A Ugandan court on Monday charged 36 opposition supporters with terrorism-related offenses. The individuals had been deported from neighboring Kenya, where they had gone to attend a training course, according to court papers reviewed by Reuters.
Members of Uganda’s Forum for Democratic Change (FDC), one of the country’s major opposition parties, were charged on Monday with terrorism-related offenses.
Their lawyer, Erias Lukwago, denounced the charges as “ridiculous” while addressing reporters outside the magistrates’ court in Kampala.
The situation has attracted significant attention against a backdrop of youth protests in both Uganda and Kenya over issues such as corruption, high taxes, and various other resentments.
According to their lawyer and party officials, Kenyan authorities detained and deported the 36 individuals after they traveled to Kisumu in western Kenya on July 23 for a leadership and governance training course.
Kiiza Besigye, a prominent member of the FDC and long-time opponent of Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni, posted on the X platform on Sunday that during their detention in Kenya, the individuals had their properties confiscated, including computers and phones. He added that they were tortured, with several sustaining injuries.
The allegations could not be independently verified by Reuters. The court documents accuse the 36 individuals of traveling to Kenya with the intention of “receiving or providing terrorist training.”
They are currently detained in a prison situated about 50 kilometers (31 miles) northwest of the capital.
Critics and human rights advocates have long alleged that Museveni’s government uses fabricated charges to suppress political opponents.
Government officials reject these claims.
At 79, Museveni has governed Uganda, a nation of 46 million people, since 1986. Recently, security forces apprehended over 100 young Ugandans who were protesting against pervasive corruption within the government.
The recent protests in Uganda were influenced by a series of youth-led rallies in Kenya that successfully pressured President William Ruto to retract submitted tax hikes.
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