Uganda Law Society: “No One Is Safe” after qave of abductions targeting lawyers, media

The Uganda Law Society has issued an urgent condemnation of what it calls a “latest wave of terror,” warning that the country is no longer operating under constitutional rule following the abduction of senior lawyers and a raid on a major media house.

According to a statement titled “NO ONE IS SAFE,” armed men claiming to be security officers forcibly took civil society lawyers Eunice Musiime and Sarah Bireete this morning. Both have since been released.

The Society said it can confirm the abduction of veteran lawyer and activist Miria Matembe. Her home was raided and ransacked on Friday, and her whereabouts remain unknown as of this morning. Raids have also been reported at premises linked to her.

Nation Media Group (NMG) was also targeted. Armed men raided the media house earlier this morning, halting radio, TV, and print operations. Three night staff were abducted and later released. The Law Society said it is “gravely concerned” for NMG Managing Director Susan Nsibirwa, who is currently out of contact due to an unspecified threat. The head of the military has claimed ownership of both operations.

“This is not the era of the Constitution”
In a stark assessment, the Society declared that Uganda has entered “a wholly new situation”. It argued that the constitutional era ended after a two-decade process, culminating in recent events where the Speaker attributed his elevation to the head of the armed forces.

The statement reframes state actions in new terms: “No one is being ‘arrested’; these are kidnappings. No one is ‘on remand’; these people are hostages”. It described court appearances as “negotiations where kidnappers set the venue and price”.

The Society outlined a pattern: some abducted and released without explanation, others placed under home detention, some taken to torture sites, and others dumped at police booths before being remanded as hostages. “At this hour, Miria Matembe’s location is unknown,” it said.

Call to action
The Uganda Law Society condemned the misuse of the armed forces, and cited earlier violations including the “weaponization of the DPP’s office, the capture of the judiciary, and the abuse of the prison service”.

It called on military, police, prisons, and judicial officers to reflect on allowing their powers to be misused, and urged pro-democracy forces to unite and demand accountability. By Presidential Proclamation, the government must account for every missing person and grant unimpeded access without delay, the Society said.

“Until senior military commanders stop ignoring, excusing, or celebrating these acts, Ugandans will continue to live in fear that it will happen again. No citizen should have to live this way”.

Following a Lawyers’ Strike on 26 June 2026 held in solidarity with torture victims, the Society’s Radical New Bar called on Ugandans to “Resist. Expose. Record”.

The statement was signed by Isaac K. Ssemakadde, SC, President of the Uganda Law Society.

Whisper Eye will continue to monitor developments. Attempts to reach the UPDF and government spokespersons for comment were ongoing at the time of publication.

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