KAMPALA, Uganda — Jailed Ugandan opposition leader Col. Dr. Kizza Besigye has been discharged from Kampala’s Mulago National Referral Hospital and returned to Luzira Prison Hospital after 10 days of treatment, the Uganda Prisons Service said.
The 70-year-old veteran politician was admitted to Mulago after collapsing during court proceedings in late July while facing treason-related charges.
In a statement, Uganda Prisons Service spokesperson Frank Baine Mayanja said Besigye’s condition was “steadily improving” and that he was now under the care of the prison medical team, which would continue to monitor and treat him.
His immediate family and personal doctors would continue to have access to him, Baine said, while urging the public to disregard what he described as misinformation about Besigye’s health and whereabouts.
The transfer has nevertheless renewed concern among Besigye’s family and political allies.
His wife, Winnie Byanyima, said after his return to Luzira that he remained seriously weak and had not yet regained the ability to walk, speak or care for himself independently.
Besigye, one of Uganda’s most prominent opposition figures and a four-time presidential candidate, has been in custody since his arrest in Kenya in November 2024.
He was subsequently taken to Uganda and charged alongside his aide, Obeid Lutale Kamulegeya. The pair have denied the allegations.
The prosecution has accused Besigye and Lutale of offences linked to alleged efforts to undermine Uganda’s security and government. The case initially proceeded before Uganda’s General Court Martial, despite Besigye’s argument that a military court had no jurisdiction over civilians.
The issue became a major legal battle after Uganda’s Supreme Court ruled in January 2025 that civilians should not be tried by military courts.
The decision triggered a wider dispute over the authority of military courts and the legislation governing them.
The case was eventually moved to the civilian High Court, but proceedings have been repeatedly delayed by legal challenges, bail applications and disputes over Besigye’s legal representation.
The opposition leader’s health has now become the most immediate issue surrounding the case.
Besigye collapsed in court in late July and was taken to Mulago for treatment. His family subsequently expressed concern about his condition and questioned the decision to return him to prison.
The government, through the prisons service, has maintained that he is improving and will continue receiving medical care.
The controversy comes as Besigye remains in custody without the treason case having reached a final determination.
For his supporters, his prolonged detention and prosecution are part of a broader pattern of political repression in Uganda. The government rejects that characterisation and maintains that Besigye is being prosecuted over alleged criminal and security-related offences.
