People
Kenyan lawyer Karua says declared persona non grata by Uganda
Karua told reporters she had been detained at Entebbe shortly after landing.
Kenyan senior lawyer Martha Karua. (File photo)
By: Charles Etukuri, Journalist @New Vision
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Kenyan senior lawyer Martha Karua said Monday (June 22) that she received a letter on a return flight to Nairobi declaring her persona non grata after being denied entry into Uganda. It means she is not welcome in the country.
Karua is the senior counsel for incarcerated Ugandan opposition politician Dr Kizza Besigye and his aide Obeid Lutale, who are facing treason charges, as well as more recently, for former Kampala Lord Mayor, who was last week charged with misprision of treason.
Prior to being charged, Lukwago was on Besigye's legal team alongside Karua.
On Monday, immigration officials blocked Karua from entering Uganda through Entebbe International Airport citing security reasons. Karua had jetted in to attend to his clients' case and also Lukwago’s bail application at Makindye Chief Magistrates Court.
Speaking on arrival at Nairobi’s Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) in Kenya's capital Nairobi, Karua told reporters she had been detained at Entebbe shortly after landing.
“I arrived at Entebbe Airport at 8:50am aboard KQ, and I was with three others. I only had hand luggage, and while waiting for my colleagues, an immigration officer came and told me there was a note on me,” said the Kenyan lawyer.
According to Karua, she was taken to the office of the principal immigration officer, where officials informed her she could not enter Uganda.
“My flight [back to Nairobi] 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."
She said the immigration officers remained with her until she boarded the return flight and that she was handed a letter declaring her persona non grata while already on the aircraft.
Speaking on arrival at Nairobi’s Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) in Kenya's capital Nairobi, Karua told reporters she had been detained at Entebbe shortly after landing.
“I arrived at Entebbe Airport at 8:50am aboard KQ, and I was with three others. I only had hand luggage, and while waiting for my colleagues, an immigration officer came and told me there was a note on me,” said the Kenyan lawyer.
According to Karua, she was taken to the office of the principal immigration officer, where officials informed her she could not enter Uganda.
“My flight [back to Nairobi] 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."
She said the immigration officers remained with her until she boarded the return flight and that she was handed a letter declaring her persona non grata while already on the aircraft.
Earlier, the Uganda Law Society (ULS) said on its account on X that Karua had travelled with Law Society of Kenya President Charles Kanjama and other legal colleagues.
The ULS said the rest of the delegation was cleared by immigration officials, but Karua was singled out and ordered to return to Kenya.
The incident occurred shortly before the Chief Magistrate’s Court in Makindye was due to rule on a bail application filed by Lukwago.
ULS deputy president Antony Asiimwe had gone to Entebbe airport to receive the delegation.
“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,” he said.
“No reason was given for the denial of her entry. They just told her she can’t enter Uganda.”
Uganda’s internal affairs ministry and immigration authorities have yet to issue a statement explaining the legal basis for the decision.
Lukwago charged
On Monday last week, security agencies raided former Kampala Lord Mayor Lukwago’s home in Kampala and arrested him.
Following hours in detention, he was later arraigned before the Makindye Magistrate’s Court, where he was charged with misprision of treason and later remanded to Luzira Prison.
Lukwago, who is also the People’s Front for Freedom president, applied for bail last Thursday, citing ill health.
However, the prosecution team asked for more time to scrutinise his medical documents, prompting Makindye Court Chief Magistrate Sarah Basemera to remand him up to Monday. On Monday, Basemera said she would make her ruling on Lukwago’s bail application within 24 hours.
Deja vu
Meanwhile, this is not the first time that Karua has been blocked from entering a country.
In May last year, Tanzania blocked and subsequently deported her. The incident occurred in Dar es Salaam, where she had traveled with other legal experts and activists to observe a politically sensitive treason case involving Tanzanian opposition leader Tundu Lissu.
Karua, who is the leader of Kenya's People's Liberation Party, flew to Tanzania at the invitation of the East Africa Law Society to serve as a legal observer.
Upon arrival at Mwalimu Julius Nyerere International Airport, she and her delegation were detained, interrogated for several hours. She was subsequently put on a flight back to Nairobi.
Following the incident, Karua and former Kenyan Chief Justice Willy Mutunga, along with a group of human rights defenders, filed a lawsuit against the Tanzanian government at the East African Court of Justice.
The suit alleges that the detention, refusal of entry, and deportation violated their fundamental rights as citizens of the East African Community and demands general damages and an official apology.
The ULS said the rest of the delegation was cleared by immigration officials, but Karua was singled out and ordered to return to Kenya.
The incident occurred shortly before the Chief Magistrate’s Court in Makindye was due to rule on a bail application filed by Lukwago.
ULS deputy president Antony Asiimwe had gone to Entebbe airport to receive the delegation.
“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,” he said.
“No reason was given for the denial of her entry. They just told her she can’t enter Uganda.”
Uganda’s internal affairs ministry and immigration authorities have yet to issue a statement explaining the legal basis for the decision.
Lukwago charged
On Monday last week, security agencies raided former Kampala Lord Mayor Lukwago’s home in Kampala and arrested him.
Following hours in detention, he was later arraigned before the Makindye Magistrate’s Court, where he was charged with misprision of treason and later remanded to Luzira Prison.
Lukwago, who is also the People’s Front for Freedom president, applied for bail last Thursday, citing ill health.
However, the prosecution team asked for more time to scrutinise his medical documents, prompting Makindye Court Chief Magistrate Sarah Basemera to remand him up to Monday. On Monday, Basemera said she would make her ruling on Lukwago’s bail application within 24 hours.
Deja vu
Meanwhile, this is not the first time that Karua has been blocked from entering a country.
In May last year, Tanzania blocked and subsequently deported her. The incident occurred in Dar es Salaam, where she had traveled with other legal experts and activists to observe a politically sensitive treason case involving Tanzanian opposition leader Tundu Lissu.
Karua, who is the leader of Kenya's People's Liberation Party, flew to Tanzania at the invitation of the East Africa Law Society to serve as a legal observer.
Upon arrival at Mwalimu Julius Nyerere International Airport, she and her delegation were detained, interrogated for several hours. She was subsequently put on a flight back to Nairobi.
Following the incident, Karua and former Kenyan Chief Justice Willy Mutunga, along with a group of human rights defenders, filed a lawsuit against the Tanzanian government at the East African Court of Justice.
The suit alleges that the detention, refusal of entry, and deportation violated their fundamental rights as citizens of the East African Community and demands general damages and an official apology.