Simon Peter M. Kinobe ruled that Besigye and Lutale had not provided sufficient evidence linking Gen Muhoozi or the government to deliberate interference with their right to legal representation or demonstrating that the alleged actions had made their trial unfair.

The applicants relied partly on posts attributed to Muhoozi on X, including statements in which he claimed responsibility for Karua’s removal from Uganda and made comments about Besigye’s eventual punishment. The court found that the posts, while presented as evidence, did not establish a sufficient connection between Muhoozi and the decisions taken by immigration officials.

Karua, a former Kenyan Justice Minister and presidential candidate, had served as lead counsel for Besigye and Lutale since November 2024. She travelled to Uganda on 22 June to pursue their case but was denied entry at Entebbe International Airport and later returned to Nairobi after being declared persona non grata.

Karua said immigration officials initially stamped her passport before taking her aside and informing her that she could not enter Uganda for unspecified security reasons. She also alleged that two of her phones were taken and later returned, raising concerns that confidential information related to Besigye’s defence could have been accessed.

Besigye and Lutale had asked the High Court to overturn the decision barring Karua from entering Uganda and prevent authorities from detaining or deporting her in connection with their proceedings.

Justice Kinobe, however, emphasized that the court was not ruling on whether Karua’s exclusion from Uganda was lawful or unlawful. He said that issue should have been challenged through a separate judicial review of the immigration decision.

The ruling therefore focused on the legal procedure used by Besigye and Lutale and did not establish that Karua’s deportation was lawful. The applicants failed to demonstrate the required connection between the actions of immigration authorities and the alleged conduct of Gen Muhoozi.