How Dr Stella Nyanzi fled to Kenya disguised as a banana seller

News

Sat 06 Feb, 2021

Tags:

Political activist and academic, Dr. Stella Nyanzi earlier in the week fled to Kenya citing political persecution and threats to her life.

According to her lawyer, Prof. George Luchiri Wajackoyah, Nyanzi left Kampala by bus, disguised as a banana seller in order to beat security at the border.

"She is seeking political asylum in Kenya," the lawyer confirmed in a phone interview.

In a social media post yesterday, Nyanzi said she had been a target of kidnap by security agenices.

"... I can say for a fact that the ongoing abductions and kidnaps of innocent unarmed Ugandan civilians are the work of Museveni’s police and so called intelligence officers. One does not have to look very far to know who is responsible for abducting opposition members from the streets, from their private homes, from offices, from restaurants, or even from moving vehicles," she wrote.

She said that the recent kidnapping wave in the country was getting closer to her and she did not want to return to prison where she was last year.

Nyanzi was arrested for participating in a protest organised by traders in Kampala against the slow distribution of COVID-19 relief food in May.

Last month, Stella Nyanzi finished third in the race for the Kampala Woman Member of Parliament race which was won by Shamim Malende of the National Unity Platform.