T

f.

*,

REPORT OF THE ADHOC COMMITTEE ON THE INVESTIGATION

INTO THE CONDITION OF MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT AND
OTHER SUSPECTS ARRESTED IN THE RUN.UP TO THE BY-
ELECTION FOR THE ARUA MUNICIPALITY PARLIAMENTARY
SEAT

AUGUST 2018
Table of Contents
1. Introduction 3

2. Composition of the Adhoc Committee 4

3. Terms of reference of the Adhoc Committee 4
4. Methodology ..............................5

5. TOR 1: Whether indeed the suspects in detention were in Gulu..6

6. TOR 2: The physical condition of the suspects.......................................7
7. Whether the rights ofthe detained suspects were being
respected. ,...,.......,...9

8. The charges preferred against the detainees 13

9. Attendant observations and recommendations.................................... 13
9.1 The need to save the life ofHon. Kyagulanyi Robert Ssentamu
and other suspects in dire state................ ................................, 13

9.2 The stature and dignity of Parliament 15

9.3 The need for protection of the dignity of the common Ugandan
16
9.4 The role of the military in law enforcement...,,,,......,........,,,....,.......,,. 17
9,5 Conclusion ,. ....................,..... 18

?
+\

a
 1. Introduction
On the 15r' day of August 2018, the Parliament of Uganda resolved to
constitute an Adhoc Committee to ascertain the conditron of the
Members of Parliament and other people wrth u'hom they were arrested
on the eve of the by-electron rn Arua municipality.

This was a culmination of two unsatisfactory attcmpts by the front bench

to explain the crrcumstances of arrest, the whereabouts, plight and
condilon of Mcmbers of ParhamenL rn detcntion and that of othcr
suspects vrho were allegedly tortured.

On the 14rh day of August 2018, the Mrnrster of Internal Affarrs, Hon.
Abubaker Odongo Jeje presented a statement on the securlty situation
that pertarned in Arua Munrcrpalrty on Lhe evenrng of 13ff August 2018
in whrch he admrtted that the Government had arrested MPs; Paul
Mwrru (Jinja East), Robert Iiyagulanyi (Kyadondo East), Gerald
Karuhanga (Ntungamo Munrcipalrty), Zaake Francis (Mityana
Munrcrpality), formcr MP Mabikke Michael and several other suspects
allegedly for obstructrng the convoy of the President.

On 15th August 2o18, the Leader of the Opposrtton, Rt, Hon. Aol Betty
Ocan rose on a matter of urgent public importance expresslng grave
concern over the conditron of the MPs in detentron seekrng ansn,ers from
Government about their whereabouts and physrcal condrtion on the
backdrop of reports and graphrc lmages pointing to their gross physrcal
a buse and severe torture.

In response, the Sccond Deputy Prime Mtnrster and Deputy Leader of

Government Busrness, the Rt. Hon. Gen (Rtd) Moses Alr frrst informcd
the House thaL he was lgnorant of the whereabouts and condrtion of the
detained MPs but later undertook to find out and report to the House.

lF
3
This prompted a one-hour suspenslon of House proceedings pendrng his
feedback.

In his feedback to the House, Rt. Hon. Gcn. (Rtd) Moses Ah denied
reports that the suspecls tn detention had been torturcd. He added that
Hon. Kyagulanyr Robert Ssentamu was tn Gulu for medical attention and
that he was found wtth a gun and would be arraigned before the General
Court Martral in Gulu on Thursday 16tr' August 2018, while the othe r
suspccts would be arrargned before the MagisLrate's Court ln Gulu on the
same day.

The House rarsed concern about the inherent contradiction in the

response of the Second Deputy Premier, denyrng torture of the suspects
in detentron and at the same trme stating that Hon. Kyagulanvi Robert
was rn Gulu for medical attention.

