The making of EAC friction after Martha Karua is deported from Uganda
National
By
Noel Nabiswa
| Jun 23, 2026
Tension in the East African region escalated sharply yesterday after veteran Kenyan lawyer and opposition leader Martha Karua was denied entry into Uganda and ordered to return to Nairobi.
Karua, a senior counsel and former Justice Minister, arrived at Entebbe International Airport aboard a Kenya Airways flight alongside Law Society of Kenya (LSK) President Charles Kanjama. The delegation had travelled to Kampala to attend the bail hearing of Erias Lukwago, who represents the country’s opposition figure Kizza Besigye.
“I went through immigration as normal after filling out the Ebola forms. I was actually processed and went to wait for my colleagues. While waiting, the immigration officer who cleared me came and told me she had been informed that she had made a mistake and that there was a note regarding me. I had been told last week that there was a possibility of a red alert on me in Kampala,” said Karua.
While Kanjama was cleared by immigration officials without incident, Karua was singled out, detained for several hours and eventually informed that she had been denied entry. No reason was provided for the decision.
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Witnesses reported that Karua was held incommunicado at the airport, with her mobile phones switched off, sparking alarm among her legal team in Nairobi.
The Uganda Law Society (ULS) confirmed the incident, expressing shock that a senior member of the legal profession, travelling in the same professional capacity as her admitted colleague, had been barred without explanation.
ULS Deputy President Antony Asiimwe, who was present at the airport to receive the delegation, said no justification was offered for the deportation order.
“Two junior officers snatched both my phones. I asked why they were taking my phones and why they were being so rude. The principal immigration officer said I would not be allowed entry because of security reasons. They wanted to take me to a holding cell. I told them there was a Kenya Airways flight at two and, as a frequent flyer, I was authorised to use the Kenya Airways lounge. I asked them to let me stay in the lounge instead,” Karua said, adding:
“He called the Kenya Airways manager, handed over my passport and instructed him not to return it to me, saying he was responsible for me. I noticed two airport security officers and two immigration officers, a man and a woman, standing behind us. They remained in the lounge and I stayed there until the plane arrived,” Karua recounted.
The denial of entry to Karua is the latest development in a legal saga that began in November 2024 with the alleged abduction of Dr Besigye.
Besigye, a former presidential candidate in Uganda, was reportedly seized in Nairobi on November 16, 2024, before being forcibly returned to Uganda and arraigned before a military court on charges of treason and unlawful possession of firearms.
His abduction sparked widespread condemnation, with human rights groups alleging violations of international law and a pattern of repression against political opponents. He has since been held at Luzira Maximum Security Prison, with concerns also raised about his detention conditions.
Besigye is represented by a legal team led by Karua and Lukwago. However, Lukwago was himself arrested earlier this month and charged with misprision of treason, essentially failing to report an alleged plot to the authorities.
His arrest followed threats from Uganda’s Chief of Defence Forces, General Muhoozi Kainerugaba, whom the defence team has accused of creating a climate of fear targeting those linked to the Besigye case.