PREVIEW
The Uganda Law Council’s ruling to deny a Kenyan lawyer a certificate to represent opposition leader Kizza Besigye raises concerns about political interference
The Uganda Law Council’s decision to withhold a special temporary certificate for National Rainbow Coalition–Kenya (NARC-Kenya) leader Martha Karua to practise law in Uganda, preventing her from defending opposition leader Kizza Besigye on technical grounds relating to her qualifications and nationality, suggests political interference at the highest level.
Besigye was abducted in the affluent Riverside suburb of Nairobi on 16 November. After four days of being incommunicado, he was arraigned in front of a military court in Kampala on weapons charges, without access to lawyers.
Karua, a former Justice Minister, had been appointed as his senior counsel. She says she will attend court as an observer.
The ULC said that Karua’s plans to represent Besigye were politically motivated.
The Kenyan Bar Council has asserted that the East African Community treaty allows for professionals to have mutual recognition of qualifications and to work across the bloc.
Karua, whose NARC-Kenya party formally withdrew its membership of Raila Odinga’s Azimio la Umoja coalition in November, is one of few senior Kenyan politicians to have been vocal about the recent spike in abductions of both locals and foreign nationals in Kenya (AC Vol 65 No 23, Facing calls for reform, the state hits back &Vol 65 No 25, New alliances on shaky ground).
While Kenyan President William Ruto has denied any involvement in Besigye’s abduction, it is inconceivable that Kenyan law enforcement agencies were unaware of the presence of Ugandan officers in Nairobi. Keeping Karua away from the court lectern would also benefit Ruto as much as Uganda’s Yoweri Museveni.
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