There should be justice for all
Jul 08, 2007
THIRTY UPDF soldiers have petitioned the Minister of Justice and human rights organisations over the delayed hearing of their appeals against conviction. The soldiers were sentenced to death over 10 years ago and have been in Luzira Prison waiting for the Court Martial to hear their appeals.
THIRTY UPDF soldiers have petitioned the Minister of Justice and human rights organisations over the delayed hearing of their appeals against conviction. The soldiers were sentenced to death over 10 years ago and have been in Luzira Prison waiting for the Court Martial to hear their appeals.
The Foundation for Human Rights Initiative, a local human rights watchdog, has consequently urged Parliament to intervene in the matter. The soldiers claimed that, despite petitions to different Government offices, the hearing of their appeals had failed to take off. The army spokesman, Maj. Felix Kulayigye, however, argues that the soldiers never filed their appeals within the required period.
The Government and the military authorities should investigate this matter. It is gross injustice for a person to stay in prison for a decade waiting for his or her case to be disposed of. There are issues that need investigations. Did the soldiers in question, due to lack of proper legal representation, miss an opportunity to appeal against their conviction and sentences? Do the soldiers tried before the Court Martial get proper legal representation?
This underscores the crisis in Uganda’s justice system in general and calls for urgent Government action. Many people languish in prisons for years either on remand or awaiting hearing of their appeals. At times individuals complete serving their jail sentences when their appeals are still pending before court. The backlog of cases is too high and in this country a suspect on average spends 30 months on remand before his or her case is disposed of. This is reason for the congestion in the prisons.
The steps being taken to recruit more judges and magistrates are in the right direction. Sorting out the crisis in the administration of justice will require the Government to do more. The Director of Public Prosecution and the Criminal Investigations Department need more resources. The judiciary must be facilitated and modernised. Above all, it is important to ensure that the poor too get justice. As it is now, justice is only for the wealthy who can afford to hire the best lawyers available.
The Foundation for Human Rights Initiative, a local human rights watchdog, has consequently urged Parliament to intervene in the matter. The soldiers claimed that, despite petitions to different Government offices, the hearing of their appeals had failed to take off. The army spokesman, Maj. Felix Kulayigye, however, argues that the soldiers never filed their appeals within the required period.
The Government and the military authorities should investigate this matter. It is gross injustice for a person to stay in prison for a decade waiting for his or her case to be disposed of. There are issues that need investigations. Did the soldiers in question, due to lack of proper legal representation, miss an opportunity to appeal against their conviction and sentences? Do the soldiers tried before the Court Martial get proper legal representation?
This underscores the crisis in Uganda’s justice system in general and calls for urgent Government action. Many people languish in prisons for years either on remand or awaiting hearing of their appeals. At times individuals complete serving their jail sentences when their appeals are still pending before court. The backlog of cases is too high and in this country a suspect on average spends 30 months on remand before his or her case is disposed of. This is reason for the congestion in the prisons.
The steps being taken to recruit more judges and magistrates are in the right direction. Sorting out the crisis in the administration of justice will require the Government to do more. The Director of Public Prosecution and the Criminal Investigations Department need more resources. The judiciary must be facilitated and modernised. Above all, it is important to ensure that the poor too get justice. As it is now, justice is only for the wealthy who can afford to hire the best lawyers available.