Missing Kenyan Activists Released After 38 Days Detained in Uganda

Updated by Faith Barbara N Ruhinda at 1506 EAT on Monday 10 November 2025

Two Kenyan human rights activists who went missing in Uganda after being abducted by armed men have been released after 37 days in detention.

Bob Njagi and Nicholas Oyoo were reportedly kidnapped “mafia-style” at a petrol station in Kaliro, eastern Uganda, during a campaign rally for opposition leader Robert Kyagulanyi, also known as Bobi Wine, and taken to an undisclosed location. Their disappearance quickly sparked regional concern, drawing attention from activists, lawyers, and politicians in both Kenya and Uganda.

On Saturday, Dr Abraham Korir Sing’Oei, Kenya’s principal secretary for Foreign Affairs, confirmed their release in a statement published by the Daily Nation.

Kenyan human rights activists Bob Njagi and Nicholas Oyoo have been released and are safely back on Kenyan soil. “Late last night, after lengthy engagements, the two were released to our High Commissioner in Uganda, Joash Maangi,” Kenya’s Principal Secretary for Foreign Affairs, Dr Abraham Korir Sing’Oei, wrote on X (formerly Twitter).

The activists were escorted by Ugandan officials, along with Ambassador Maangi, to the Busia border town, where they were received by Busia County Commissioner Chaunga Mwachaunga.

Their release ends weeks of uncertainty and speculation, during which Ugandan authorities repeatedly denied any knowledge of their whereabouts.

Earlier, on October 22, Kampala High Court Judge Simon Peter Kinobe ruled that the two Kenyans were missing but found no evidence implicating the Ugandan government, dismissing a habeas corpus petition filed by their lawyers.

“A person may go missing through voluntary disappearance or else die due to an accident, crime, or other causes,” Kinobe said. “I find that one cannot squeeze blood from a stone. The state can only produce what it has, and it would therefore be unrealistic to expect the desired outcome from circumstances that could not, in any case, yield it.”

However, opposition leader Robert Kyagulanyi, also known as Bobi Wine, and the activists’ lawyers, Eron Kiiza and Kato Tumusiime, maintained that Bob Njagi and Nicholas Oyoo had been abducted by armed men in both military and civilian attire and driven away in a Toyota Hiace van, commonly referred to as a “drone,” a vehicle often linked to the abduction of political dissidents in Uganda.

The lawyers’ petition sought orders compelling the Chief of Defence Forces, the Chief of Defence Intelligence and Security, the Inspector General of Police, and the Attorney General to produce the two men “dead or alive,” arguing that their detention violated constitutional rights to liberty and protection from arbitrary arrest. Affidavits supporting the petition alleged that Njagi and Oyoo were being held at a military detention facility in Mbuya, Kampala, under the command of the Defence Intelligence and Security Directorate.

In response, Col Silas Kamanda Mutungi, director of Joint Staff Services in the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF), and detective Stephan Bwalatum of the Uganda Police denied holding the pair.

Regional and Legal Reactions

Following their release, Faith Odhiambo, president of the Law Society of Kenya (LSK), welcomed the news, praising the collective solidarity that had helped secure their freedom.

“We extend our appreciation to their families, Free Kenya Movement colleagues, human rights defenders, journalists, the ministries of foreign affairs in Kenya and Tanzania, and all active citizens who have tirelessly campaigned for this moment,” she said. “Let this moment signal an important shift towards upholding the human rights of East Africans anywhere within the East African Community. We are facilitating their transfer to Nairobi and will provide details of their arrival for family, friends, and comrades to meet them.”

Kenyan lawyer Prof Jamil Mujuzi questioned Uganda’s denials, saying the High Court ruling that the activists were merely “missing” had now been discredited.

“It confirms our position that the High Court’s decision was wrong. Every reasonable person suspected they were in state custody. Will they sue the government of Uganda for violating their rights?” he asked.

Others, including Dr Duncan Onyango, expressed skepticism about the roles of both governments. “I don’t believe these comrades were held by Ugandan authorities without the knowledge, consent, or request of our government. On this, accountability is key,” Onyango wrote.

According to The Observer, Their release followed an open letter to Uganda’s High Commission in Nairobi by the Law Society of Kenya, Amnesty International Kenya, and Vocal Africa, condemning the abductions as “yet another alarming case in a pattern of enforced disappearances in the region.”

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