People’s Liberation Party (PLP) leader Martha Karua has condemned her incommunicado detention and denial of entry at Uganda’s Entebbe International Airport, describing the incident as part of a growing pattern of political intimidation and shrinking democratic space in East Africa.

In a press statement on Tuesday, June 23, 2026, Karua demanded an urgent and transparent explanation from Ugandan authorities after she was held for hours, had her phones confiscated, and was denied entry without being given any legal justification.

“I am a holder of an East African passport, and I was in Uganda entirely in my legal capacity… they could not tell me what laws I had broken, because there were none,” Karua said, adding that the conduct amounted to “pure harassment and intimidation.”

Karua’s initial clearance

According to Karua, she was initially cleared by immigration officers upon arrival at Entebbe on Monday, June 22, 2026, but was later stopped, separated from colleagues, and directed to a senior supervisor before being informed of instructions to deny her entry.

Karua said the incident triggered swift concern from regional legal bodies, including the Law Society of Kenya, the East Africa Law Society, and Ugandan legal counterparts, who raised alarm over what they termed interference with the independence and mobility of legal professionals.

Karua, who is part of the legal team in the treason case involving Ugandan opposition figure Kizza Besigye and co-accused Obeid Lutale, said she had travelled to attend proceedings linked to a bail hearing involving fellow counsel and Kampala’s former Lord Mayor Erias Lukwago.

She linked her detention to what she termed a broader regional crackdown on dissenting voices, citing past incidents involving Besigye’s arrest in Nairobi in 2024 and ongoing legal proceedings in Uganda that she says raise serious due process concerns.

“I have walked this journey with Dr. Besigye from the moment he was abducted, and I will continue to stand with him regardless of intimidation,” she said.

Erosion of constitutionalism

Karua further warned that escalating cases of arrests, intimidation, and incommunicado detentions across Uganda, Tanzania, and the wider region reflect a dangerous erosion of constitutionalism and rule of law.

She tied the incident to Kenya’s political climate ahead of the June 25 Gen Z protests, cautioning that repression does not respect borders and urging East Africans to defend civic freedoms collectively.

“What happened in Entebbe is not just about Uganda. It is a warning to Kenya and to the entire region,” she said. “We must reject the politics of fear and stand firm in defence of justice, constitutionalism, and human dignity.”