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The number of pretrial detentions is now lower than it was three years ago, indicating an improvement in the country's access to justice by Uganda's citizens.

Avocats Sans Frontiers (ASF) says that the rate of pretrial detention, which was 53.3 percent in 2020, dropped to 49 and 48 percent in 2022 and 2023, respectively.

The agency's Uganda country director Irene Anying, however, said more needs to be done, remarking: "These percentages are indicative of progress but leave a lot to be desired."

She added that they would desire to see more significant drops if the country is making better progress on human rights protection. 

She was speaking during the National Dialogue of pretrial detention, detention without trial among other human rights issues concerning suspects on Thursday, October 26, 2023, at the Golf Course Hotel in Kampala.

Anying said in a bid to improve the situation, they are implementing the "protecting constitutional and procedural rights through access to Justice".

The project targets the districts of Gulu, Kitgum, Arua, Masindi, Lamwo, Wakiso and Kampala.

Funded by Austrian Development Corporation, and implemented by ASF and LASPNET-Uganda, the overall goal of the project is to control, and contribute to the realisation of the role of law in the administration of justice in Uganda. 

This is in a bid to foster the promotion of constitutional and procedural rights in the administration of justice with a focus on situations of detention.

The chief executive officer of Legal Aid Service Providers' Network Dr Sylvia Namubiru remarks during a dialogue on pre-trial detention at Golf Course Hotel in Kampala on October 23, 2023. (All Photos by Francis Emorut)

The project started in 2020 and is set to close at the end of the year.

Adverse effects

According to ASF, prolonged pre-trial detention has adverse effects on the rights of detainees to a fair and speedy 

trial. 

It adds that many detainees in Uganda are often held in overcrowded facilities, which may have an impact on their health, and which increases their risk of being subjected to torture and other cruel, inhuman, and degrading 

treatment or punishment. 

Moreover, many of the facilities are dilapidated, overcrowded, and have inadequate space, lighting, and ventilation. ASF says most inmates do not have access to adequate food and water, especially in police cells. Inmates often lack clothing and bedding, access to health services, facilities for personal hygiene, and access to opportunities for exercise. 

Arbitrary arrests

Most pre-trial detainees are victims of arbitrary arrests and do not enjoy the rights that accrue to them during their arrest and detention.

Sometimes this is based on inadequate police training and capacity for criminal investigations, discrimination, political interference, and corruption, among others.