Kizza Besigye lawyers say witness weakens treason case

Kizza Besigye's defence lawyers said testimony from a key prosecution witness has weakened the treason case against the Ugandan opposition figure, after the witness challenged parts of the prosecution's evidence under cross-examination this week.

Besigye, a longtime opponent of President Yoweri Museveni, faces treason charges after being arrested following a trip to Kenya in November 2024.

The prosecution's case centres on Orlando Wilson, a British-American who describes himself as a former British soldier turned “private investigator”. Wilson says he was recruited to help organise a plot to overthrow Museveni.

Wilson initially told the court he had been asked to obtain weapons, including drones and missiles, and train people linked to Besigye in neighbouring Kenya. He said the training was due to take place near the Ugandan border in July 2024 but did not happen because 36 members of Besigye's Forum for Democratic Change party were arrested by Kenyan authorities and transferred to Uganda.

The FDC said the group had travelled to attend leadership training. They were charged with terrorism-related offences, imprisoned and later released on bail by Ugandan courts.

Under cross-examination, Wilson alleged that two pistols found in a Nairobi apartment where he met Besigye had been planted by Kenyan authorities. He also told the court that a secretly recorded video of Besigye had been accidentally deleted by police.

Martha Karua, one of Besigye's lawyers, said the testimony showed the charges were “trumped up” and that the case should be dropped. Other defence lawyers alleged that Wilson had helped construct the alleged plot in cooperation with military intelligence.

The prosecution has accused Besigye of participating in a conspiracy to overthrow Museveni, who has ruled Uganda for more than four decades. Another Besigye lawyer, Eron Kiiza, who has fled Uganda, told AFP that Wilson “is the author of the plot” and called the case political.