Home at Last: The Regional Diplomacy That Freed Kenya’s Cross-Border Activists

NAIROBI – When Bob Njagi and Nicholas Oyoo stepped off Kenya Airways flight KQ764 from Dar es Salaam on Wednesday evening, the arrivals hall at JKIA erupted. Mothers waved placards reading “Our Sons Are Home” while Gen Z activists sang the national anthem through tears.

The two human-rights defenders had spent 19 days in Ubungo Prison after being arrested while livestreaming anti-government protests in Tanzania on November 29. Fourteen other Kenyans detained in Uganda and Tanzania during the same regional protest wave arrived on the same flight – some barefoot, others still wearing the clothes they were arrested in.

Their release is being hailed as a quiet diplomatic triumph for President William Ruto, who reportedly spent 40 minutes on the phone with Tanzania’s President Samia Suluhu Hasssan last Sunday. Sources say Ruto offered to host an East African Community retreat on civic space and digital rights in February 2026 – a face-saving concession that allowed Suluhu to free the activists without appearing weak.

At the airport, Bob Njagi hugged his 72-year-old mother for five straight minutes before addressing the crowd: “We went to stand with brothers and sisters who were being beaten for demanding accountability. We paid a price, but we also proved that East Africa is one family.”

The arrests had exposed a growing trend of cross-border repression. Tanzanian police accused the Kenyans of “inciting violence through foreign media,” while Ugandan authorities claimed some were carrying “subversive literature.” Rights groups say the real crime was filming police brutality and sharing it on X and TikTok.

Within hours of their return, the activists launched the “Safe Passage Fund” – a crowd-funded legal insurance scheme for any East African travelling to monitor protests in another member state. Already Sh28 million has been raised.

Regional analysts say the incident may force the EAC to finally draft a binding protocol on freedom of movement for human-rights defenders – something that has been discussed for eight years without progress. For now, fourteen families are sleeping under the same roof again, and East Africa is a little more aware that solidarity has a price – but also a reward.