Uganda declares Martha Karua persona non grata

Senior Counsel Martha Karua is back in Kenya after she was denied entry into Uganda and declared persona non grata. 

Following her arrival at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) on Monday afternoon, she revealed that Ugandan authorities had held her incommunicado at Entebbe International Airport shortly after her arrival.

Ms Karua, who serves as the lead counsel for veteran opposition politician Dr Kizza Besigye and Hajj Obeid Lutale in an ongoing high-profile treason case, had travelled to Kampala to support the defence team of her colleague, Kampala Lord Mayor Erias Lukwago.

During her detention, she says, her phone was taken away from her. It was later returned but she declined to take it over fears it had been tampered with, revealing that she chose to leave it behind. 

"I arrived at Entebbe Airport at 8:50 aboard KQ and I was with three others. I only had a hand luggage and while waiting for my colleagues, an immigration officer came and told me she had been told that she had made a mistake and there was a note on me," she said.

"I was taken to a man called the Principal Immigration Officer at the airport and I told them there is no problem. By then, two of his juniors had already snatched my phones by force. They did not even ask me. They are very ill-behaved fellows."

She added: "They wanted to take me to a holding cell but I told them that because there is a KQ flight, the one I had come with, and my flight had been scheduled for the night, I asked them to let me go sit at the KQ lounge and wait for the next flight to Kenya because I am a regular customer...He called the KQ manager there and I was taken to the passenger transfers section. Behind me were two airport immigration officers. They came and stayed in the lounge with me until the plane arrived."

She also revealed that she was given the letter declaring her persona non grata while in the plane heading back to Kenya. 

According to an earlier statement released by the ULS on X (formerly Twitter), Ms Karua was accompanied by the Law Society of Kenya (LSK) President, Charles Kanjama, and other legal colleagues. While Mr Kanjama and the rest of the delegation were cleared by immigration officials, Ms Karua was singled out, blocked, and instructed to return to her home country without any explanation.

The incident unfolded just minutes before the Chief Magistrate’s Court in Makindye convened to deliver a ruling on the bail application of Mr Lukwago.

Lukwago, a prominent constitutional lawyer and opposition figure, is facing charges of misprision of treason. He was remanded to Luzira Prison last week, with the state alleging that he failed to disclose information regarding an alleged treasonous plot involving Dr Besigye.

Dr Besigye and Hajj Lutale were themselves recently arraigned before a military court following their controversial repatriation from Nairobi, Kenya, an incident that has sparked intense regional debate over legal jurisdiction and human rights.

ULS Deputy President, Antony Asiimwe, who was at Entebbe International Airport to welcome the regional delegation, expressed shock over the development, confirming that immigration authorities provided no justification for the deportation.
"We came to receive the team from Kenya... but when we reached the airport, we were made to understand that only two members of the team were allowed. Senior Counsel Martha Karua was not allowed to enter the country and she is being deported," Mr Asiimwe said.

He added: "No reason was given for the denial of her entry. They just told her she can't enter Uganda."
By press time, both the Ministry of Internal Affairs and immigration authorities had not yet issued an official statement regarding the legal grounds for denying entry to the prominent Kenyan statesman and lawyer.

Follow our WhatsApp channel for breaking news updates and more stories like this.

Additional report by Mike Sebalu