By Our Reporter
In an emotional and harrowing press conference in Nairobi, Ugandan human rights activist Agather Atuhaire revealed horrifying details of sexual torture and abuse she endured while in custody in Tanzania. Atuhaire, alongside renowned Kenyan activist Boniface Mwangi, had traveled to Dar es Salaam to attend the court hearing of Tanzanian opposition leader Tundu Lissu, who faces treason charges. They were instead detained, blindfolded, and subjected to inhumane treatment by Tanzanian security officers.
“They got me out of the car and told me to undress,” Atuhaire recounted through tears. “When I hesitated, I felt a heavy blow on my back. They cuffed my hands and legs, then hung me upside down.” What followed, she said, was a horrifying ordeal of sexual assault, inflicted while she was tied, blindfolded, and completely vulnerable.
Mwangi, visibly shaken, corroborated Atuhaire’s testimony. He detailed how they were taken to a secret location where both were blindfolded, stripped, and photographed during the assault.
“We were not taken to a police station. It was a house, a private house. They undressed me, violated me, and then took pictures,” Mwangi said, his voice breaking. Atuhaire confirmed she suffered the same fate.
Both activists were later dumped near their respective borders and left to return home. No formal charges were filed against them.
Repeated attempts to reach Tanzanian government officials for comment have gone unanswered. Uganda and Kenya’s ministries of foreign affairs have also remained silent, despite the grave human rights implications of the incident.
The silence has only deepened public outrage, with rights groups calling for immediate independent investigations and regional accountability. “This is not just a violation of two individuals—it’s an attack on civil society and democratic freedoms in East Africa,” one human rights lawyer noted.
The arrest and abuse occurred amid a tense political backdrop in Tanzania. Tundu Lissu, the opposition figure the activists had come to support, is facing treason charges linked to alleged incitement ahead of Tanzania’s October elections. His arrest is widely seen as part of a growing crackdown on dissent under President Samia Suluhu Hassan.
On the same day Atuhaire and Mwangi were arrested, President Hassan publicly warned foreign activists against “interfering in Tanzania’s internal matters,” further fueling speculation that their detention was politically motivated.
Despite earlier promises to uphold human rights, President Hassan’s administration has increasingly come under fire for targeting critics, journalists, and opposition supporters.
The horrifying ordeal of Atuhaire and Mwangi has sparked international condemnation, with activists across Africa calling for justice. “Sexual violence as a tool of state repression is a gross human rights violation. This cannot be ignored,” said a spokesperson from Human Rights Watch.
As Atuhaire put it: “They wanted to break us. But instead, they exposed themselves. We will not be silenced.”