The East Africa Law Society (EALS) has condemned the disappearance of two Kenyan human rights defenders in Uganda and a Tanzanian diplomat, terming it a worrying sign of deepening authoritarianism and judicial manipulation in the region.
In a statement seen by Radio Generation, EALS President Ramadhan Abubakar said the organization was profoundly concerned and unreservedly condemns the continued disappearance of Nicholas Oyoo and Bob Njagi, who were allegedly abducted in Kaliro District, Uganda, on October 1.
Their whereabouts remain unknown.
The regional lawyers’ body also expressed alarm over the disappearance of Humphrey Polepole, a respected Tanzanian diplomat and public servant, linking the incidents to an emerging pattern of state-enabled repression across East Africa.
EALS criticized the High Court of Uganda’s Civil Division for its October 22 ruling that dismissed a petition seeking a writ of habeas corpus to compel the state to produce the missing activists.
The court accepted security agencies’ denial of involvement and advised that a police report be filed instead.
“The ruling, though procedurally tidy, is morally hollow and jurisprudentially tragic,” the statement read, warning that courts risk becoming “altars of impunity” if they accept state denials without accountability.
EALS said the cases represent the growing weaponization of judicial institutions in East Africa, turning courts from “bulwarks of liberty into instruments of statecraft.”
The group accused states of betraying their constitutional and international obligations to protect life, liberty, and due process.
According to the statement, Uganda’s actions violate both domestic and international law, including the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and the Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance.
EALS issued several demands: immediate disclosure of the whereabouts of the missing Kenyans, a transparent account from Tanzania on Polepole’s case, and independent investigations in all involved states.
The society also called for the ratification and domestication of the enforced disappearance convention across East Africa.
“Law without justice is tyranny,” Abubakar said, urging regional courts to reclaim their role as guardians of liberty.
“The destiny of this region will not be shaped by might, but by the moral courage of its institutions.”
