The Ugandan president Yoweri Museveni has banned a church mass which was supposed to pray for the imprisoned opposition leader Kizza Besigye according to his wife Winnie Byanyima. Byanyima told AFP that the Archbishop of Kampala informed her he had received a direct call from Museveni instructing that the mass be called off because he considered it a political event which needed investigation.
The service was set to occur at Rubaga Cathedral where some worshippers had arrived to the church before they discovered the service cancellation. Besigye has been incarcerated since 2024 when he faced treason accusations. He was kidnapped by armed men in Nairobi in November 2024 and then appeared in Uganda before a military court. Besigye the former personal doctor to Museveni and political opponent has spent about 15 months in jail because bail has been denied to him multiple times and he has experienced medical issues.
Byanyima objected to the cancellation because it showed how government authority could restrict people from exercising their religious freedoms. She has previously accused Museveni of wanting Besigye to “die in prison,” a claim made during Uganda’s recent presidential election period. Human rights organizations and opposition groups assert that the government arrested and charged Besigye because of his political activities which were connected to the elections that Museveni who is now 81 years old was competing in for his seventh term.
The polls occurred during an internet blackout which accompanied extensive government crackdown on opposition activities. Ugandan military chief Muhoozi Kainerugaba who is also Museveni’s son created greater tension when he publicly endorsed the execution of opposition supporters and the widespread detentions. Bobi Wine Museveni’s principal election opponent has allegedly gone into seclusion.
