Opposition politician Dr. Kizza Besigye has questioned whether he can receive a fair hearing after the High Court declined to suspend proceedings in his human rights enforcement application despite his complaints that members of his legal team are unavailable and allegedly being targeted. Besigye, who appeared before Justice Emmanuel Baguma alongside his co-applicant Hajji Obeid […]
Opposition politician Dr. Kizza Besigye has questioned whether he can receive a fair hearing after the High Court declined to suspend proceedings in his human rights enforcement application despite his complaints that members of his legal team are unavailable and allegedly being targeted.
Besigye, who appeared before Justice Emmanuel Baguma alongside his co-applicant Hajji Obeid Lutale on Tuesday, argued that the court should first address what he described as the collapse of his legal representation before requiring written submissions in the matter.
The application, filed before the High Court Criminal Division as Miscellaneous Application No. 0227 of 2026 arising from Criminal Session Case No. 335 of 2025, seeks enforcement of several constitutional rights which the applicants say have been violated.
The respondents include Gen. Muhoozi Kainerugaba, Col. Peter Ahimbisibwe, Lt. Col. Ephraim Byaruhanga and the Attorney General.
The application invokes Articles 20, 28, 29, 42, 44, 45, 50, 126, 129 and 139 of the Constitution, together with provisions of the Human Rights (Enforcement) Act, the Judicature Act and the Prevention and Prohibition of Torture Act.
Among the declarations sought, Besigye and Lutale want court to find that the criminal proceedings against them are unconstitutional, that Besigye’s alleged abduction from Nairobi, Kenya amounted to unlawful extraordinary rendition, and that public statements allegedly made by Gen. Muhoozi Kainerugaba threatening violence, torture and execution have violated their constitutional right to a fair hearing.
The hearing followed an order issued by the High Court on 11 June directing Gen. Muhoozi Kainerugaba, Col. Peter Ahimbisibwe, Lt. Col. Ephraim Byaruhanga and the Attorney General to appear before court on Tuesday, 30 June at 11:00 a.m.
However, when the matter came up for hearing today, counsel for the applicants sought a stay of proceedings, informing court that the respondents had not yet been served with the application and therefore could not reasonably be expected to respond.
Justice Baguma declined to halt the proceedings.
Instead, the judge directed both parties to prepare and file written submissions within timelines fixed by the court so that the application could proceed.
The decision prompted Besigye himself to address the court, saying the judge’s orders overlooked what he described as the central obstacle to justice his inability to access legal representation.
“As you have heard, we did not have lawyers in the process leading up to today,” Besigye told court.
“The respondents have not been served up to today. Therefore they could not have even responded. This is because of what has been going on.”
Besigye alleged that members of his legal team were in hiding because of intimidation.
“You have heard and you know that our lawyers are on the run. You are now advising us to assemble others. Who will not run? Because the person terrorising them is the accused.”
He argued that unless the issue of legal representation was resolved first, any further proceedings would undermine the administration of justice.
“This is why it is fundamentally important that if there is to be justice in this court then the whole question of how we are represented should be addressed before this very application.”
Besigye also questioned how the court expected compliance with its directive requiring written submissions when, according to him, there were no lawyers available to prepare them.
“Who are willing to commit the submissions that you are ordering when everybody is on the run?” he asked.
The opposition politician further claimed that the situation had effectively denied him access to a proper defence.
Referring to the criminal proceedings against him, Besigye complained that he had not received disclosure of evidence and therefore remained unable to prepare for trial.
“The main case you are talking about, we have never seen the disclosures.”
He then used a striking analogy to describe what he believes is happening to him.
“Coming to this court, it seems we will be tried with our eyes covered, with our hands and feet tied, and with our lips zipped. How can we have justice in that case?”
Besigye also suggested that the continued circumstances surrounding the case amounted to a return to detention without trial.
“Even yesterday, the last sitting re-enacted detention without trial. That is what it seems all this is aimed at. We simply remain in detention because we cannot have lawyers.”
The hearing also took place against the backdrop of uncertainty surrounding the whereabouts of Besigye’s lead counsel, Erias Lukwago.
On 14 June, Lukwago publicly announced that he intended to serve court summons on Gen. Muhoozi Kainerugaba, Col. Peter Ahimbisibwe, Lt. Col. Ephraim Byaruhanga and the Attorney General following the High Court’s order issued on 11 June.
However, Lukwago’s whereabouts later became unknown after reports emerged of a security visit at his residence.
The application itself argues that public statements allegedly made by Gen. Muhoozi Kainerugaba have prejudiced Besigye’s right to a fair trial.
According to the court documents, the applicants contend that statements in which Muhoozi allegedly declared he would “hang Kizza Besigye the first chance he gets” and accused him of targeting President Museveni violate constitutional guarantees of due process and judicial independence.
The applicants argue that such statements create a climate of intimidation that is incompatible with a fair criminal process.
Despite Besigye’s objections, Justice Baguma maintained the timelines for written submissions, meaning the human rights application will now proceed through written arguments before the court determines the substantive constitutional issues raised in the case.
Meanwhile, the High court fixed July 03rd to hear another bail application for Besigye and his co-accused.
The State led by Attorney Jonathan Natuhwera still oppossed the application
Today only ten lawyers were present in court .Tugume Moses who has led the team says they have not been able to file rejoinding submissions to the state’s defence . Tugume asked court to have the hearing of the application halted until the entire defence team is fully composed.