It is against thrs background that the House resolved to constitute an Ad

Hoc Committce to immedrately travel to Gulu-where the suspects were
reportedly berng detained to ascertain therr physical condrtion and
wltness thcir appearance rn Court on 16ft August 2018,

2. Composition of the Adhoc Committee

The Committee comprrsed the following Me mbcrs;
i) Hon. Amule Doreen, (Woman MP Amolatar District) -Chairperson
u) Hon. Kamateeka Jovah, (Woman MP Mitooma District)-Member
rri) Hon. Lubega Medard Sseggona, (MP Busiro East)-Member
iv) Hon. Baryayanga Andrew Aja, (MP Kabale Munrcrpality)-Member
v) Hon. Atiku Bernard, (MP Ayivu County)-Mcmber
vr) Hon. Ssewanyana Allan, (MP Makindye West)-Member

3. Terms of reference of the Adhoc Committee

The Adhoc Committee set out to ascertaln:

i) Whether rndeed the suspects in detention were rn Gulu,

\A 4
 ir) The physical condition of the detained suspccts,
ur) The charges preferred agalnst the dctainees,
rv) Whether thc rights of the detarned suspects were berng respected
4. Methodology
To accomplsh the aforelisted TORs, the Committee;

a) Traveled to Gulu in the mornrng of Thursday 16th August 2018 and

interfaced wrth;

i) The Uganda Peoples Defence Forces (UPDF) 4th Drvrsion

Commander Brrgadier Kanyesrg,e Emmanuel
ii) Officials at the Magistrate's Court rn Gulu
rii) Other MPs who were alrcady on the ground rn Guiu, namely; Hon.
Okumu Ronald Reagan, Hon. Asuman Basalirwa, Hon. Akol
Anthony, Hon. Ktza Winifred and Hon. Kasozr Ibrahrm Biribawa.

b) Accessed and interfaced with the followtng MPs rn dctention

i) Hon. Mu.rru Paul (Jrn1a East, FDC)
l) Hon. Karuhanga Gerald (Ntungamo Munrcipality, Indp)

c) Accessed and rnterfaced wrth the follo',r.rng former MPs in detention

i) Hon. Mabrkke Mrchael (Former MP, Makindye East)

rr) Hon. Ezati Kassiano Wadn (Former MP, Terego and MP Elect, Arua
Municipality

d) Visited the Uganda Peoples Defence Forces 4th Division barracks rn

Gulu-the allcgcd detention facility where Hon. Kyagulanyi Robert
Sentamu was being held.

e) Interfaced with the wrfe of the Hon Kyaguianyi Robert Ssentamu

f) Visrte d Makindye Military Barracks on Monday 2Ou August 2018 and
rnterfaced wrth thc detained MP, Hon. Kyagulanyr Robert Ssentamu

5
 5. TOR 1: Ulhether indeed the suspects in detention were in Gulu
At about 9:00am on 16th August 2018, the Committee found Hon. Mwiru
Paul, Hon. Karuhanga Gerald, Hon. Wadrr Kassiano, Hon. Mabikke
Michael and about 26 other suspects at the holding facility for suspects
at the Magistrates' Court in Gulu, awaitrng appearance before the Court.
Frve of the suspects were women. Hon. Kyagulanyi Robert Sentamu and
Hon. Zaake Francrs were not among them.

Later whcn the Committee met wrth the UPDF 4th Dtvisron
Commander Bngadier Iianyesig,e Emmanucl, he initiaily denied holding
Hon. Kyagulanyi Robert Sentamu at hrs barracks, but later implicrtly
contradicted hrmself. He informed the Committee that Hon Kyagulanyi
had been brought to the barracks, specrficall), to the military hospital for
treatment of rnlunes sustained in a fight with unknown people. Tasked
Hon Kyagulanyr Robert to
to reveal the rdentrties of whoever had brought
the miirtary facility, hc referred the Committee to the Special Forces
Command (SFC) and the Police.

The Committees observes gross insincerity on the part of the

military at the Gulu Military barracks considering that within a few
hours ofdenying the presence of Hon. Kyagulanyi Robert Ssentamu
in detention at the barracks, he was arraigned in the General Court
Martial sitting at the same barracks.

At the time of the Committee's visrt to Gulu, the whereabouts of Hon.

