Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni on Monday signed a controversial law permitting the trial of civilians in military courts—a move critics say targets opposition figures ahead of next year’s general election.
The law’s enactment follows a January Supreme Court ruling which declared it unconstitutional for civilians to face military trials, as happened in the case of opposition leader Kizza Besigye.
Besigye, 69, was abducted by armed men in Nairobi last November and later appeared before a Ugandan military court charged with treason—an offence that carries the death penalty.
Although the Supreme Court ruling led to the transfer of his case to a civilian court, the new legislation introduces “exceptional circumstances” under which civilians may again be tried under military law. This includes charges such as the “unlawful possession of arms, ammunition or equipment,” one of the accusations Besigye currently faces.
Uganda’s parliament announced the signing of the bill via X (formerly Twitter).
Besigye’s lawyer, Erias Lukwago, criticised the law, stating it was intended to legitimise the “illegal detention and prosecution of Besigye and others”.
Besigye has now been held beyond the six-month legal limit for detention without trial.
Another prominent opposition leader, Bobi Wine (real name Robert Kyagulanyi), told AFP that the Act is part of a broader campaign to suppress dissent. “All of us in the opposition are being targeted by the Act,” he said.
Human rights lawyer Eron Kiiza, who was himself jailed for six months by a military court while defending Besigye, pledged to mount a legal challenge against the legislation.
Rights groups have condemned the abduction and military prosecution of Besigye, linking it to the presidential election scheduled for January, where Museveni, now 80, is expected to seek a seventh term after nearly four decades in power.