Outcry after authorities prevent Bobi Wine from going to US for ‘torture’ treatment

This article is more than 2 years old

This article is more than 2 years old

Protests have erupted in Uganda’s capital after police prevented a pop-star-turned-opposition-politician from leaving for the US for treatment after he was allegedly tortured in detention.

The actions by security forces have escalated a dispute between the government of the longtime president, Yoweri Museveni, and a youthful generation that fears he intends to rule for life after 32 years in power.

Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu, known to his fans as Bobi Wine, was stopped on Thursday night while trying to board a flight at Entebbe airport, his lawyer, Asuman Basalirwa, said. He was admitted to a hospital in the capital, Kampala, in a “worrying condition”, the lawyer said.

The 36-year-old had been freed on bail on Monday but faced no travel restrictions after he and several other politicians were charged with treason, over an incident in which the president’s motorcade was pelted with stones and Kyagulanyi’s driver was shot dead. A lawyer for the singer has called the charge false.

Kyagulanyi is a powerful opposition voice among youth frustrated by Museveni, especially after the constitution was changed last year to remove an age limit on the presidency.

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The singer, who won a parliament seat last year without the backing of a political party, is a controversial figure who has faced repeated accusations of homophobia.

Dozens of musicians around the world, including Chris Martin of Coldplay, Angélique Kidjo and Brian Eno, issued an open letter last week condemning the treatment of Kyagulanyi, who in his first public appearance after his arrest had to walk with support and appeared to cry.

On Thursday, police “violently abducted” Kyagulanyi and put him into a police ambulance, another lawyer, Nicholas Opiyo, tweeted. Kyagulanyi’s wife, Barbara, said in a Facebook post that her husband “groaned in pain” as he shouted for help.

Authorities earlier on Thursday stopped another politician, Francis Zaake, from boarding a plane to India, saying he was a suspect in a criminal case. Ofwono Opondo, a government spokesman, said Zaake, who was not charged with any crime, escaped police custody “and should be arrested at the earliest”.

On Friday, Opondo said Kyagulanyi could not travel abroad without court authorisation. “What if he goes and doesn’t come back yet there are pending charges against him?” the spokesman asked in comments tweeted by the government’s press office.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Supporters of Bobi Wine protest in Kyagulanyi. Photograph: Isaac Kasamani/AFP/Getty

A medical examination was also needed because the politicians had alleged torture, but hospital officials were refusing to cooperate with police to get their statement, the spokesman said. Kyagulanyi and Zaake were resisting efforts by government-provided medical personnel to examine them, according to a local rights group, Chapter Four Uganda.

Both men had been admitted to hospital with serious injuries they alleged they sustained at the hands of security forces during detention. Kyagulanyi was said to have a kidney problem, according to his legal team, which cited a medical report by the hospital.

The government has denied the allegations of torture.

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The treason charges against Kyagulanyi and others have heightened concerns about a crackdown on the opposition and led to protests in Kampala.

Security forces were deployed heavily in Kamwokya neighbourhood in Kampala on Friday, said a police spokesman, Emilian Kayima, after “some young men wanted to cause commotion”.

Museveni, 74, a close US security ally, has held power since 1986. He has spoken in recent days about “unprincipled politicians taking advantage of our unemployed youth to lure them into riots and demonstrations”.