KAMPALA/NAIROBI – Kenyan lawyer and presidential aspirant Martha Karua has left Uganda and is on her way back to Nairobi after being detained and denied entry by Ugandan authorities at Entebbe International Airport on Monday.
In an update issued by her office, Karua confirmed that she had departed Uganda and would address the media upon arrival at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport.
“We can confirm that Presidential Aspirant and Senior Counsel Martha Karua has departed Entebbe and is en route to Nairobi following her detention and denial of entry by Ugandan authorities earlier today,” her office said.
The statement added that Karua would hold a press briefing at JKIA to explain the circumstances surrounding her detention, denial of entry and subsequent release.
Earlier, Karua’s office said she had arrived in Uganda aboard a Kenya Airways flight together with Charles Kanjama, the President of the Law Society of Kenya (LSK), to attend proceedings related to the bail application of opposition politician and lawyer Erias Lukwago.
According to her office, Ugandan authorities permitted Kanjama to enter the country but detained Karua shortly after her arrival. Her aides said she was being held incommunicado and could not be reached by phone.
Karua’s office described the incident as raising “serious questions about the observance of the rule of law and the state of democratic freedoms within the East African Community.”
The Kenyan lawyer has been a prominent figure in Uganda’s legal and political landscape over the past two years. She serves as lead counsel for opposition leader Kizza Besigye and his co-accused, Obeid Lutale, in a treason case before Ugandan courts. She has repeatedly appeared in Uganda as part of Besigye’s defence team and has publicly criticized what she describes as growing threats to judicial independence and the rule of law.
The latest development comes just days after Karua petitioned Uganda’s Chief Justice and Attorney General over the arrest and prosecution of Lukwago, arguing that lawyers should be able to perform their professional duties without intimidation.
Karua, a former Kenyan Justice Minister and the 2022 running mate of opposition leader Raila Odinga, is currently seeking the Kenyan presidency under the People’s Liberation Party (PLP).
Neither Uganda’s immigration authorities nor other government agencies had immediately issued a public explanation for the decision to deny her entry by Monday evening.
The incident is likely to fuel fresh debate about regional integration within the East African Community, particularly regarding the movement of lawyers, politicians and civil society actors across member states. It also comes amid heightened scrutiny of legal proceedings involving Besigye and Lukwago, two of Uganda’s most prominent opposition figures.
