Ugandan Lawyer Defending Kizza Besigye Charged With Treason
Last update: June 18, 2026
Disclaimer: This website may contain affiliate links, which means we may earn a commission if you click on the link and make a purchase. We only recommend products or services that we personally use and believe will add value to our readers. Your support is appreciated!
A lawyer defending one of Uganda’s most prominent opposition figures has now found himself in the dock, charged with a treason offence days after the president’s son boasted about his arrest online.
A former Ugandan mayor and lawyer representing detained opposition leader Kizza Besigye has been charged with a treason related offence, cbinews.tv reports.
Erias Lukwago appeared before a magistrate’s court in Kampala looking visibly weak, local media reported. He was arrested at his home days earlier. In court, he denied the charge of failure to report treason and was remanded in prison. His case will be heard next week.
His arrest on Monday sparked outrage after Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba, Uganda’s military chief and son of President Yoweri Museveni, took to social media to boast about it.
Opposition politician Bobi Wine, who fled Uganda after contesting the January presidential election, claimed Lukwago was arrested on Kainerugaba’s orders. He said the lawyer was preparing to serve a court summons on the military chief at the time.
“I call upon all of us to reject and resist this brazen impunity,” Bobi Wine posted on X.
Lukwago’s family rushed to court seeking an order to force security officers to disclose his whereabouts and release him “dead or alive”. They accused security agents of abducting him and pointed to Kainerugaba’s own posts claiming responsibility.
On X, Kainerugaba shared photos that appeared to show Lukwago blindfolded in an unknown location. In another post he wrote: “I’m proud of all the hurt and pain I will inflict on the criminal Lukwago!”
Kainerugaba is no stranger to controversy online. He has a history of inflammatory posts, some of which were later deleted, and has previously boasted about abducting and torturing opposition figures.
Lukwago had been representing Kizza Besigye, who has been jailed on treason charges since he was abducted in Kenya and forcibly returned to Uganda in late 2024.
Besigye is a long standing opponent of President Museveni. He once served as Museveni’s personal doctor before falling out with him in 1999. Since then he has run against Museveni in several presidential elections and been detained multiple times.
#Uganda #KizzaBesigye #EriasLukwago #HumanRights #MuhooziKainerugaba #BobiWine #TreasonTrial #PressFreedom #AfricaPolitics #Kampala
