Uganda Law Society Members at a recent meeting

The Uganda law society has called for the withdrawal of the proposed land amendment bill which seeks to give powers to government to acquire land and later compensate the owner as the intended project goes on.

The President of Uganda law society Francis Gimara and council member Kinobe Simon Peter in a meeting at Golf course hotel in Kampala said that the current amendments are against the constitution which vests powers into the citizens to own land.

The legal experts said that the solution to all land problems is not acquisition as the laws on land acquisition under article 26 are already in place spelling clearly how this process can be handled.

The society members assert that other than amending the constitution government should establish a land evaluation body, strengthen courts to have specified periods for hearing land disputes.

The law society also wants the government to wait for land commission of inquiry to finish its work and come up with recommendations to Uganda’s land problem which can also be used to address the ever growing problem of land in the country.

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Ruth Sebatindira- President Uganda Law Society

The ULS team told the committee that article 82[2] of the constitution should be amended so that the speaker of parliament ceases to be an elected speaker but an appointed one. They noted that this task of appointing should be done by the parliamentary commission through an independent process. The same ULS wants the speaker to be slapped with term limits; giving him or her two terms in that office in addition to not belonging to any political party.

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This followed ugly incidents in which police brutally arrested opposition leader Dr. Kizza Besigye as he drove to town.

Bruce Kyerere presenting the petition

The big eyed colonel had just returned from prison after he had been detained for the 3rd time walking to work.

I’m wondering whether the learned friends the lawyers really managed to put their point home or it was another futile process to people who do not listen.

Yes, the lawyers did present a petition to the Chief Justice Benjamin Odoki but he was all the time urging them to stop the strike. He even defended the Nabweru Magistrate, Doreen Akatukwasa who tried Besigye in three different courts of law over a related charge.

The lawyers had described as irregular the act of one magistrate hovering from one court ton another to try a single suspect.

The police and government have also been adamant and have refused to punish any of the officers who clobbered protesters including those who shot and killed some people despite video evidence of some of the officers committing these acts.

The government has only promised to investigate. SO are the leaders of today really committed to the rule of law and observing human rights of especially those who oppose them?

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The lawyers led by their President Bruce Kyerere presented a petition to the Chief Justice Benjamin Odoki and the Deputy Chief Justice Mpagi Bahigeine.

The ULS says the brutality and the excessive use of force by security agents in stopping the peaceful walk-to-work protests are worrying for the rule of law in Uganda.

Bruce Kyerere presenting the petition

They are also expressing their displeasure at the conduct and perceived partiality of Magistrate Justine Atukwasa who has presided over the trial of opposition leader Dr Kizza Besigye in three different court jurisdictions. Kyerere says ULS wants the magistrate be investigated wondering whether it is legal for one magistrate to move from one court to another in order to try a particular suspect of group of people.

He says that during the three-day strike, Lawyers will not go to Court or transact any legal deals. Kyerere says after the strike, the lawyers have resolved to offer free legal services to all the suspects jailed in connection to walk-to-work protests.

“This is to make a statement of displeasure on police brutality and the conduct of judiciary in the manner in which they are handling cases of arrested demonstrators,” Kyerere said.

Odoki assured the lawyers that the judiciary is committed to ensuring the rule of law in Uganda is upheld.

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Mira Matembe

The lawyers are protesting in the manner in which opposition politicians are being arrested in the ongoing walk to work protests against high food and fuel prices.

The Uganda Law Society in a statement today said they are appalled by the nature of violent arrests, especially of Forum for Democratic Change President, Dr. Kizza Besigye was arrested in way that severely injured him.

The Lawyers say courts of law have been politicised, citing the manner which courts magistrates are being transferred between courts of law to hear particular cases. The lawyers have resolved to wear their legal gowns and sit at high court next Wednesday in protest.

A six man committee has been appointed to draft a petition addressing their concerns. The committee comprises of Tulyowa Kiwanuka, Hussen Kasinyi, Iren Invonge, Alex Mbanzina, and Allen Asiimwe.

The lawyers have also resolved to give free legal service to the accused, former Ethics and Integrity Minister Maria Matembe who at the same time is a lawyer by professional seconded the proposal saying lawyers need to get more involved in such matters affecting the country.

By Mugisa Isaac Mathias

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Bruce Kyerere

The President of the Uganda Law Society Bruce Kyerere says the that pilot schemes that were carried out in Entebbe freely handled over 300 cases and were managed by the Associations of Human Rights Organizations, the Uganda Law Society with financial support of about 13 million shillings from the Legal Aid Basket Fund. He says they carried out the schemes by enrolling a few willing advocates to provide these legal services.

Kyerere told journalists in Kampala that the pro bono scheme will aim at popularizing the provision of free legal services amongst lawyers since though it is a legal requirement for all lawyers to provide pro bono services, the idea has not been widely accepted and embraced in Uganda’s legal fraternity.

Kyerere says currently Pro bono services are being provided in an uncoordinated manner with no clear mechanisms for monitoring the nature of cases handled and how they are handled by the lawyers.

He says however with the national pro bono scheme in place, the provision of free legal  services will then be better coordinated and of better quality than before.

Kyerere says the law fraternity wants to do this as a way of giving back to the society and as a social responsibility since lawyers are called to serve society by helping especially the less fortunate access justice.

Though the constitution of Uganda says that every Ugandan is entitled to equal protection of the law and has a right to legal representation, this is not the case as the majority of Ugandans cannot afford the expensive services of the lawyers and yet people seriously need legal services for example to be able to present a case in courts of judicature.

By Tiberindwa Zakaria, Ultimate Media

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This is an encouraging development given that many people in Uganda fail to get justice simply because they cannot afford the expensive legal services that they need to pay for in order to get justice.

In a press statement today, the Uganda Law Society says it has also organized a workshop with the law council that is geared towards equipping lawyers with more knowledge on the notion of pro bono services.

The workshop that is themed “Pro bono, a case of Uganda” will take place at Hotel Africana on 29^th July 2010.

Pro bono services are free legal services given to people that may not be able to afford the legal services. The law obligates all practicing lawyers to give pro bono services to citizens in the course of their practice.

By Ultimate Media

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The Uganda Law Society has organized a workshop with the Justice Law and Order Sector to train lawyers on proper ethical behavior in their profession.

This comes at a time when the ethical standards in the law profession are at questionable levels with more Ugandans loosing trust in lawyers by the day. Many people in Uganda believe lawyers are more mindful and interested in money than helping their clients get justice in the courts of law.

The Executive Committee of the Uganda Law Society says that the workshop will take place in Imperial Royale Hotel on the 20^th July 2010 under the theme “Ethics and the advocate”

The committee says the workshop will focus on sensitizing lawyers and etiquette and the role of the Law Council in regulating professional discipline.

It say the senior law academicians, the Law Council and Uganda Law Society representatives with vast experience will facilitate the workshop and those interested in participating in the workshop will have to pay 100,000/= (one hundred thousand shillings).

The Uganda Law Society is the organization that brings together all lawyers in the country under one umbrella.

By Zacharia Tiberindwa, Ultimate Media

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