Missing activists: Rights groups call for sanctions against Uganda

In the face of growing frustration over the fate of missing Kenyan activists Bob Njagi and Nicholas Oyoo, a coalition of civil society groups and human rights defenders has petitioned the European Union (EU) to suspend funding to the Ugandan government and impose sanctions.

The petition addressed to the EU delegation in both Kenya and Uganda and the European External Action Service in Brussels, urges the bloc to take immediate action against Uganda for what it terms as “continued violation of human rights and international law.”

Some of the rights groups that have signed the petition include Free Kenya Movement, Amnesty International Kenya, the Law Society of Kenya, Vocal Africa, the Pan-African Human Rights Network, and the 6.25 Movement, among others.

For the distraught families of Njagi and Oyoo, this has been a rather torturous and agonising month since the news of their kin’s abduction hit on October 1.

The two activists had travelled to Uganda to attend a political rally organised by Ugandan politician Robert Kyagulanyi, popularly known as Bobi Wine, when the unthinkable happened.

It has been tough days and sleepless nights for the families as they try to keep hope alive that their loved ones will one day resurface. Each passing day without news of their whereabouts, however, pushes them to fear for the worst.

“It has not been easy for my young family. I have been spending sleepless nights wondering what happened to him. Every time my phone rings, I expect good news, but nothing this far. My world came to a standstill the day I saw the news of their abduction,” Njagi’s wife, Christine, recently told The Standard from her Kitengela home.

Oyoo's brother, Nicholas Ochieng says the family is living in anguish.

“It is more difficult for us now that the military and police have denied having the two in custody. This makes us wonder where they are. Are they alive or taken elsewhere?” said Ochieng.

Disturbingly, both families claim no government official has been in touch to update them on the progress regarding the fate of their loved ones.

“The poor have no place in this country. State officials wake up and return to their kin every evening, but they cannot listen to us who have no such luxury. We are crying every day. It is inhuman,” said a family member who requested anonymity.

A source at the Ministry of Foreign and Diaspora Affairs in Kenya told The Standard they are yet to get a clear position from their Ugandan counterparts regarding the fate of the duo.

“This sounds disingenuous and only confirms our fears that the Kenyan government might actually be colluding with Uganda to hold our comrades. If that is the case, then it is a total violation of our Constitution,” said Hussein Khalid of Vocal Africa.

“Instead of answers, the families have been left chasing shadows, pleading for truth from authorities who should be demanding action, yet appear content to look the other way,” he added.

Under both domestic and international law, the Government of Kenya bears the primary responsibility to protect its citizens, whether at home or abroad.

The Ministry of Foreign and Diaspora Affairs, led by Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi and Principal Secretary Korir Sing’oei, has gone silent on the matter. Not even the highest office in the land, the Office of the President has uttered a word since the disappearance of the two activists.

The petition by the civil rights organizations notes that despite legal interventions, including a habeas corpus application filed in Uganda’s High Court, authorities have failed to disclose the activists’ whereabouts or produce them in court.

“We have carried out investigations and searched all relevant detention facilities, including custody records and lock-up registers, and found no entry relating to the said Nicholas Oyoo and Bob Njagi between October 1, 2025 to date. We therefore confirm that the said individuals are not within the custody of the Uganda People’s Defence Forces, and we do not know their whereabouts,” Colonel Silas Kamanda, the Director of the Joint Staff Legal Services at the Uganda People’s Defence Forces, recently said.

The signatories of the EU petition argue that the case amounts to a violation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, and Uganda’s obligations under the East African Community Treaty.

“We are calling for the suspension of all non-humanitarian funding to the Ugandan government until the two activists are released. We are also urging the EU to impose targeted sanctions on officials linked to enforced disappearances and political repression,” reads part of the petition.

Additionally, the petition seeks to compel the EU to publicly condemn Uganda’s actions and demand adherence to international human rights standards, as well as support independent investigations into the disappearances and broader patterns of persecution.

National Coordinator of the Free Kenya Movement Felix Wambua said the EU’s credibility on human rights was “at stake” if it failed to act swiftly.

Activist Sungu Oyoo of the Kongomano La Mapinduzi said they had been denied an opportunity to meet Mudavadi, claiming they were told he was not in office.

“It is unfortunate. We have tried our best but were denied entry to seek confirmation or proof of life. It is clear that this is a government that does not listen to the concerns of its people. All our pleas and previous engagements with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs have gone unheeded,” said Oyoo.

Amnesty International Kenya executive director Irungu Houghton said a worldwide campaign has been launched, allowing citizens to directly email Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni, demanding the activists’ release.

“People can go to a microsite that allows them to email the President of the Republic of Uganda. It takes less than two minutes. We are asking Kenyans, East Africans, and the world to write to President Museveni calling for the immediate release of Bob and Nicholas Oyoo,” said Houghton.

The Standard has also spoken to Koffi Atinda, a USIU student who drove the duo across the border to Uganda and was with them when the abduction happened.

“I feel like a walking dead,” a shaken Atinda said.

According to Atinda, it is while at Stabex Petrol Station where they had parked their car that armed men stormed and, without identifying themselves, seized Bob and Oyoo before speeding off in a black van.

“I tricked them that I had left the car unlocked and needed to rush back to close it. That is how I escaped their dragnet. I fled on a motorbike,” Atinda said.

Boniface Mwangi, another human rights activist, accused both Kenya and Uganda of colluding in transnational abductions.

“Governments don’t just abduct foreigners without approval from host countries. Bob Njagi was abducted last year and released after 32 days. He was abducted again in Kampala alongside Nicholas Oyoo. They were grabbed by armed men, some in plain clothes, others in uniform,” reads part of Mwangi's post on X.

According to Mwangi, it appeared that both governments were out to target activists critical of their regimes.

Wambua said the case has exposed the vulnerability of activists in the region.

“When you imagine the whereabouts of your colleagues are unknown, it is disheartening and disturbing. The Ugandan authorities are playing games with us,” he said.

“Abduction is a crime against humanity. The Kenyan government must speak up; it is their duty to protect citizens. We informed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs barely 24 hours after the abduction, but 21 days later, there is no progress,” said Wambua.

Wambua has also urged Parliament to summon the Cabinet Secretary for Foreign Affairs to explain the steps taken so far.