Zaake Francis were unknown to both the Police and Military at the trme,
rarsing further questlons about hrs late especrally in hght of gory images
of hrm that circulated on social medra a few days earlier. The Commrttee
found this strange considering that Hon. Zaake Francis had been
arrested by the military together with the other suspects The Committee
er learnt on Sundalt 19tt' August 2018 that Hon Zaake had been

-Ar
6
found dumped rn the vicrnrty of Rubaga Hosprtal 1n Kampala by
unknown pcople

However when the Commrttee later attended the court sesslon at the
Chief Magistrate's Court in Gulu, where the suspects were charged wrth
the offence of treason, the charge sheet included the names of Hon.
Kyagulanyi Robert Ssentamu and Hon. Zaake Francls as A5 and A6
respectively.

6, TOR 2: The physical condition ofthe suspects

An interface wrth and observation of the detarned MPs and other
suspects revealed that they had been severely battered wrth Hon.
Karuhanga Gerald, Hon. Mwiru Paul and Hon. Mrchael Mabikke
complalnrng of chest and back pain. Hon. Karuhanga Gerald was limping
as a result of an rn1ury to hrs knee. They stated that they had been
viciously brutahzed durrng and after arrest while in Police custody in
Arua and during transportation between the piace of arrest and
detentron at Arua CPS and later Bondo Military barracks. They further
rnformed the Commrttee that the brutality and beating was administered
by men dressed in uniforms of the Specral Forces Command (SFC)

Of the other 26 suspects jorntly detarned with the MPs, 5 were women. 2
of the women could neither sit nor stand as they groaned in excruciatrng
paln on the floor of the suspects' holding facility at the Magistrate's court
rn Gulu. They could barely speak. One of the women, Asara Nrght was
reportedly suffering blood hemorrhage from her prrvate parts. Therr
condition was symptomatrc of the effects of brute force and savagery
either at arre st or during detention One of the female suspects rnformed
the Commrttee that her babv of barelv sixteen months wrth whom she
was arreste d had bccn left behind rn Arua.
rA

7
One of the male suspects, Atiku Shaban could nerther walk nor sit and
complained of extensive bodily parn artsing out of sevcrc beating while rn
detention.

The Committee rs cognizant of the provisions of Articie ar,d 24 and Artrcle

44 (a) of the 1995 Constitutron, whrch prohibit torture, inhumanc and
degradrng treatmcnt. The Constitution of the Repubhc oI Uganda, 1995
is reinforced by the Prevenlion and Prohibrtron of Torturc Act, 2012 that
crrmrnahzcs torture in any form. Uganda is a party to the UN Convention
Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhumane and Degrading Treatment
and Funishment and other related matters

While the Committee was flatly denred access to Hon Kyagulanyr Robert
Ssentamu while in detention at Gulu Mrlitary barracks, rt's Member-Hon.
Lubega Medard Ssegonna who together r,r,ith Hon. Basalirwa Asuman
who volunteered at that trme, to offer pro-bono legal representation to
Hon. Kyagulanyi, was later allowed access to him during the court
martral proceedings. This followed an earher eprsode where the
Committee and other Members of Parliament were forcefully chased out
of Gulu Military barracks where they had earlier been allowed Thrs was
on orders of the Commander of the 4d, Drvrsron army barracks, Bng,
Kanye sigye Emmanue l.

The two Hon. Members informed the Commrttee that Hon. Kyagulanyr
Robert Ssentamu was rn a terribly drre and worryrng state, unable to sit,
stand or speak with visible signs of cr-r-rel and br-r-rtal treatment, with his
face swollen and a wound to hrs ear and at the back of hrs head The
two (2) Hon. Members r.r,ere afforded trme by the General Court Martral to
interact with hrm but there was no interaction as he could not speak.
Despite his already dire situation, the Committee was informed that Hon.
Kyagulanyr Robert Ssentamu was still handcuffed rn detention at Gulu

\ E-

B
4th Drvrsron barracks and was unconsclous dunng the proceedrngs of the
General Court Marttal.

During the Commrttee's rnterface wrth Hon. Kyagulanyr Robert Ssentamu

rn detentron at Makindye Military barracks on 20th August 2018, he was
ignorant of the charges that had becn preferred against him at the
General Court Martial in Gulu on Thursday 16th August 2018. Thrs rs
testimony of hrs unconsclous state during his first appearance at the
General Court Martral.

