Bobi Wine Decries “Gross Violation of Rights” After Visiting Detained Comrades in Mbarara Prison

MBARARA, Uganda – The National Unity Platform (NUP) leader, Robert Kyagulanyi (Bobi Wine), has raised a stark alarm over the condition of his supporters detained at Mbarara Central Police Station, accusing authorities of brutalization and denying them medical care.

This follows a visit by the opposition party’s officials and legal team to the police station on Saturday, where several supporters are being held after what the party describes as a Friday evening “ambush” in Bwizibwera.

In a statement, the party expressed deep concern about the treatment of the detainees. “We are deeply concerned by the gross violation of their rights by their captors who are still keeping them on handcuffs even when they are inside the cells,” the statement read.

The NUP officials reported that the detained comrades showed visible signs of the violence they allegedly endured. “Our comrades were brutalized during arrest and are visibly in pain and in urgent need of medical attention,” the party asserted. They further detailed that the detainees “have decried beatings they endured during and after arrest.”

This latest incident adds to a growing list of grievances the opposition has against the state security apparatus. The party frames the arrests not as lawful law enforcement, but as a targeted crackdown meant to intimidate and suppress their political movement.

“The impunity and injustice continues,” the statement concluded, echoing a familiar refrain from the NUP, which has consistently accused the government of employing authoritarian tactics to silence dissent.

The situation in Mbarara has become a flashpoint in the ongoing political tensions in Uganda, with the opposition using the hashtag #FreeUgandaNow to mobilize international and local attention to the alleged human rights abuses.

As of now, the Uganda Police Force has not issued an official statement responding to the specific allegations of detainees being kept in handcuffs within cells and being denied medical attention. The condition of the detained supporters and the legal charges they face remain a point of intense focus and protest for the opposition.