By Spy Uganda
Meeting Parliamentary Committee on Human Rights this week, Prisons Commissioner Dr.Johnson Byabashaija said ‘psychologically tortured’ MPs, Allan Ssewanyana (Makindye West) and Muhammed Ssegirinya (Kawempe North) are in good condition as compared to when they received them.
“We treat honourable like honourable. We don’t treat them as ordinary people. Those who have come to see them can confirm that their body mass index has increased tremendously from the time when we received them,” he said.
During the meeting, Byabashaija handed over a list of 94 prisoners whom they have admitted with injuries between January 2020 and January 2022. He explained that only eight out of the 94 prisoners signed affidavits detailing how they got the injuries, while the 86 declined because ‘they were only comfortable speaking to Uganda Human Rights Commission’.
The committee chairperson, Hon. Fox Odoi said that it is likely that the victims who did not sign affidavits were tortured by other security agencies and feared dire consequences that may arise from their confessions.
Byabashaija however shocked MPs when he explained that the majority of the inmates with injuries were victims of mob justice. He added that prison authorities only stop at treating the victims without asking them how they acquired the injuries.
Meanwhile, Hon Francis Mwijukye (FDC, Buhweju County) wondered why prison authorities have not resumed arraigning prisoners physically before courts of law putting into consideration that the Covid-19 threat is now minimal.
“Physical appearances in court help prisoners psychologically; the process of taking and returning them helps the prisoners get some life outside the precincts of prison,” Mwijukye said.
He said whereas the application of virtual court appearances was understandable at the peak of the pandemic, it has now been abused thus resulting in some sort of torture and human rights violation.
Toroma County MP, Hon. Andrew Koluo said o video conferencing has at times been affected by poor network connections which disrupt and distort court proceedings.
“Sometimes the accused end up mentioning things they do not understand and they are victimized for that simply because they have not heard what the judge or magistrate is asking them due to poor network,” Koluo said.
He supported the proposal to resume physical court appearances because it also enables the accused or witnesses to meet their families.
However, Hon. Rose Obiga (NRM, Terego District) urged the MPs to embrace virtual conferencing because “it is the future.”
Hon. Odoi also endorsed virtual court proceedings saying it is becoming fashionable worldwide due to advancements in technology.
Byabashaija said that whereas the virtual conferencing system is a good cost-saving measure, it is only applicable upon the request of the court.
“Every financial year, I request for funds to take prisoners to court which is very expensive, but we have never got what we request for. So virtual courts are a good cost-saving measure and I wish we could do it more often,” Byabashaija said.
