Arrested in December for tweets mocking President Yoweri Museveni’s son, Ugandan writer Kakwenza Rukirabashaija is now a refugee in Germany. Country he joined after a long journey that he tells us about.
” I went to the hospital. The exams indicated that I had several fractures, my kidneys were damaged and my overall health was very poor. “, he says at the microphone of Nadia Ben Mahfoudh of the Africa editorial staff. Released on bail on January 29, he fled his country on February 9 because he no longer had a choice, according to him: ” I asked the authorities to give me back my passport to seek treatment abroad. They refused. There was only one solution left for me: to flee the country. “.
It is therefore after being tortured and threatened with death that the writer takes the plunge and embarks on a journey to Europe. ” I fled illegally. On foot, I crossed the borders with Rwanda then I went through Burundi and Malawi to finally take a flight to Germany. I know everyone wants to know how I got there but right now I can’t talk about it “, he says.
Today, the author lives in Germany but fears for his family. ” I live in a small house by a lake in Munich. My wife and six children stayed in Uganda. They live in fear. The president’s son threatened to kill my family and loved ones if I showed my injuries or talked to the media “, he testifies. However, he does not intend to be silent: There’s a saying that goes: “hurt a writer, he’ll bleed ink“. My only weapon is writing “.