Muhamad Yehia
Uganda’s highest court declared on Friday that the trial of civilians in military courts is unconstitutional, ordering an immediate halt to any ongoing prosecutions.
This decision brings relief to prominent opposition leader Kizza Besigye, who has been facing trial in the military’s general court martial.
His attorney, Erias Lukwago, confirmed that Besigye will not appear in court on Monday as previously planned.
Chief Justice Alphonse Owiny-Dollo stated that all charges and ongoing criminal trials involving civilians in military courts must cease immediately.
He emphasized that these cases should be transferred to civilian courts.
Besigye, a long-time critic of President Yoweri Museveni, was arrested in Kenya last November and later returned to Uganda, where he faced multiple charges related to firearms and security, some of which could result in the death penalty.
He has been held in a maximum-security facility in Kampala.
The court had earlier dismissed arguments from Besigye’s legal team questioning its authority to try civilians.
Owiny-Dollo noted that military courts lack the legal capacity to conduct fair and impartial criminal trials as mandated by the constitution.
Justice Elizabeth Musoke, another member of the panel, pointed out that military courts are only authorized to deal with disciplinary matters concerning military personnel.
Besigye’s wife, Winnie Byanyima, who leads the U.N. agency UNAIDS, has claimed that the charges against him are politically motivated, a sentiment echoed by his lawyers, who have labelled the accusations as unfounded.
Human rights advocates and opposition figures have accused Museveni’s administration of utilizing military courts to target political opponents and their supporters with politically charged allegations.
In a 2011 report, Human Rights Watch stated that Uganda’s military courts infringed on the basic rights of defendants by trying civilians and utilizing evidence acquired through torture.
The government has denied any claims of rights abuses.