Monday, January 10, 2011
STF Report Nov 2010
Legal Integrity Education Network-
LIEN
Uganda
| Students Focal Point Report -November 2010 |
1.INTRODUCTION:
In February 2010, the Legal Integrity Education Network – LIEN Uganda- a pilot project funded
by TIRI was initiated. This project seeks to promote integrity in the justice system of the country
and empower the civil society through;
Community sensitization,
Training of Local courts,
Pilot court projects and
Legal training on professional responsibility
The project has had a consistent progress in the involvement of all the partners so as to realize its
objectives. Thus in the first phase of its strategic plan it targeted the involvement of law students
in the Pro-Poor Integrity (PPI) programme carried out by TIRI and the sharing of knowledge
about PPI programme in different arenas.
The above programme was expected:
Facilitate building of a new generation of legal practitioners and court staff who have an
active role in the implementation of the process of rebuilding the integrity and
trustworthiness of the legal profession and justice system.
Enhance integrity competence in continuing development for legal practitioners and
judges.
Empower citizens and court users to claim and defend their right to have a local justice
system based on integrity, fairness, transparency and freedom from corruption.
Produce graduates who are more resistant to the contamination of corruption and
negative societal pressure at the workplace.
Effective instruction in areas of ethics, integrity and professional responsibility.
This report therefore presents an update of the performance of the lien project. It is compiled by
the Student Focal Points (SFP)- Yovani, Jesse and Zakaria, students of law at Uganda Christian
University and it aims at providing information to all the partners on the key achievements and
progress of the project in line with the proposed activities in the strategic plan. It will be noted
that despite the existence of a few stumbling blocks, the present progress is a good indicator of the
greater success to be realized in the long run. It is our hope that this report will be an inspiration to
all those that have injected their resources and energy into ensuring that this project is a success
and will as a result encourage them to inject more resources and energy into this noble cause. The
report begins with a word from Brian Dennison the lecturer behind the progress of the Tiri pilot
project in UCU and then gives reports of Student Focal Points on the progress of the project and
other activities related to Ethics and integrity in the university.
Legal Integrity Education Network-
LIEN
Uganda
CONTENTS OF REPORT:
1.
Introduction (by Yovani Manyali)
2.
A report from Brian Dennison on progress of the Integrity Course and Student
Clinical Activities
3.
A story on Integrity Conference at UCU (by Zakaria Tiberindwa)
4.
A story on Local Council Training by International Law Institute (ILI)( by
Jesse
Mugero)
5.
A story on the public lecture on legal integrity by Justice Kanyeihamba (by Zakaria
Tiberindwa).
6.
A story on the UCU Law Alumni Dinner (by Zakaria Tiberindwa)
3. Students advised to do more and talk less on
corruption
“Do more, talk less” was the message that the Commissioner General of
the Uganda Revenue Authority, Allen Kagina carried for students that
attended the integrity seminar of the Africa Challenge Foundation.
Kagina was speaking at the second annual integrity seminar at Uganda
Christian University on Friday 15th October 2010.
“My suggestion to you students is that you do more and talk less if
you are to fight corruption as you may wish to” Kagina told students
in reaction to accusing complaints raised by some students against the
government that blamed the government for largely contributing to the
perpetuation of this detestable vice in the country.
“The people who make a difference are not those who merely talk but
those who do something” Kagina emphasized.
However the Former Minister of Ethics and Integrity, Miria Matembe
applauded the students for expressing what they felt on the vice of
corruption in the country.
“I want to thank the students for letting out the steam” Matembe said
amidst ululations of students
“That venting out of anger reflects what is happening and that is good for
our country.”
Nevertheless Matembe was quick to suggest that the students should
adopt both “proactive and reactive” methods to fight the vice noting
that the greatest responsibility to change the image of the country in
light of the high levels of corruption in the country lay on the
students.
“Our generation has messed up the country but you the young people
have no right not to change things from the state in which they are,”
the former Minister said.
The Director of Education and Prevention of Corruption in the office
of the Inspector General of Government Jules Rwereeza emphasized the
fact that the fight against corruption is not for one or two people in
the government but a venture that requires concerted effort.
“Fighting against Corruption is a duty for all of us because it
affects us all anyway and once we realize this, it is then that we
shall realize how much of a duty we all have in the fight against
corruption,” Rweereza said.
He also urged students to uphold integrity as a means of building
their character.
“I have always told students that integrity is what will define you
after you have left university. It is not the academic papers but your
level of integrity." Rwereeza asserted
The Africa Challenge Foundation also awarded some leaders in Uganda's
social, political and religious circles for upholding integrity. Some
of the leaders that were awarded included the Chaiperson of the Public
Accounts Committee Nandala Mafabi, the Commissioner General of URA,
Allen Kagina, the Inspector General of Police Kale Kayihura the Head
Pastor of Watoto Church Garry Skinner and the Former Minister of
Ethics and Integrity Miria Matembe.
The people awarded for integrity by the foundation were chosen by
students from 22 universities in Uganda through filling in
questionnaires in which the students were required to name the people
that they thought had a high sense of integrity in the community.
The Founder Member and team leader of the foundation, Ivan Atuyambe said that they put up such awards such that they would
show the students that there are people out there that have integrity and whom students should look up to such that they too can
equally be people of integrity.
The seminar attracted over five hundred students from over five universities amongst which were Uganda Christian University,
Nkumba University, Kampala International University, Mbarara University and Gulu University among others.
