Uganda’s military chief, Muhoozi Kainerugaba, has denied allegations that soldiers assaulted Barbara Kyagulanyi, the wife of opposition leader Bobi Wine, during a raid at their home. The incident has sparked further political tensions following the recent election victory of long-serving President Yoweri Museveni, Kainerugaba’s father.
On Saturday, Wine, who is currently in hiding, claimed that military officers raided his home, holding his wife at gunpoint, assaulting her, and stealing documents and electronic items. He stated that the military had surrounded their house after the raid. Barbara Kyagulanyi, speaking from her hospital bed, confirmed the allegations, saying that the officers demanded to know her husband’s whereabouts. When she refused to comply, she was assaulted.
According to Kyagulanyi, the assault was brutal, with officers hitting her in the face, tearing her lip, and choking her while lifting her off the ground by the waistband of her trousers. She was later partially disrobed, but the blouse was returned to her. After the assault, she reportedly passed out from the trauma. Wine said that his wife was taken to the hospital with both physical and psychological injuries.
Kainerugaba, however, took to social media to deny the accusations. On Monday, he posted a statement on X (formerly Twitter), asserting that “my soldiers did not beat up Barbie [Bobi Wine’s] wife.” He added, “We do not beat up women. They are not worth our time. We are looking for her cowardly husband, not her.”
This denial comes amid increasing political unrest following Museveni’s disputed victory in the January 2021 elections. Wine has rejected the election results, citing widespread fraud. Since then, the military has ramped up its efforts to hunt down Wine and his allies, with Kainerugaba reportedly issuing threats of harm against the opposition leader.
Barbara Kyagulanyi’s account of the raid contrasts sharply with Kainerugaba’s dismissal of the incident. She described how dozens of men, some in military uniform, broke into her house, harassed, and assaulted her. She detailed how one officer punched her in the face and ripped her lip, while another choked her. She passed out from the trauma, and Wine has since condemned the attack as an act of political violence against his family.
In the aftermath, Wine stated that his wife was still recovering from the emotional and physical trauma of the raid. He also confirmed that their home remained surrounded by military personnel, further heightening the climate of fear and repression in the country.
The incident has drawn strong condemnation from various groups, including the Uganda Law Society, which decried the ongoing violence against opposition leaders and supporters. The society condemned “detentions, torture, and enforced disappearances” of opposition members and called for an end to violence under the pretext of national security.
This latest episode is part of a broader pattern of alleged state-sponsored violence against political opposition in Uganda. Since the January elections, opposition figures have reported increasing targeting by security forces. Kainerugaba himself has claimed responsibility for the deaths of 30 National Unity Party (NUP) supporters and the detention of over 2,000 others, further escalating the crisis.
Uganda has long struggled with political unrest, and the country has not seen a peaceful transfer of presidential power since independence. President Museveni, who has been in power since 1986, will serve a total of 45 years in office by the end of his current term, fueling continued opposition claims of authoritarian rule and electoral malpractice.
