Kampala,
8th/Dec/2011; Hearing of case lodged with Uganda Human Rights Commission (UHRC)
Court four
years ago by journalists has failed to take off under unclear circumstances.
A case in which journalists protested brutal attacks
by police and other security agencies
had been fixed for hearing on December
9th 2011 at 9 00am local time at the Commission premises on Buganda Road. The
complainants received summons for the slated date.
In 2007,
journalists including Sam Kayiwa working
with Power FM, Geoffrey Wokulira Ssebaggala formerly working with Radio
Sapientia and Ssemakula Richard formerly working with Bukedde newspaper among
others went to the Commission tribunal demanding for investigation into the
violations against journalists’ press freedoms and rights. They also urged the
Commission to take punitive measures against culprits including compensation
for the victims.
The journalists alleged in their complaint that
while covering both treason and murder trials of the opposition leader for
Forum for Democratic Changes (FDC) Dr. Kizza Besigye and the 13 Peoples Redemption Army (PRA) suspects
at high court in Kampala and Bushenyi, security forces sieged court and in an
attempt to re-arrest the suspects who had been granted bail, most journalists were beaten, their equipment
and valuable items like money were compulsorily confiscated and others were
blocked from accessing the court
premises.
A complaint
file UHRC 52/2007 was opened against the Attorney General for violations of
freedoms and rights of the affected journalists.
Human Rights
Network for Journalists-Uganda (HRNJ-Uganda) has discovered that the matter was
not cause listed for the said session and the witnesses were erroneously
summoned to appear before the tribunal on the stated date because the file was
allegedly not allocated to a particular Commissioner at the Human Rights court.
Officials at
the commission told HRNJ-Uganda that the summoned journalists will have to wait
until the next Tribunal sittings which are slated for February 2012.
“This has
come way too late when memories of the victims and the general public to whom
the media reports to are fading away.
However, it is still not too late for the Commission to deliver justice
to the victims. Most of the perpetrators
have since been transferred or have earned promotions within the security
forces, but we pray and hope that this will not act in their favor or
jeopardize the proceedings.
We are looking forward to seeing Uganda Human Rights
Commission deliver justice in a more expeditious manner” Said HRNJ-Uganda Board
Chairperson Robert Ssempala He added
that justice delayed is justice denied but we hope that one day we shall see that justice. It has been an eon of giving up
but suddenly there seems to be some hope.
HRNJ-Uganda
is concerned about the increasing restrictions on media freedoms particularly
regarding the rights and liberties of expression, speech, conscience and
association.
We demand
that the commission should expeditiously handle cases of Human Rights abuses
because our fear is that this prolonged delay occasions a miscarriage of
justice to the aggrieved parties and is not commensurate to the principles of
natural justice and International Human Rights Instruments to which Uganda is
party.
For More Information Contact;
Human Rights Network for Journalists-Uganda
(HRNJ-Uganda)
Kivebulaya
Road at Mengo Kampala Opp. St. Marcelino Pre. School
P.O.BOX. 71314 Clock Tower Kampala
Tel: +256-414-272934 / +256-414-667627
E-mail: news@hrnjuganda.org
humanrajournalists@yahoo.co.uk
Website: www.hrnjuganda.org
BLOG: http://hrnjuganda.blogpost.com
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