By Enyichukwu Enemanna
Military prosecutors in Uganda on Monday amended charges against a prominent opposition leader to include “treachery”, which carries the death penalty upon conviction.
Kiiza Besigye, a known political foe of President Yoweri Museveni, is standing trial over a long list of alleged violations of military law.
He was forcibly brought back home from neighbouring Kenya in November and charged with illegal possession of firearms, as well as undermining the East African country’s security, in a military court.
Besigye, a former personal physician of Museveni—who has ruled the country with an iron fist for the past 40 years andhas opposed his trial in a military court as a civilian.
He has been kept in prison in the capital, Kampala, since his extraordinary rendition, along with an aide, Obeid Lutale, with whom he was charged.
Besigye’s wife, Winnie Byanyima, the executive director of the U.N. agency UNAIDS, has said the charges against him are politically motivated.
His lawyers have also rejected the charges, describing them as baseless.
During his appearance in court on Monday, a military prosecutor read the new charge of “treachery” to Besigye and his co-accused.
According to a charge sheet sighted by Reuters, Besigye and his co-accused possessed intelligence about a plot to undermine national security but “consciously withheld the said vital information from the proper authorities”.
Besigye’s lawyers protested against the additional charge, arguing that it violated criminal trial procedures.
They also objected to the detention of prominent human rights lawyer Eron Kiiza, who is part of Besigye’s defence team.
At Besigye’s last court appearance on 7 January, Kiiza was sentenced to nine months in prison for alleged contempt of court following an altercation with court orderlies.
Amnesty International has described Besigye’s detention and jail sentence as outrageous, demanding his release.
Besigye, who fell out with Museveni, ran for the presidency four times and lost to the 80-year-old leader. He rejected the results of all those elections, citing alleged irregularities.
Human rights activists have accused Museveni’s government of widespread human rights abuses, including torture and the arbitrary detention of dissenting voices.
Museveni is believed to be preparing his son, the country’s defence chief Muhoozi Kainerugaba, 50, as his preferred successor.