7. Whether the rights ofthe detained suspects were being

respected.

r) Article 23 (3) (b) requires a person restricted or detained to be

produced in Court as soon as possible but in any case not later
than forty-eight hours. In thc case of all the 34 suspects rn
detentron, thrs rrght was blatantly vrolated. The suspects were
arrested on Monday 13t'August 2018 and only arrargned rn Court on
Thursday 16th August 2018, about 72 hours after arrest.

ii) Article 23 (5) (af of the Constitution of the Republic of Uganda,

1995 stipulates the rights of a person who is restricted or
detained to have their next of kin informed as soon as
practicable of the restriction and detention. Thc same Article
requrres access to a next of kin, lawyer and personal doctor of the
person so detained. Again this right r,"'as violated to the extent;

a) That no next of kin was allou'ed access to the Hon. Kyagulanyr

Robert Ssentamu and that both Members of Parliament as well as
hrs famrly were berng misled by both the Police and the militarv as
to the where bouts of the detained Hon. Member,

\fi-

9
 b) Even when he was being arraigned before the General Court
Martral, his wife, relatives, frrends and collcagrres Members of
Parliamenl were denied access both to the suspect and to the
proceedings of the General Court Martial.

c) The suspect was denied access to his personal doctor even when
his condition was confirmed to be worrying.

Some of the suspects in detention, whom the Committee was able

to interact with were rn drre need of urgent medical attentlon,
notably the two women and one gentleman who could neither sit
nor walk and were vrsrbly in deep pain, Hon. Mwiru Paul, Hon.
Karuhanga Gerald and Hon. Mabikke Mrchael. However, they had
not been accorded access to requisite medrcal help, save for
diagnosis by the Police Surgeon moreover wtthout medication.

Hon. Lubega Medard Sseggona and Hon. Basalirwa Asuman who

volunteered pro bono legal services were allowed by the Mrlrtary to
wrtness Lhe proceedrngs of the Gene ral Court Martial before whom
Hon. Kyagulanyr Robert Ssentamu, rn his disquieting physical
state was arrargned pleaded with the Military for an opportunlty to
have prrvate medrcal personnel urgently access Hon. Kyagulanyi.
They u'ere reportedly assured that thrs would not happen
rmmedrately but rather rn the future while the suspect was at the
Makrndye Mrlrtary delention facrlrty.

The Committee notes that the deprivation of the suspects rn their

deplorable state, of access to private specralized medical help of
therr pnvate doctors predisposcd the suspect to grave danger to
therr health and possible death.
t{
From the time of their brutal arrest and detenlion on 13th August
2018, Hon. Hyagulanyi Robert Ssentamu, despite his deplorable
state was onl able to access hrs privatc doctors on Monday 2oft

10
 August 2O18, the same day that the Committec accessed htm tn
detentron at Makindye Military barracks. This was completely
oblivious to the cardrnal medical concept of the "Golden Hour"- a
decrsive trmrng in either saving one from cieath or averting
devastating health consequences especially after an InJury or
grievous bodily harm.

The "Golden Hour", also known as golden timc, refers to the

perrod of time following a traumatic injury during which there is
the hrghest hkehhood that prompt medical and surgical treatment
wrll prevent dcath.

iir) Article 23 l2l of the Coustitution of the Republic of Uganda,

1995 provides that a person restricted or detained shall be kept
in a place authorized by law. The Committee observes that Hon.
Kyagulanyi Robert Ssentamu was dctained in 2 military barracks-
Gulu Fourth Divrsron and Bondo. Hon, Francts Zaake's place of
detention was never brought to the attention of the Committee. The
rest of the Members of Parliament were detarned rn Bondo Military
barracks and Arua and Gulu Police Stations. Gulu and Bondo
Mrlrtary barracks are not gazetted detention facilitres; therefore thc
detention of suspects in those places violated Artrcle 23 (2) of the
Constitution of the Republic of Uganda, 1995.

