A Ugandan journalist and activist who was arrested in Tanzania after attending a high-profile court hearing has been discovered at the Ugandan border, showing signs of physical abuse, according to a local human rights group.
Agather Atuhaire was detained earlier this week along with Kenyan activist Boniface Mwangi. Both had travelled to Tanzania to express support for opposition politician Tundu Lissu, who is currently on trial for treason.
Agora Discourse, a Ugandan rights organisation, confirmed on Friday that Atuhaire had been located. In a statement posted on X (formerly Twitter), the group said she had been “abandoned at the border by Tanzanian authorities”. The group’s co-founder, Spire Ssentongo, told AFP that Atuhaire was now safe and being looked after by her family and friends.
“She was left at the border in the middle of the night, and there are signs she was subjected to torture,” Ssentongo said.
Tanzanian police had earlier informed a local human rights organisation that both Atuhaire and Mwangi would be deported by air. However, instead of being flown out, they were reportedly left in remote border regions.
Mwangi, who is known in Kenya for his outspoken campaigns against corruption and police abuse, was found abandoned by the roadside in northern Tanzania near the Kenyan border. He has since returned to Nairobi, where he spoke to the media about the ordeal.
“We were treated worse than animals — chained, blindfolded and brutally tortured,” Mwangi said.
The detentions come amid growing concerns about the treatment of foreign nationals in Tanzania, particularly those engaging in political activism.
Earlier this week, Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan warned that the country’s sovereignty should not be challenged by outsiders. She called on security forces to be vigilant and to prevent “ill-mannered individuals from other countries” from meddling in domestic affairs.