In a ruling that has stirred significant public controversy, High Court Judge Esther Nambayo recently dismissed a petition brought forward by the families of 18 missing National Unity Platform (NUP) activists, including John Bosco Kibalama. These families sought a court declaration acknowledging the unlawful nature of the activists’ prolonged incommunicado detention by state agents, citing clear violations of their fundamental human rights.
A critical piece of evidence, however, appears to have gone unexamined in the ruling: a public video statement from Uganda’s Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja, which acknowledges Kibalama’s presence in state custody. This clip, included as a key component in the evidence file, captures Nabbanja admitting that Kibalama was held by the state, allegedly linking him to attacks on police stations in 2022. This detail has not only brought Nabbanja’s claim under scrutiny but has also intensified questions surrounding the government’s handling of Kibalama’s case, especially as he was first reported missing in June 2019. View the video here: https://x.com/i/status/1851906975707119886.
Bobi Wine, leader of the NUP, criticized the court’s omission of this critical evidence, highlighting the inconsistency between Nabbanja’s admission and the subsequent court ruling. “This dismissal signifies a grave oversight in the judicial process, one that seems to disregard transparency and accountability for enforced disappearances,” Wine stated. His remarks underline the continued urgency for an investigation into the whereabouts of the missing activists and demand that the judiciary uphold the principles of justice and human rights.
International human rights organizations have also voiced their concerns, indicating that the court’s choice to overlook such substantial evidence sets a troubling precedent for future cases of enforced disappearances and state accountability.
As the families of the missing activists, including Kibalama’s, persist in their search for answers, they are also pressing for reforms to ensure that no further cases of enforced disappearance go unaddressed. This ruling underscores the challenges in ensuring a transparent judicial process in Uganda, where judicial decisions carry immense consequences for citizens’ fundamental rights and the rule of law.