Africa-Press – Uganda. Uganda Human Rights Commission (UHRC) Chairperson, Ms Mariam Wangadya, has said that torture laws need to be amended such that the armed personnel can be allowed to protect themselves from attacks by civilians.
Ms Wangadya said it is rather unfortunate that some bad elements in the society are making brutal attacks on men and women in uniform because the laws restrain the security personnel from using guns to defend themselves.
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“I have learnt that our men and women in uniform are inhibited from effectively defending themselves against violent attacks because of laws like the Prevention and Prohibition of Torture Act which provides for individual liability. I think it is time for us to review the efficacy of these laws,” she said.
Ms Wangadya made the remarks during the opening of a four-day training workshop for Uganda Peoples’ Defence Forces (UPDF) senior officers on human rights, at the Uganda Rapid Deployment Capability Center (URDCC) at Gadaffi Barracks in Jinja City on Monday.
She gave an example of an attack by civilians on a police post in Pader District that was left burnt down. Officers tried to disperse the attackers using tear gas but were overpowered and fled because the laws prohibit them from using firearms to defend themselves.
The most recent incident happened in Luwero where a gang with machetes attacked a traffic checkpoint and killed a policeman and injured another.
Ms Wangadya noted that there is very high discipline among the security personnel in Uganda unlike in the past when soldiers used to act as if they were small gods.
Ms Grace Pelly from the United Nations Office for Human Rights in Uganda, said the aim of the training is to deepen UPDF personnel’s understanding and appreciation of human rights issues and their impact on military duties.
The UPDF Director of Human Rights, Col Deo Karikona, said that the training is very important for the heads of departments from all the units to enhance and promote human rights protection.
“It is true we have experienced attacks recently by civilians, but we emphasize restraint from our armed personnel because it is part of the discipline and one has to make a judgment before he or she responds,” he said.
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