Kizza Besigye Plunges into Crisis: ICU Collapse in Kampala Court
Ugandan opposition leader Kizza Besigye was admitted to an intensive care unit at Mulago Hospital after collapsing unconscious in the high‑court during his treason trial, according to his wife Winnie Byanyima, former head of UNAIDS.
Besigye, 70, has been held in detention since November 2024 following his abduction in Kenya and subsequent return to Uganda. Prosecutors accuse him and his aide of plotting to overthrow President Yoweri Museveni, a charge that carries a potential death penalty under Ugandan law.
“He is unconscious, unable to speak and unresponsive even to a pain stimulus,” Byanyima wrote on X, pledging that Besigye should receive care from his personal physician rather than government staff.
Witnesses at the trial told reporters that Besigye shouted repeatedly for a stop to his legal representation before the collapse, and that his sister, Olive Kobusingye—also a doctor—was initially denied access. Security guards wrapped the ICU wing in heavy armour, while government medical personnel declined to treat him.
Besigye’s main lawyer, Erias Lukwago, is imprisoned after being seized by the army last month; his other lead lawyer, Kenyan activist Martha Karua, was barred from entering Uganda when she flew in to represent him. Besigye’s son, Adam Ampa, has appealed to President Museveni and army chief Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba for a humanitarian release, arguing that no son should watch his father in such condition before the law he served.
Political activists, including opposition figure Bobi Wine, condemned the spectacle and described Besigye’s court appearance as a “shocking violation of his most basic rights.” The incident underscores the precarious environment for dissent in Uganda’s 35‑year rule.
