The Committee on Human Rights has raised critical considerations in regards to the detention circumstances of Opposition Leader, Dr Kiiza Besigye and his co-accused Hajji Obed Lutale Kamulegeya.
In a report introduced by the Chairperson, Hon Fox Odoi-Oywelowo on Tuesday, 28 January 2025, the committee raised considerations on the remedy and security of detainees regardless of enhancements in jail infrastructure.
The committee visited Luzira Maximum Security Prison on 24 January 2025 following a directive from Parliament to analyze the circumstances beneath which Dr. Besigye and Hajji Lutale are being held.
The two are going through trial within the General Court Martial.
Odoi-Oywelowo mentioned that Dr. Besigye acknowledged enhancements in jail circumstances with availability of operating water, waterborne bathrooms, and the abolition of the bucket system. It was reported that he additionally acknowledged the portray of the partitions and normal upkeep of the power.
The committee added that Besigye had nevertheless, expressed deep considerations about his private security.
“I really feel safer right here in comparison with different detention amenities, however I’m nonetheless in worry of being poisoned or harmed,” the report of the committee quoted Dr. Besigye who they mentioned described his detention as being in a “jail inside a jail,”.
The committee chairperson additionally reported that Besigye was involved in regards to the unexplained late-night actions, comparable to padlocks being opened and closed with out rationalization including that he wasn’t secure in that setting.
The report recognized Dr. Besigye’s solitary confinement as a significant problem the place they are saying he’s prohibited from interacting with different inmates or attending communal prayers, restrictions they are saying he described as a violation of his rights.
The Uganda Human Rights Commission, in its submission to the committee, warned that extreme solitary confinement violates human rights attributable to its detrimental results on psychological well being.
The Commissioner General of the Uganda Prisons Service, Johnson Byabashaija in an earlier assembly with the committee, defended the isolation saying that it’s obligatory for Dr. Besigye’s security and to forestall him from inciting different prisoners.
However, members of the committee expressed concern that such measures could also be overly punitive.
The report of the committee additionally reveals that Dr. Besigye doesn’t devour prison-provided meals, fearing potential poisoning however was receiving meals from three authorised suppliers which he prepares himself for safety causes.
A minority report, authored by Erute County South consultant, Hon. Jonathan Odur and different dissenting members described Dr. Besigye’s remedy as a gross violation of his human rights.
“The isolation of Dr. Besigye is extreme and unjustified. He will not be allowed to work together with different inmates or attend communal prayers, which is opposite to Section 57(C) of the Prisons Act, 2006. This is a transparent violation of his rights,” Odur mentioned.
The minority report additionally highlighted Dr. Besigye’s fears of being killed whereas in custody.
“Dr. Besigye fears that the state, which is each the complainant and prosecutor in his case, has management over the jail and will hurt him,” Odur mentioned.
Hon. Emmanuel Ongiertho (Jonam County) warned the federal government in regards to the potential repercussions of Dr. Besigye’s detention circumstances.
“If you launch Besigye at this time and he dies tomorrow, individuals will maintain the federal government accountable,” Ongiertho cautioned.
Dr. Timothy Batuwa (FDC, Jinja South Division West) instructed that Dr. Besigye, as a high-profile determine ought to as a substitute be positioned beneath home arrest.
“He is a gentleman revered and cherished by Ugandans. Being locked up 5 doorways into a jail raises important security considerations,” Batuwa mentioned.
The Leader of the Opposition, Hon. Joel Ssenyonyi condemned the remedy of Dr. Besigye as punitive and politically motivated.
“These political prisoners are handled as if they’re already responsible. This is why there’s resistance to granting police bond,” Ssenyonyi argued.
Butiru County MP, Hon. Godfrey Wakooli nevertheless, mentioned that some issues round Besigye’s detention are exaggerated.
“Because they needed to safeguard his life, they mentioned as prisons, ‘we aren’t going to permit all these people who we don’t belief to convey meals for Besigye’, the one concept was for them to purchase meals from their shops,” he mentioned.
The House adopted each stories save for a proposal within the minority report that the trial of Besigye within the General Court Martial needs to be halted.
