Tanzanian Police Stripped and Assaulted Me Before Dumping Me at the Border – Ugandan Activist Agather Speaks Out
Ugandan activist Agather Atuhaire has narrated how she was detained, stripped, and tortured by Tanzanian authorities before being dumped at the Mutukula border between Tanzania and Uganda.
Her revelation has ignited outrage across East Africa, with more human rights activists threatening legal action against President Samia Suluhu’s government over repeated human rights violations.
This comes just hours after Kenyan activist Boniface Mwangi was also dumped at the Horohoro border post in a similar manner, with both incidents triggering calls for accountability.
“When I got there, the first order was to take off my clothes,” Atuhaire recalled. “Before I did anything, someone hit me on the back and violently undressed me. They threw me down, handcuffed me, and tried to cover my injuries with a sweater.”
She went on to detail horrific abuse, including beatings on her feet and an act of sexual violence. “Someone was hitting the soles of my feet so badly—the pain was unbearable. Another shoved something in my… that is rape, by all standards,” she said.
Atuhaire said she was eventually dumped a few kilometers from the Tanzanian-Ugandan border. “They gagged me and turned up the car volume. At first, I didn’t understand why, until I heard Boniface screaming. They were masking the torture with loud music.”
These incidents have prompted a furious backlash from regional human rights defenders.
“We demand that those who subjected them to this torture be held accountable—including those directing these crimes, which appear to be sanctioned at the highest level,” said activist Nungi Githuku.
“Hatutakubali udhalimu kukita mizizi katika maeneo ya Afrika Mashariki. Na kwa Waafrika wote, huu ni wakati wa kusimama imara na kusema hatutatumiwa tena,” added Hussein Khalid, CEO of Vocal Africa.
Political leaders and parties have also joined the condemnation. “The ruling class in East Africa are united against any uprising. They fear the people’s voice,” said Booker Omole, SG of the Communist Party of Kenya.
Wiper leader Kalonzo Musyoka criticized the regional silence on these abuses. “Human rights are universal. You can be a lawyer and open an office in Dar, Kampala, or Mombasa. That was the vision of the East African Community,” he said.
People’s Liberation Party (PLP) leader Martha Karua has formally written to continental bodies, including the African Union, demanding swift action against the Tanzanian government.
The Tanzanian government has not issued a response to the growing wave of allegations.
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Tanzanian Police Stripped and Assaulted Me Before Dumping Me at the Border – Ugandan Activist Agather Speaks Out