Lawyer for Ugandan opposition politician ‘arrested and tortured’
Lawyer for Ugandan opposition politician ‘arrested and tortured’
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Eron Kiiza, who was representing regime opponent Dr Kizza Besigye, was assaulted and sentenced to nine months’ jail, say colleagues. A human rights lawyer involved in a case featuring a prominent Ugandan opposition leader has been tortured after he was arrested and detained without trial, according to colleagues who have visited him.
Eron Kiiza was assaulted and arrested by soldiers on 7 January while entering a military courtroom where he was representing Dr Kizza Besigye – a political opponent of President Yoweri Museveni – and his aide Haji Obeid Lutale. He was convicted of contempt of court and sentenced to nine months’ imprisonment on the same day. He was immediately transferred to Kitalya prison, 34 miles from the capital, Kampala.
Human rights organisations including Amnesty International and the International Federation for Human Rights have called for Kiiza’s immediate release. In a statement, the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders said the sentence “constitutes a violation of international, constitutional and Ugandan domestic law”.
According to Ugandan lawyers Andrew Karamagi and Primah Kwagala, who have worked with Kiiza and visited him in prison, Kiiza showed signs of mental and physical torture. Most parts of his body, particularly joints, knees, nails, knuckles and head, were swollen.
Karamagi said Kiiza was recovering from beatings at the court and in transit to prison. “It is routine that [forces] will beat up arrested people and he was subjected to as much, which explains the pains he was feeling in his chest and lower back, and the bruises I saw when I visited him in prison.”.
