Museveni critic barred from boarding Germany-bound flight in Nairobi
Nyanzi revealed that the German Immigration Liaison Officer (ILO) in Nairobi had blocked her from boarding her flight.
Stella Nyanzi, a prominent Ugandan human rights activist and vocal critic of President Yoweri Museveni’s regime, has been barred from traveling back to Germany while at Nairobi’s airport.
In a statement issued on Saturday, May 24, 2025, Nyanzi revealed that the German Immigration Liaison Officer (ILO) in Nairobi had blocked her from boarding her flight.
"I am stunned that, as a Ugandan refugee living in Germany, I have been refused re-entry by an official named Constatine at the German ILO office in Nairobi," Nyanzi said.
Nyanzi further disclosed that she was barred from boarding her Etihad Airways flight at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport by the same official.
"Not only was I denied re-entry into Germany, but Constantine also blocked me from boarding my flight this evening," she said.
She added that Constantine disputed her refugee status, insisting there was no final determination on her asylum claim.
This was despite Nyanzi presenting a letter from Germany’s Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF), confirming a positive decision on her case and her recognition as a refugee based in Munich.
The outspoken activist lamented the emotional toll of the ordeal, noting that with her flight already departed, she now has no option but to wait for further communication from Constantine at the German embassy.
"My flight departed. My three children are waiting for me at home in Munich. My taxi brought me back to Nairobi. I had already checked out of my BnB. Now I face a weekend of waiting to see Constantine at the German embassy. I hate the dehumanization of being a refugee who must beg just to return home," Nyanzi stated.
Nyanzi’s experience follows closely on the heels of a similar debacle involving hundreds of refugees from Kakuma Refugee Camp, who were scheduled for resettlement in Germany but were abruptly returned to their camps.
The reversal came after the German government temporarily suspended all new resettlement submissions without providing a clear timeline for resumption.
The affected refugees, some of whom had spent up to three weeks in Nairobi preparing for departure, staged protests, saying they had sold their belongings in anticipation of starting new lives in Europe.
Nyanzi is a renowned Ugandan human rights defender, medical anthropologist, poet, and fierce feminist voice known for her unapologetic stance on political and social justice issues.
A vocal critic of President Yoweri Museveni’s regime, she has faced multiple arrests, including an 18-month imprisonment in 2017 for allegedly insulting the president.
