Detained Ugandan opposition figure Dr Kizza Besigye on Wednesday collapsed during a court session in Kampala where he is facing treason charges and was rushed to Mulago National Referral Hospital, according to his wife, Winnie Byanyima.
Dr Besigye, 70, has been in custody since November 2024 after he and his aide, Obeid Lutale, were arrested in Kenya and returned to Uganda, where they were charged with treason. Both men have denied the charges, which their lawyers and political allies describe as politically motivated.
In a statement posted on social media, Byanyima said Besigye had been admitted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at Mulago Hospital in critical condition.
“He is unconscious, unable to speak, and unresponsive even to a pain stimulus. Before he collapsed, he cried out that he was being injured. His sister, Dr Olive Kobusingye, was in court but was not allowed to attend to him,” she said.
Videos circulating on social media showed Besigye collapsing inside the courtroom before security personnel and court officials rushed to take him.
Harold Kaija, a senior official in Besigye’s People’s Front for Freedom (PFF), told Reuters that Ugandan authorities transported him to hospital by ambulance.
Uganda Prisons Service spokesperson Frank Baine could not immediately be reached for comment by the end of Wednesday, while Judiciary spokesperson Ereemye Mawanda told Reuters he was unable to comment because he had not yet received details of the incident.
Besigye’s detention has attracted criticism from local and international human rights organisations, with the Commonwealth among those calling for his release.
Critics of President Museveni say the former four-time presidential candidate’s continued detention reflects a broader crackdown on opposition figures and government critics.
“What happened to KB? One day, @KagutaMuseveni and his son @mkainerugaba will have to answer that question,” Byanyima said, adding: “Please join me in praying for Besigye.”
Exiled opposition leader Robert Kyagulanyi, also known as Bobi Wine, called for due process.
“All Dr Besigye and his co-accused are asking for is a fair trial, before a fair judge, or no trial at all. The Constitution must prevail,” he said.
In February, Besigye was briefly hospitalised after staging a hunger strike to protest his detention. In April, Byanyima, who is also the Unaids chief, told Amnesty International that his health had deteriorated.
Besigye and co-accused were due to appear before the High Court on July 30. Besigye has been demanding the restoration of his legal defence team after lead counsel Martha Karua, a Kenyan lawyer, was declared persona non grata.
Another member of his defence team, ex-Kampala Mayor Erias Lukwago, was arrested and charged with misprision of treason and remains in custody.
“I will not continue with this criminal court. We shall not allow this court process, [Judge] Emmanuel Baguma. I will not allow you to continue abusing our country and the Constitution,” an angry Besigye said before collapsing after repeatedly banging on the dock.
The judge, who declined to halt the trial, then responded: “If you don’t want to continue, you can get out.”
