Overview
- The veteran opposition figure Kizza Besigye collapsed during a Kampala court session and was taken by ambulance to hospital after shouting for help, with witnesses and party officials reporting the collapse on Wednesday.
- His wife and multiple hospital and medical sources say Besigye is now unconscious and being treated in the intensive care unit at Mulago National Referral Hospital, a fact confirmed by the hospital spokeswoman.
- Family members and his party say he has been denied consistent access to his chosen physician and that ICU visitation is tightly controlled by security, prompting calls for compassionate release and private treatment.
- The treason prosecution, transferred from a military tribunal to civilian court after his 2024 repatriation from Kenya, has seen defence lawyers blocked or detained—including the arrest of lead counsel Erias Lukwago and the barring of Martha Karua.
- Rights groups and opposition allies warn the case reflects a broader squeeze on critics under President Yoweri Museveni and say Besigye’s critical condition could intensify international scrutiny of Uganda’s handling of detained political opponents.