Uganda’s government announced on Sunday that it would drop the military trial against opposition leader, Kizza Besigye and transfer his case to a civilian court, urging him to end his hunger strike in prison.
The move was swiftly rejected as “suspicious” by Besigye’s wife, Winnie Byanyima, the executive director of UNAIDS.
Besigye, a former ally turned critic of President Yoweri Museveni, began his hunger strike on February 10 to protest his detention. He faces treason charges for allegedly threatening national security, and despite a Supreme Court ruling that trying a civilian in a military court is unconstitutional, authorities had vowed to proceed with the trial.
However, government spokesperson and Information Minister Chris Baryomunsi told AFP that the state is now “fast-tracking the transfer of Besigye’s case from the court martial to the civil court” in compliance with the Supreme Court ruling.
Baryomunsi also visited Besigye in prison on Sunday, accompanied by the opposition leader’s personal doctors, and urged him to resume eating while the case transfer is finalized.
The Ugandan army has not yet commented on the development. Previously, military officials dismissed the Supreme Court ruling and insisted the trial would continue.
Besigye appeared frail during a court hearing on Friday in an unrelated case, sparking outrage among his supporters. His wife, Byanyima, told AFP she remains “very worried” about his condition.
