On Wednesday Kizza Besigye, a veteran opposition politician in Uganda, collapsed in the High Court during a treason trial and was rushed to the intensive care unit at Mulago National Referral Hospital in Kampala.
The 70‑year‑old has been held in police custody since November 2024 following accusations that he and his aides plotted to overthrow President Yoweri Museveni. Besigye’s chief lawyer was detained last month and a prominent Kenyan counsel was barred from entering the country.
During the session he shouted repeatedly for the court to stop and voiced that his legal representation was injuring him. He collapsed before he could be heard fully. His wife, Winnie Byanyima, who runs the UN agency tackling HIV and AIDS, posted on X that he was unconscious, unable to speak and unresponsive even to pain.
Besigye has refused treatment from government medical staff and has demanded that his personal doctor receive him in a private clinic. The ICU wing is guarded by heavily armed security officers, but his sister, a qualified doctor, has recently been allowed to see him.
Family members and opposition figures have called for his release on humanitarian grounds. His son Adam Ampa appealed to President Museveni and army chief Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba, condemning the state’s abuse of his father’s rights.
Besigye’s health has fluctuated during the trial. In February 2025 he was taken to a private clinic on a hunger strike, and earlier this year he was briefly admitted to a hospital. The controversies surrounding his detention, the severity of the charges and the lack of medical care underscore growing tensions between Uganda’s ruling party and its opposition.