1v) Artrcle 28 (1) of l-he Constitution of the Repubhc of Uganda, 1995

provides that, in the determination of civil rights and
obligations or any criminal charge, a person shall be entitled to a
fair, speedy and public hearing before an independent and
impartial court or tribunal established by law.
\ However the proceedrngs of the General Court Martial when Hon
Kyagulanyi Robert Ssentamu was arraigned was largely closed door
wrth only Hon. Lube ga Medard Sseggona and Hon. Basaliru'a

L7
 Asuman allowed after lengthy pleading. Not even the suspect's wrfe
and famriy membcrs were allowed to wttncss the proceedings.

The Committee observes therefore that right to a public hearing

in the case ofthe Hon, Kyagulanyi Robert Ssentamu was denied.

v) Article 28 12\ oI the Constitution of the Republic of Uganda, 1995

provrdes that nothing in clause (1) of this article shall prevent the
court or tribunal from excluding the press or the public from all or
any proceedings before it for reasons of morahty, public order or
national security, as may be necessary in a free and democratrc
society.
The Committee notes that the General Court Martial did not
pronounce itself on barring the public from attending its
proceedings. This decision was purely of the Military at the
barracks,

vi) Article 28 (3) (bl provides that every Person who is charged with
a criminal offence shall be informed immediately, in a language
that the person understands, ofthe nature ofthe offence'
However the unconscious state in whrch Hon. Kyagulanyr Robert
Ssentamu was at the time he was arraigned at the General Court
Martial in Gulu imphes that hc could not and rndeed did not
understand the charges read out l-o hrm. This the Committee proved
on 20th August 2018 during their visrt to Hon. Iiyagulanyi during
which he was totally unaware of the chargcs read out to hrm on the
16th August 2O 18.

The Committee was informed that Hon. Kyagulanyi's inability to

speak due to his deplorable physiologrcal state was mct with a threat
s of being charged for contempt of the General Court Martral by the
Chairperson oI Lhe General Court Martial.

12
 The Committee obseroes that Hon, Kgagulangi's right to be
lnJormed oJ the charges preJerred o,gainst hitn uas thereJore
dolated.

8. The charges preferred against the detainees

Hon. Kyagulanyi Robert Sentamu was arratgned before the General
Court Martial sitting at the UPDF 46 Division barracks in Gulu on 16e
August 2O18 at 4:00pm and charged wrth three counts of unlawful
possesslon of firearms contrary to sectlon 3 of the Frrearms act He never
responded to the charges consrdering his inability to understand the
proceedings. He was remanded to Makrndye military barracks until the
2 3'd day of August 2O 18

The Hon. Mwrru Paul, Hon. Karuhanga Gerald, Hon. Kasrano Wadri.
Hon. Mabikke Michael and the rest of the suspects werc arraigned before
the Chref Magistrate's Court in Gulu, Charged with treason and
remanded to Gulu Central Prison till the 3oth day of August 2018.

The Hon. Zaakc Francis had not been arraigned 1n court and his
whereabouts were unknown at the time.

9. Attendant observations and recommendations

9.1The need to save the life of Hon. Kyagulanyi Robert

Ssentamu and other suspects in dire state
As earher noted, the Committee was ultimately allowed access to Hon.
Kyagulanyr Robert Ssentamu rn detentron at Makindye military barracks
on Monday, 20th August 20 18. His physrcal conditton remained
worrying. His left lower body was paralyzed, he spoke and breathed with
diffrculty often breaking to catch hrs breathe. He sat with difficulty and
&
could not move hrs body by himself. However he was ablc to speak aibeit
wrth drfficulty However he was able to speak and narrated thc

13
 circumstances of his arrest in his ho[e1 room 1n Arua rnformrng the
Committee that;

Upon breakrng rnto his room, the men clad rn uniforms of the Special
Forces Command (SFC) found him kneeling on the floor with his hands
up in surrender but u,ent ahead to hit hrs head with a blunt object that
he suspects to be an iron bar that had been used to brcak the door of hts
hotel room. Thereafter he was severely bcaten wtth gun butts and other
oblects he had no knowledge of.

Both hrs legs and hands were chained. He was later wrapped in a
blanket and driven off to an unknown location as the beating conttnued.
Hrs testicies were squeezed so hard that at the time the Commlttee
visited hrm at Makindye military barracks, he tnformed the Committee
that one of his testicles smashed beyond exlstencc. He could no longer
locate it wrthrn his scrotum.

