Rights group petitions Museveni to release abducted Kenyan activists Bob Njagi, Nick Oyoo

Amnesty International, the Law Society of Kenya (LSK) and Vocal Africa have launched a global campaign demanding the immediate and unconditional release of Kenyan activists Bob Njagi and Nick Oyoo, who were abducted in Kampala 20 days ago under unclear circumstances.

The two human rights defenders were reportedly taken by men in military uniform, and their whereabouts remain unknown. A habeas corpus application filed in Uganda has since stalled, with the state now expected to explain on Wednesday why, almost three weeks later, the two have not been produced in court as ordered by Justice Simon Peter Kinobe.

“We haven’t gotten any positive response from Uganda. They deny holding them, yet eyewitnesses saw them being taken by men in military uniform,” Free Kenya Movement (FKM) activist Florence Kanyua said.

Her colleague, Activist Felix Wambua, expressed frustration over the delay, saying that the continued silence from the state reflects a lack of commitment to accountability and justice.

“The government is supposed to write a report on the whereabouts of these two. So we do not know what it is that they have not written in the last seven days, as given by the court. So we call upon Kenyans and Africans to speak on this because we don’t expect much from the court,” he said.

Frustrated by the silence from Kampala and what they describe as Nairobi’s abdication of duty, human rights activists have now petitioned Kenya’s Attorney General to intervene in the case.

Amnesty International Kenya, the LSK and Vocal Africa are now rallying global support through an online campaign urging citizens worldwide to write to President Yoweri Museveni and demand the immediate disclosure of the activists’ whereabouts.

“We are petitioning the Attorney General to seek legal advice on how to proceed with the case. It is now 20 days since they were abducted, and we want citizens in Kenya and Africa to work together to end abductions,” FKM activist Wambua noted.

Amnesty International Kenya Executive Director Irungu Houghton said the continued incommunicado detention of the two Kenyans amounts to an enforced disappearance and urged the government to step in.

“We are calling on the Kenyan government to extend its responsibility to citizens to guarantee their right to legal representation and communication with their families. The fact that they have been held incommunicado is essentially an enforced disappearance,” Houghton said.

Amnesty International has also called for an independent investigation and accountability for those behind the abductions.

“We are also calling for investigations into the circumstances of their abduction, and those responsible must be held accountable. We are also calling for the upholding of all rights to freedom of expression, association, and peaceful assembly,” Houghton added.

Despite growing diplomatic and public pressure, the Ugandan state claims its efforts to trace the duo have yielded no results. However, credible reports suggest the two are being held incommunicado at the Mbuya Military Facility in Kampala.

The petition urges the Ugandan government to disclose the activists’ whereabouts, ensure their safe return and uphold all human rights obligations under domestic and international law.

“Njagi and Oyoo were abducted in Uganda, leaving their families in fear and uncertainty as days pass without news of their safety. Every moment without answers deepens the pain, worry, and injustice,” reads the petition.

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