The High Court Criminal Division has denied bail to opposition figure Dr. Kizza Besigye and his co-accused, Hajj Obeid Lutale, despite acknowledging that all legal conditions for release had been satisfied.
Presiding over a packed courtroom, Justice Rosette Comfort Kania delivered the ruling, citing the need to balance individual liberties with national interests. “Although all grounds for bail are met,” she stated, “the applications for bail are denied. The investigations are ongoing, and the applicants may still fall prey to the temptation of interfering with those investigations.”
The court agreed that both Besigye and Lutale had demonstrated fixed places of residence, a clean record of non-absconding, and had presented reliable and substantial sureties typically strong grounds for granting bail.
The decision has sparked immediate reactions from civil society groups and opposition supporters, who view it as a troubling sign of selective justice. Legal analysts, meanwhile, point to the ruling as an example of the wide discretionary power judges hold in matters of bail.
Besigye, a four-time presidential contender and vocal critic of the current regime, was arrested last month alongside Lutale on charges that have not yet been fully disclosed to the public. The pair’s continued detention is expected to fuel further political tensions and protests in the coming days.
A legal team representing Besigye has already indicated plans to appeal the decision, arguing that the ruling sets a dangerous precedent for politically motivated detentions.