He was later dumped at a room, whrch he suspects was at the Arua

airfield where hc was later airlifted to Gulu Military barracks. His clothes
were soaked in blood as a result of the horrendous beating he suffered.
Removing his clothes later whilst at Gulu Military barracks involved
tearing them off as they had stuck onto hts wounds. He showed the
Committee some of the scars on his body.

Hon. Kyagulanyi Robert Ssentamu rnformed the Commrttee that he feels

pain all over his body and was only survivtng on pain killing injections.
The left side of his abdomen is visibly patnful and the wounds on his
head are shll vrsrble. He complarns of chest pain and says his teeth were
loosened by the beating he suffered at the hands of thc men clad in
unrforms of the Spccial Forces Command (SFC).

f Hrs plea to the Commlttee was the need to save his hfe. As earher stated,
the Commrttee s rghted Hon. Kyagulanyi's private doctors at Makrndye

L4
Milrtary barracks on 2Oth August 2018-the first time they were berng
allowed access to him.

The Committee obse rved that Hon Kyagulanyi Robert Sse ntamu requlres
urgent specialized medical care preferably abroad.

The Committee therefore recotnrnend.s tho:t Rt. Hon. Speaker of

Parliament ta,kes lt upon herself to liaise uith the Presldent and
other releuant authorities to endble Hon. Kgagulangi Robert
Ssentrrlmu be referred outside the Maklndge Military barracks for
better medical mdftagement. Ang neaningful trial of Hon.
Kgagulangi can onlg happen iJ his right to lfe and health is
respected bg the State.

9,2 The stature and dignity of Parliament

The treatment meted out unto MPs by soldiers at the UPDF 4ff Division
Head Quartcrs in the afternoon of 16u August 2018 was inappropriate
and an affront on the stature and dignity of Parhament. Whtle the
Committee had frurtful interface with the Forth Drvtsron Commander in
the morning of 166 August 2018, whereupon he promrsed Members to
access the detarned MP and attend the proceedings of the General Court
Martral as per Parliament's directive. and whereas Members were allowed
into the barracks upon return at 2:0opm on that assurance, the manner
in which Members of Parliament were chased out of the barracks into the
rarn by over 30 soldiers under the command of one Col. Kanyoro was
very lnappropriate and degrading.

Whrle the military may have a hrgh sense of entrtlement in politics given
the recent history of thrs country, the actions of the soldiers towards the
Members of Parliament is testimony of the regresslve erosion of the
sta ture and dignity of Parliament. The protection of the drgnrty and
t
15
privileges of the House is an aggregatron of thc dignlry and privrleges of
indrvrdual Members of Parliament.

The Committee observes that the image of the UPDF as a people's

army mandated to Protect the lives, ProPerty and dignity of the
people of Uganda, which won them the love, and support of all
Ugandans becoming the pride of the nation seema to be at stake.

The Committee recommends that the UPDF respect and protect

human and people rights in the discharge of its constitutional
mandate so as to maintain its reputation of a disciplined people's
army,

9.3 The need for protection of the dignity of the common

Ugandan
The egalitarian principle of human drgnrty provides that every human
person regardless of creed, status, ethnicity, rank, moral standrng, behef
system or politrcal persuasion is entitled to inahenable dignified
treatment no matter what they do or what happens to them. The law and
public instrtutions cxist to protect such drgnities.

The entire Chapter four of the Constitution of the Republic of Uganda,

1995 rs about the protection and promotion of fundamental and
other human rights and freedoms.

The Committee observes that the unleashing of brutality by the military

and other agents of the State unlo Ugandans as exemphfied in the run
up to the Arua Munrcipalitv by-e lections is an affront on rrghts and
dignrty of mankind. Article 2O of the Constitution of the Republic of
Uganda, 1995 recognizes that fundamental rights and freedoms of
the individual are inherent and not granted by the State, and that
the rights and freedoms of the individual and groups enshrined in
Chapter four of the Constitution includes; respect for human dignity
and p rotection from inhuman treatment, life, health and a fair
h'
16
 hearing shall be respected, upheld and promoted by all organs and
agencies of Government and by all persons.

