DEPUTY SPEAKER, MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT BECOME LEGAL AID AMBASSADORS
- 07 August 2018 -
- Written by Laspnet
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On 31st July 2018, LASPNET in partnership with the Greater North Parliamentary Forum (GNPF) trained and inducted members of parliament as Legal Aid Ambassadors. The event held at Serena Hotel Kampala with major support from UNWomen and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) was part the ongoing campaign by LASPNET and GNPF to fast track the enactment of a legal aid policy framework in Uganda.
The training brought together notable Members of Parliament under the GNPF umbrella along with Greater representatives from East, West and Central constituencies. Development partners like the Democratic Governance Facility (DGF), United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) were also represented.
Hon. Oulanyah Jacob, the Deputy Speaker on Parliament who officiated at the closing of the event, in a moving speech quoted Isiah 33:22, “For the Lord is your Judge, The Lord is our Law giver and the Lord is our King”. In this, he reminded MPs that in a biblical or constitutional setting, Parliament lies at the center of all decisions. He emphasized that the law is vital in resolving disputes in all human relations especially in the world of “haves” and “have nots” where the latter often fall prey to many violations and are convicted due to absence of timely legal representation.
The Deputy Speaker further said that Parliament stands for the weak, poor and disadvantaged people and that it is only through formal systems and structures that facilitation of the needs and rights of the poor can be realized. He rallied MPs as representatives of the people to form alliances and have the Legal Aid Bill passed into law.
Hon. Lyandro Komakech, the Chairperson of the GNPF appreciated stakeholders present at the training for exhibiting a high degree of team spirit and resilience amidst all hiccups encountered over the years in the advocacy for the passing of the Legal Aid Bill. He specifically commended LASPNET for the relentless efforts and the DGF for their tireless support towards the realization of GNPF’s advocacy initiatives.
He stressed the importance of having MPs as Legal Aid Ambassadors and other legal frameworks in Uganda given that they are the representatives of the people entrusted to advocate and prioritize their needs particularly in access to justice.
Hon. Komakech clearly pointed out that under the National Legal Aid Law, Government of Uganda will be mandated to facilitate provision of legal aid services to the citizens particularly the very poor, vulnerable and marginalized. He implored fellow MPs to spear head the cause noting that, “this is the right thing to do, any opposition to passing of the Legal Aid Law is a struggle against common sense”.
He urged all stakeholders to build synergies, ensure mutual support and strengthen collaboration to ensure that the bill is passed given its historical consciousness and focus on the future of the country.
On her part, Ms. Anna Mutavati the Deputy Country Representative, UN Women commended Uganda for having comprehensive legislations and a point of reference for other countries in Africa. She added that as advocates for women rights and gender equality, access to legal aid services is a cornerstone to addressing evasive crimes against women, girls and men especially rural dwellers. Ms. Mutavati further emphasized the need to help people navigate the intricate justice system and recollected a case she handled as a young State Prosecutor where a witness collapsed and died from apprehence as court was in recess. She also recommended the domestication of international commitments into law especially Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Goal 5 and 16. She summed up her message this way, “To get the change we desire for women, girls and all citizens, policies must be turned into actions”.
In her remarks, Ms. Sandra Oryema, the LASPNET Board Vice Chairperson expressed her gratitude to the DGF for continuously supporting the network’s advocacy initiatives for the last 10 years. She noted that although the draft bill remained at cabinet level, proponents should not be derailed because the rigorous engagements with GNPF are bound to ensure that the Legal Aid Law is passed. She also urged MPs to engage people in their constituencies to spear head demand for the passing of the Legal Aid Bill.
Ms. Sylvia Namubiru Mukasa, the Executive Director LASPNET presented to the ambassadors the cost implications of having a legal aid vacuum in the country and highlighted key issues including the fact that access to justice cannot be realized without having proper legal frameworks/structures in place and public awareness; that legal aid should not be seen as a substitute for other economic benefits; strengthening the rule of law is a critical element in socio-economic transformation and a cornerstone to social justice; as well as the need to benchmark existing comprehensive legal aid systems of South Africa, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and Sierra Leone.
She informed members that the biggest labor resource who are majorly youth are held in prisons on mainly petty crimes. This is a withdrawn resource from the economy which would contribute a significant margin to the Gross Domestic Product and enable realization of the Country’s Vision 2040, she stated.
Ms. Namubiru also noted that a significant proportion of the country’s revenue is spent on inmate feeding, for instance, the prison population stands at about 54,322 with a daily cost of maintaining a prisoner at about Ugx 3,000 making it 162,000,000 million per day equating to over 50 billion annually. This expenditure is made to remand prisoners who compose the biggest percentage (52.3%) of the prison population, a figure that exceeds the estimated set up cost of the legal aid law given at 17.8 billion.
Mr. Aaron Besigye National Coordinator, Justice Centers Uganda who moderated the training and induction informed stakeholders that the country’s efforts to fight poverty stand to be frustrated by the existing bottlenecks within the justice system and absence of the Legal Aid Law. He explained that Uganda’s economy which is mainly dependent on agriculture with land as a major component in its output has recently faced high land conflicts and evictions that threaten not only the lives of the people but also compromises its socio-economic transformation given the reduction on productivity and its negative implication revenues.
Speaker after speaker, the members of parliament underscored the importance of the bill with some wondering why such a pro-poor legislation had stagnated for so long. Although some noticed that it may initially face resistance due to the cost and ignorance, they agreed that with such information on the costs of not having the law as presented by LASPNET, it would gain momentum and support from all legislators.
The training ended on a high note with MPs committing to support the bill once it made its way onto the floor of Parliament and with a passionate plea from the Deputy Speaker saying, “Let’s do it!”.
