KAMPALA, Uganda — The Uganda Law Society (ULS) has strongly condemned a violent home invasion at the Magere residence of Barbara Itungo Kyagulanyi, widely known as Barbie, describing the assault as a grave abuse of state power and a violation of fundamental human rights.
The incident occurred on the night of January 23, 2026, hours after a ULS delegation had visited Barbie Kyagulanyi earlier in the day to discuss legal options for lifting what the society termed an unlawful eight-day house arrest imposed on her family.
Eyewitness accounts, including those from Barbie Kyagulanyi and the leadership of the National Unity Platform (NUP), indicated that armed intruders forcibly entered the home, demanding the location of opposition leader Robert Kyagulanyi, also known as Bobi Wine. Several documents and personal property were reportedly seized during the operation.
In a statement posted on Saturday, Bobi Wine said hundreds of soldiers participated in the raid, many in Special Forces Command (SFC) uniforms, some in regular Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) attire, and others in plain clothes. He alleged that some soldiers appeared intoxicated and arrived with ladders, apparently to access upper sections of the house.
“They put my wife at gunpoint, asking her to reveal my whereabouts,” Kyagulanyi said. “Money, valuable documents, and electronic equipment were taken,” he added, listing phones, laptops, chargers, the home internet system, CCTV equipment, and speakers among the items allegedly seized.
Kyagulanyi further claimed that soldiers searched every part of the residence, including ceilings, causing widespread destruction.
Barbie Kyagulanyi was allegedly restrained, ordered to unlock her phone, assaulted, strangled, verbally abused, and forcefully photographed. She was also reportedly questioned in Runyakore about her marriage to a Muganda.
The family’s security guard and housemaid were allegedly beaten, with the guard forced to reveal parts of the house where Bobi Wine might have been hiding. Intruders also inquired about the location of the couple’s children.
“My wife is currently in hospital dealing with all the physical and psychological trauma,” Kyagulanyi said, noting that military and police personnel remained deployed inside and outside the compound.
Despite the assault, Bobi Wine maintained a defiant stance, stating, “Yet in all this, we remain firm in our belief that Uganda will be free.”
The ULS attributed the attack to Uganda People’s Defence Forces personnel operating under police supervision, calling it a blatant violation of rights to liberty, security, dignity, and privacy.
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The society warned that such actions risked provoking civil unrest, citing ongoing reports of detentions, torture, and enforced disappearances of NUP supporters following Uganda’s disputed elections.
Invoking its mandate under Sections 3(d) and 3(e) of the Uganda Law Society Act, ULS said it would petition a competent court to lift Barbie Kyagulanyi’s house arrest and challenge the unlawful restrictions.
The society also announced plans to launch an independent investigation to gather forensic evidence, with the intention of filing civil and criminal complaints against those responsible, as well as their supervisors, for allegations of torture, unlawful search and seizure, and other human rights abuses.
Barbie Kyagulanyi was admitted to Nsambya Hospital following the January 23 invasion and is receiving ongoing medical treatment.