The Committee observes that the brutalization and maiming of suspects

and journahsts not only a worrying sign oI a shp-back rn the rule of law
but also dents the faith of citrzens tn Government and erodes the sense
of nationhood and casts the country rn bad light in the international
communlty.

The Committee reconmends that those lndiuiduals and State

institutions that are complicit in the derogation of human rights
and dignitg should be punished, Justice must not onlg be done but
must be seen to be done.

9.4 The role of the military in law enforcement

Article 209 of thc 1995 Constrtution strpulates the functron of the
defence lorces as lollows;

a) to preserve and defend the sovereignty and tcrritorral rntegnty oI

Uganda;
b) to co-operate wrth the civilian authorrty ln emergency srtuations and
in cases of natural disasters;
c) to foster harmony and understandtng between the defence forces
and crvilians; and
d) to engage rn productrve actlvltles for the development of Uganda
The Commrttee notes that in the case undcr consrderatlon by the
Committee, the military may have assumed a role that is not therrs, as
matters of the preservation of 1aw and ordcr are a preserve of the Pohce
as provided for under Arlicle 212 of the 1995 Constrtution of the
RepuLrlic of Uganda.

The very act of security personnel beating up civilians contravened

s
' Artrcle 24 of the 1995 Constrtutlon on the respect of human dlgnrty and
L.

t7
 protection from inhuman treatment and Artrcle '221 of the same
Constitution, which provides that

"lt shalt be the dutg of the Uganda Peoples' Defence Forces and ctng other
ar-med force established m Uganda, the Uganda Police Force and ong other
police force, the Uganda ]#sons Seruice. all tntelligence serutces and the
Natnnal Secunty Courtctl to obserue and respect human nghts and
freedoms tn the perfonnance of thetr functtons. "

The Committee did not find any cvidcncc that thc situation rn Arua was
beyond the abilrty and capacity of the Uganda Po.lice Force and thereforc
finds the recoursc to brutc force by the mrlrtary agalnst crvrlians not only
disproportronate but also inhumane.

The Mllitary qnd other errant State functionaries that dre

contr licit in utolating the laut and eroding human rlghts and
dignitg should account for thelr dctlons,

9.5
Conclusion
The Committee is of thc constdered vlew l-haL Parhament and
Government does whatever possible to ensure the evacuation of Hon.
Kyagulanyr Robert Ssentamu from Makrndye Mrlrtary barracks that
clearly does not havc thc reqursite capaclty to afford the severely tortured
and rncapacitated Hon. Kyagulanyi the required medical expertlse to
reverse the damage occasioned unto his body by Ugandan State securrlv
officials.

In addrtron, other suspects that remarn rn detention yet nurslng

horrendous body inlunes, namely, Hon. Mq,iru Paul, Hon. Karunhanga
Gerald, Hon. Mabrkke Michael, Ms. Asara Night, Atiku Shaban should bc
tmmedrately accorded an opportunitSr to receive appropriatc spccralized
medrcal attentron.

18
Health and life are precondrtions for a farr trral and should thcrcfore be
prroritizcd.

For the transgressrons by State security forces on human rights and

dignity as witnessed by the killing of a one Yasin Kawuma in Arua on
13th August 2018, the grlevous bodrly harm occasioned unto Members of
Parhament and other suspects as well as other rndrviduals, the
Committec rccommcnds cxpcditious Justlce and accountabrlity rf the rule
of law rs to be respected and the pattern of State-orchestrated violence
stemmed,

)h

79
ENDORSEMENT OF THE REPORT OF THEADHOC COMMITTEE ON THE
CONDITION AND PLIGHT OF THE MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT AND
OTHER SUSPECTS IN DETENTION; AUGUST 2018

No. Name Deslgnatioo Slgnature

1 Hon. Amule Doreen Chairperson

2 Hon. Lubega Medard Ssegonaa Member

Hon. Atrku Bernard Member

3

4 Hon. Ssewanyana Ailan Member

4t#
5 Hon. Baryayanga Andrew Aja Member

6 Hon. Kamateeka Jovah Member

c) IL