UNAIDS Executive Director Winnie Byanyima has met President William Ruto on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, where she said she raised the continued detention of her husband, Ugandan opposition leader Dr Kizza Besigye.
The meeting came as a Kenyan human rights activist, Mulinge Muteti, remained missing after taking part in demonstrations in Nairobi demanding Besigye’s release.
Byanyima said she met Ruto on Wednesday, September 23, and expressed support for his role as the African Union Champion for Local Manufacturing of Medical Products.
She said she also raised what she described as the “continuing persecution” of Besigye, who was abducted in Nairobi in November 2024 and subsequently taken to Uganda, where he has remained in detention.
“African leaders must speak out against abduction and political persecution, and for respect for human rights and the rule of law,” Byanyima said in a statement following the meeting.
The meeting has drawn questions from some Kenyans over Byanyima’s engagement with Ruto while questions remain over the circumstances surrounding Besigye’s removal from Kenya.
Byanyima later defended the meeting, saying she would continue engaging governments and other leaders in pursuit of Besigye’s release and broader human rights concerns.
“I have evidence that KB was abducted by four Ugandan security officials,” she said, while maintaining that Kenyans were entitled to demand answers over whether their security agencies played any role in the abduction.
Activist missing after Besigye protest
Meanwhile, Muteti, a Kenyan human rights defender, has been missing since September 21, when he took part in demonstrations in Nairobi calling for Besigye’s release.
According to Citizen Digital, Muteti left fellow activists to go to a cybercafé to print a petition they intended to submit to police and other government offices. He subsequently lost contact with the group. His family and fellow activists later reported his disappearance at Central Police Station in Nairobi.
Activists have alleged that Muteti was abducted, but those claims have not been independently established.
His disappearance has renewed concerns because Muteti was among activists who were previously arrested during protests in June. The Kenya National Commission on Human Rights documented the arrests of Muteti and five other protesters on June 25, saying they were taken away in a police truck and later found abandoned at different locations after allegedly being subjected to torture.
Muteti himself previously described being detained and allegedly threatened during protests. In a statement published in July, he said he had been beaten and threatened with death before being taken to Central Police Station and later charged with obstruction of traffic.
As of Thursday, there was no publicly confirmed information establishing where Muteti is being held or who is responsible for his disappearance.
His supporters are using the hashtag #FreeMulingeMuteti to demand information about his whereabouts and his release.
The two developments — Byanyima’s meeting with Ruto in New York and the disappearance of a Kenyan activist protesting over Besigye’s detention — have brought renewed attention to the unresolved questions surrounding Besigye’s 2024 abduction and the treatment of activists in Kenya.
