Activist Bob Njagi has described in detail how he and fellow activist Nicholas Oyoo were held in a secret Ugandan military facility, alleging incommunicado detention lasting up to a year for some detainees.
The remarks came during an interview on Citizen TV on Thursday night, following confirmation by Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni that the two Kenyans had been held in what he called a “fridge.”
Njagi told journalists that the facility was more accurately a “freezer” and claimed: “There are people who stayed there without seeing their families for more than 5 months up to 1 year. They have not been taken to court, they cannot communicate with their families…”
He stated that detainees were ex‑communicated from the rest of society for as long as the authorities desire.
According to Njagi, the detention centre is located at the Uganda People’s Defence Forces Special Forces Command training ground in Sarakasenyi and falls under the command of Muhoozi Kainerugaba, head of Uganda’s armed forces.
He says he encountered over 150 other detainees, many held without trial.
This account aligns with earlier reporting by Kenyan and Ugandan media.
For Kenyan civil society and policymakers, the allegations raise questions about the safety of Kenyan nationals travelling or working in Uganda—and more broadly about East Africa’s regional human rights environment.
Kenya’s Ministry of Foreign and Diaspora Affairs does not disclose comprehensive data on detained nationals abroad, but reports suggest increasing instances of Kenyan activists facing cross‑border repression.
The incident reveals the need for bilateral safeguards and NGO monitoring in the region.
Diplomatically, Kenya was involved in the release of the two activists after 38 days of detention, according to media reports citing Kenyan‑Ugandan negotiations and the involvement of former Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta in the process.