By Ben Musanje
The Uganda Law Society (ULS) is turning to the United Nations over the continued disappearance of opposition activist Sam Mugumya, saying domestic efforts to establish his whereabouts and secure his constitutional rights have so far failed to provide answers.
The decision to engage the relevant United Nations special procedures on enforced and involuntary disappearances follows renewed public concern over Mugumya’s whereabouts after video footage purportedly showing him in detention began circulating online.
ULS Vice President Anthony Asiimwe said the Society resolved on September 30, 2026, to pursue the UN mechanism as a complementary avenue for accountability and protection.
The move, he said, is not intended to replace the work of Mugumya’s lawyers but to bring additional scrutiny to a case that has remained unresolved for more than a year.
“We have resolved to engage the relevant United Nations special procedures on enforced and involuntary disappearances as a complementary avenue for accountability and protection,” Asiimwe said.
Why ULS is turning to the UN
According to ULS, the decision follows the failure of several domestic avenues to establish where Mugumya is being held, his condition and the legal basis, if any, for his detention.
The Society said Mugumya’s lawyers have pursued legal remedies, including applications for a writ of habeas corpus, but those efforts have so far not produced an effective resolution.
Habeas corpus is a legal remedy that allows a court to require authorities holding a person to produce them before court and justify the detention.
ULS said the continued uncertainty surrounding Mugumya raises concerns about constitutional protections, particularly the right to personal liberty under Article 23 of the Constitution and the protections listed under Article 44.
The Society also pointed to parliamentary efforts to raise the matter, including those by the Leader of the Opposition, who has repeatedly called for the release of political prisoners.
Despite those efforts, ULS said, there has still been no satisfactory public account of Mugumya’s whereabouts.
The Society has therefore opted to seek international scrutiny while continuing to pursue domestic legal avenues.
Video footage renews concern
The latest development comes after several video clips began circulating, purportedly showing people being held at a location described in the footage as a military “basement.”
One of the clips appears to show former Butambala County MP and National Unity Platform deputy president for Buganda, Muhammad Muwanga Kivumbi, who was granted bail on Tuesday.
Another clip purportedly shows Mugumya wearing a yellow T-shirt and green trousers and appearing to have significant difficulty walking.
The footage has raised fresh concerns about Mugumya’s welfare, but its authenticity has not been independently verified.
It remains unclear when or where the videos were recorded, who recorded them or who released them.
There has also been no independent confirmation that the person shown in the footage is Mugumya or that the location depicted is a military detention facility.
Security agencies had not, by publication time, publicly confirmed or denied either claim.
ULS is consequently treating the footage as part of the circumstances requiring further investigation rather than as conclusive evidence of Mugumya’s location.
More than a year without answers
Mugumya, a member of the People’s Front for Freedom and former aide to jailed opposition politician Dr Kizza Besigye, was reported missing on August 26, 2025.
He was allegedly taken by armed men while at a restaurant in Mbarara, according to accounts previously given by his family and supporters.
His family has alleged that security operatives were behind his disappearance, while security agencies have denied holding him.
His mother, Edinansi Katungwesi, has previously appealed to authorities either to release her son or produce him before a court of law if he is being lawfully detained.
The continued absence of a verified account of his whereabouts has kept the case in the public spotlight and prompted repeated calls for authorities to clarify his status.
What the UN involvement could mean
ULS says involving the UN is intended to provide an additional accountability mechanism in circumstances where domestic remedies have not resolved the matter.
The relevant UN special procedures can communicate with governments over alleged human-rights violations and seek information or clarification concerning individual cases. Their involvement, however, does not by itself constitute a judicial finding that a government or other actor is responsible for a disappearance.
For ULS, the immediate questions remain straightforward: Where is Sam Mugumya? What is his condition? And, if he is being detained, under what legal authority?
The Society said it will continue pursuing all lawful avenues available to establish those facts.
“The rule of law demands no less,” Asiimwe said.
For now, the circulating footage has added urgency to those questions, but Mugumya’s exact whereabouts and the circumstances surrounding his disappearance remain unresolved. (For comments on this story, get back to us on 0705579994 [WhatsApp line], 0779411734 & 041 4674611 or email us at mulengeranews@gmail.com).
