[10] As of 2019, Onziema has been arrested or detained seven times,[8] incurring violence in which he lost hearing in his left ear and needed to be hospitalized.
"[12] On December 18, 2012, he was invited on the Ugandan television show Morning Breeze hosted by Simon Kaggwa Njala, to join a debate about sexual minorities and their situation in Uganda.
[13] The interview later turned into an animated dispute when pastor and anti-gay activist Martin Ssempa came into the show trying to discredit Onziema.
"[16] That year, Onziema "led a successful challenge of Uganda's infamous law that made homosexuality a crime punishable by death.
"[8] He united 55 Ugandan civil society organizations including parents, educators, and caregivers to "form a coalition to fight the law.
"[8] CBC Radio reported, "Six months after the bill was passed, Onziema's coalition scored a court victory, striking the law down on a technicality.
[17] In 2014, he was interviewed by John Oliver on the American television series Last Week Tonight about the human rights situation for LGBT people in Uganda.
[20]Despite the hardships he faced in Ugandan prisons, Onziema has stated,I love this country to bits, and my work is to make it the kind of place that it really is.