The Hon the Chief Justice, Hon. Justice Bart M. Katureebe, on November 15, 2017 opened a three-day Judicial Symposium on Human Rights in the Context of Criminal Justice at Botanical Hotel, Entebbe.
The meeting was organized by Human Rights Enforcement Foundation (HUREF), the Africa Judges and Jurists Forum (AJJF), the Judicial Training Institute (JTI),the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) and the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).
In his speech, the Chief Justice talked about the challenges in the Criminal Justice system in Uganda.
He said, "in the course of administration of criminal justice, the Judiciary and other law and justice agencies face a number of challenges in enforcing human rights, which challenges manifest in failure to adhere to international human rights standards due to lack of effective institutional mechanisms."
He urged all criminal justice actors to embrace innovations such as Plea Bargaining, Audio Visual Link to improve the administration of justice.
He added that good governance requires legal frameworks that are enforced impartially and that it also requires full protection of human rights,particularly those of minorities. Impartial enforcement of laws requires independent, impartial and incorruptible institutions.
The symposium is being held under the theme, "rethinking the workings of the Justice process in Uganda". It offers space to Judges, prosecutors, legal practitioners,academics and legal aid providers to examine the shortcomings of Uganda's criminal justice system in light of the country's human rights obligations and develop concrete proposals for reform.
At 60 participants including judges are to gain increased knowledge of the challenges regarding the protection of human rights in the administration of the justice and the improvements that have to be made on order to enhance the protection of human rights in the administration of criminal justice.
Posted 16th, November 2017
