“We Were Tortured and Dehumanized,” Says Kenyan Activist After 39 Days in Uganda’s Military Detention

NAIROBI, Kenya – In his first detailed account since his release, Kenyan human rights defender Bob Njagi has alleged that he and his colleague were subjected to severe torture and dehumanizing conditions during their 39-day incommunicado detention in Uganda, directly implicating the country’s elite Special Forces Command (SFC).

Njagi and his fellow activist, Nicholas Oyoo, were finally released and dumped at the Busia border point last week, ending an ordeal that began with their arrest in Pallisa district in August.

“We were tortured and dehumanized in Uganda’s military detention under the Special Forces Command (SFC),” a visibly shaken but resolute Bob Njagi stated to the press upon his return to Nairobi. His testimony provides a chilling glimpse into the treatment of the two men, whose detention had sparked international outcry and diplomatic tensions.

The activists were in Uganda to document the plight of the marginalized Benet community when they were apprehended. According to Njagi, their detention quickly escalated from a standard arrest to a brutal military affair.

“We were blindfolded, beaten, and taken to a location we later understood to be the Kasenyi military barracks,” Njagi recounted. “For weeks, our families and lawyers had no idea if we were dead or alive. We were held incommunicado, which is a form of psychological torture in itself.”

The SFC is a specialized unit of the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) answerable directly to the President and is often tasked with protecting high-value installations and leadership. Their alleged involvement in the detention of foreign civilians points to the high-level attention the case received.

Njagi described the conditions as designed to break their spirit. “The dehumanization was constant. We were kept in handcuffs for extended periods, even inside our cells. We were interrogated for hours on end, with our captors demanding to know why we had attended the [National Unity Platform] manifesto launch in Jinja.”

The allegation that their attendance at a political event was a central focus of the interrogation has raised serious concerns about the Ugandan government’s tolerance for political dissent and the monitoring of opposition activities.

“They wanted us to admit that we were spies or were there to cause trouble,” said Nicholas Oyoo, who corroborated Njagi’s account. “When we insisted we were human rights observers, the beatings would intensify. We are in urgent need of medical and psychological care.”

The Ugandan government and military authorities have yet to issue a formal response to these specific torture allegations. The office of the UPDF Spokesperson had previously stated they were not holding the two Kenyans, a claim starkly contradicted by the activists’ testimony and their eventual release.

The case has cast a long shadow over East African relations and the state of human rights in Uganda, with activists and opposition leaders calling for an independent investigation into the actions of the SFC and the wider security apparatus. For Bob Njagi and Nicholas Oyoo, the physical wounds may eventually heal, but the psychological scars of their 39-day ordeal in the dark cells of a military barracks will likely linger far longer.