Winnie Byanyima (L) walks along side her imprisoned husband, Dr Besigye
HABARI DAILY I Kampala, Uganda I Concerns over the health and continued detention of opposition figure Dr Kizza Besigye have intensified following a strongly worded statement by his spouse, Winnie Byanyima, who says he is seriously ill and being denied adequate medical care while in prison.
Dr Besigye, who has been on remand for more than a year on treason charges, was reportedly rushed to his personal doctor’s clinic late in the night after his health sharply deteriorated. According to Byanyima, prison authorities failed to inform her of the emergency, and fears her husband might die in jail.
“I learned of his worsening condition through other means and rushed to the clinic myself during the night,” Byanyima said. “When I saw him, he was extremely weak, shaking, running a high temperature, and suffering from severe abdominal pain.”
She described heavy security at the clinic, saying Dr Besigye was guarded by multiple prison officers and a plainclothes military intelligence operative. Byanyima expressed alarm at what she called increasing military involvement in her husband’s detention.
“I am deeply concerned that Dr Besigye is now effectively in the hands of the army rather than under civilian prison authority,” she said, adding that his medical care appears to be “deliberately restricted.”
Byanyima also accused prison officials of attempting to silence her, claiming she was warned against speaking publicly about her husband’s condition.
“I have been threatened that if I inform the public about his illness, he would be denied further access to his doctor’s clinic,” she said. “I regard this as blackmail and a deliberate attempt to conceal his condition from public knowledge.”
Her remarks come amid public debate and widespread discussion in the media about Dr Besigye’s health. Despite these concerns, the prison spokesperson, Baine, reportedly stated that Dr Besigye is not ill—an assertion Byanyima firmly rejected. “This is false,” she said.
Following statements by Byanyima and the People’s Front for Freedom (PFF), prison authorities have reportedly limited Dr Besigye’s medical access to the prison sick bay, a facility his family describes as poorly equipped.
Beyond his health, Byanyima detailed what she termed harsh and inhumane detention conditions, including prolonged solitary confinement, limited contact with other prisoners, restrictions on worship and exercise, and confinement in a small cell with minimal sunlight.
She also linked his deteriorating health to recent election-related restrictions, during which prisons were closed to visitors and internet access was shut down, leaving Dr Besigye isolated.
“I therefore demand the immediate release of Dr Kizza Besigye so that his family and doctors can care for him properly,” Byanyima said. “He is innocent, and these dirty political games must stop.”
She warned that his continued detention and denial of medical care place his life at serious risk and said those responsible would be held accountable.
Dr Besigye has been denied bail four times and remains on remand as legal proceedings continue.
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