Outspoken Kenyan activist Boniface Mwangi and Ugandan journalist-turned-activist Agatha Atuhaire have filed a landmark case at the East African Court of Justice (EACJ) against the Government of Tanzania, citing gross human rights violations during a May 2024 incident in Arusha.
In the petition lodged this week, the two activists accuse Tanzanian authorities of arbitrary arrest, incommunicado detention, intimidation, and unlawful confiscation of personal property during their visit to Tanzania, where they had travelled to attend a pan-African human rights forum.
Mwangi and Atuhaire are each seeking 129 million Kenyan shillings (approx. USD 1 million) in compensation, alongside an official apology and assurances of non-repetition from the Tanzanian government.
The case is rooted in events that unfolded in mid-May, when the two were reportedly detained by Tanzanian security agents shortly after arriving in Arusha. They were allegedly held for several hours without charge, denied legal representation and access to their consulates, and subjected to intense interrogation over their affiliations with civil society groups critical of East African regimes.
Mwangi, who has been a prominent voice in anti-corruption and pro-democracy movements in Kenya, claimed their arrest was politically motivated and intended to intimidate regional human rights defenders. “What happened to us is not just an individual violation — it is an attack on civil liberties in East Africa,” he posted on X (formerly Twitter) shortly after returning to Nairobi.
Atuhaire, a media rights activist from Uganda, said the incident left her “deeply shaken” and emphasized that journalists and activists in the region continue to face increasing hostility when crossing borders. “We were targeted for simply showing up and speaking up,” she said.
The suit, filed through a joint legal team based in Arusha and Nairobi, argues that Tanzania’s actions breached multiple provisions of the Treaty for the Establishment of the East African Community (EAC), the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
Human rights watchdogs including Amnesty International and the East and Horn of Africa Human Rights Defenders Project have condemned the incident and backed the case, citing a pattern of shrinking civic space and transnational repression within the East African region.
If successful, the case could set a significant precedent at the EACJ for cross-border accountability on human rights issues and highlight growing concerns about state overreach in silencing dissenting voices.
