Uganda: Military Court Convicts Human Rights Lawyer

Eron Kiiza is a Ugandan human rights lawyer and environmentalist. He is the co-founder of the law firm Kiiza & Mugisha Advocates and heads the Environment Shield Limited, a grassroot NGO specializing in climate, natural resources and environmental justice as components of social justice. He was one of the lawyers representing Dr Kizza Besigye, a Ugandan opposition politician and former presidential candidate for the Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) political party, who was abducted in Nairobi, Kenya in early November 2024. He resurfaced on 20 November 2024 when he was arraigned in a military court in Kampala, Uganda, where he was charged alongside FDC member Haji Obeid Lutale with offences relating to security and unlawful possession of firearms and ammunition. He was remanded to Luzira Maximum Security Prison in Kampala, Uganda, where he awaits trial, due to begin on 3 February 2025. Amnesty International has called for Kizza Besigye’s immediate release as his abduction clearly violated international human rights law and the process of extradition with its requisite fair trial protections.

With regard to Eron Kiiza’s conviction and sentencing, his right to a fair trial was violated since the charges against him were not read to him. He was also denied an opportunity to take plea to any charges/s or respond with a defence. He was further not accorded any right to appoint counsel to represent him. 

According to Eron Kiiza’s lawyers, Eron Kiiza seemed weak when they last visited him in Kitalya prison on 20 January 2025. He appears to have lost an extensive amount of weight within less than two weeks of his arbitrary detention. 

Amnesty International has reported that Eron Kiiza’s continuing detention is a travesty  and that the sham trial process directly violates Uganda’s constitution.