4. More Ugandans to get justice as a result of the PPI
programme
The International Law Institute-African Centre for Legal Excellence (ILI-ACLE) is implementing the Pro Poor Integrity
programme which is funded by UK‟s Department for International Development. ILI-ACLE was engaged in this programme by
TIRI. In the implementation of Phase I of the PPI programme in Uganda, ILI-ACLE has worked in collaboration with several
partners including the Uganda Debt Network; the Makerere Centre for Applied Ethics; the Foundation for Human Rights
Initiative, and Uganda Christian University (UCU) Clinical Class students. As a result, ILI-ACLE has become a partner of the
judiciary working to improve service delivery in the Local Council Courts to enable their proper functioning and integrity thus
availing justice for the poor. Mugero Jesse spoke with Miss Neha Pandya who serves as the Director-Programmes and Special
Projects of the institute about ILI-ACLE and how far it has gone with implementing the PPI programme in Uganda. And here is
the content of their discussion.
Jesse
:
May I request to know, who Miss Neha Pandya is?
Miss Neha Pandya :
I am an Indian who was born in the U.S.A. I am a lawyer by profession. I received my Juris Doctorate from
Temple University James E. Beasley School of Law, Philadelphia, PA, a bachelor of Arts degree in Economics
and Metropolitan Studies, cum laude from New York University, New York, I believe in using the law as a
tool of empowerment for our society.
Jesse
:
I guess you have been working with ILI-ACLE for some time. What prompted you to work with ILI-ACLE
and particularly in Uganda?
Miss Neha Pandya :
I work with ILI-ACLE because of what it stands for, more so its values such as commitment to building
sustainable legal systems in countries where it operates. It does this through training programs for instance the
training programs for local council courts in Uganda. I chose Uganda in particular because the first country I
visited in Africa was Uganda in the summer of 2006 while studying law.
Jesse
:
I understand ILI-ACLE is implementing the PPI programme. What is the objective of that programme?
Miss Neha Pandya :
The principal objective of PPI programme is to ease access to justice for all people especially the people at the
grass roots. That is why emphasis is put on training local council members because they are the ones who
enforce justice at the grass roots in the country.
Jesse
:
So in line with the objectives, has the programme registered any achievements so far?
Miss Neha Pandya :
Yes, it has made some achievements for example in June 2010, ILI-ACLE while implementing the PPI
programme, organized a training for local council leaders and is currently partnering with UCU to train the
University students of the Legal Aid clinical class in matters related to local council courts. Besides ILI-ACLE
is training Local council court members and as a result such members have acquired more skills that are
relevant to their work in the courts.
Jesse
:
And are there any challenges that ILI-ACLE has encountered while implementing the programme in Uganda?
Miss Neha Pandya :
Yes, some of these challenges include: the fact that very few members of local council courts turned up for
the training. They were less than 8 despite Uganda having over 80 districts that are manned by various local
council leaders and who needed to be represented at this training.
Besides Local council members are not facilitated at their places of work and this de-motivates them from
participating in some of these trainings.
Then, the already trained local council members need follow up and yet that is always an expensive venture.
And in upcountry districts like Gulu, there is a problem of the NGO syndrome. This means that for example in
such an area there are so many NGOs but which do not co-operate with one another. As a result the
communities they serve tend not to benefit from the NGOs and fail to be transformed into better communities
by the NGOs like it is always anticipated by the populace. Such a tendency usually taints the image of most
NGOs which has made the work of implementing the programme harder to do in such districts.
Jesse :
What does ILI-ACLE hope to be the overall outcome of the PPI programme in Uganda?
Miss Neha Pandya :
ILI-ACLE hopes that over time when various trainings are given to students of UCU Legal aid clinical class
and Local council members there will be increased access to justice in Uganda especially in rural areas where
l
ocal council courts usually operate.
Jesse :
Apart from UCU, is ILI-ACLE partnering with any other University in implementing the PPI programme?
Miss Neha Pandya :
No, it only deals with UCU at the moment.
Jesse :
And what is so special about UCU, that of all Universities, ILI particularly chose UCU‟s Law school as a
partner?
Miss Neha Pandya :
UCU „s law school has distinguished itself from other law schools in Uganda by setting up a more practical l
legal aid clinical program unlike the law schools of other Universities.
Besides UCU‟s Law faculty puts a lot of emphasis on integrity training which also puts it above the rest in
terms of the best University to partner with in this programme since other universities do not put as much
emphasis on integrity training.
Jesse :
Are students positive towards the study of integrity and in case they are not, do you as ILI-ACLE try to help
these students change their attitude towards integrity?
Miss Neha Pandya :
Students are positive about the need for integrity and access to justice in the legal profession. However, for
those that may not be, their attitudes are changed by emphasizing to them The Bangalore principles of Judicial
conduct which include Judicial independence; impartiality, integrity, propriety, equality, competence and
diligence.
Jesse :
Does ILI-ACLE do any follow up on students and Local council leaders after training?
Miss Neha Pandya :
We keep in touch with the students and local council leaders mainly through email. However, since this is
our first group of students to be trained we cannot tell how effective the follow-up is. For the local council
leaders, we always ask them to identify the next potential trainees and when they identify those potential
trainees, they link up with ILI-ACLE such that ILI-ACLE can organize a training session for those potential
trainees. Never the less I cannot deny the fact that following up local council leaders is quite challenging since
it is such an expensive venture.
Jesse :
Thank you very much Miss Neha Pandya
Miss Neha Pandya :
You are welcome
Some of the participants in the Integrity conference
listen to a speaker at the conference
Dancing to the tune of integrity. Pupils of Triple P
Primary school entertain visitors at the integrity
conference
Former minister of ethics and Integrity Miria
Matembe speaks at the conference
The secret of integrity. The Dean of faculty of Law
Pamela Tibihikira– Kalyegira whispers to the
Commissioner General of URA Allen Kagina during the
conference
Students‟Focal Point Report -November 2010
2. Areport on the Progress of the Integrity Course and
Student Clinical
Activities
Five months have passed since our stakeholder committee completed the integrity course design workshop at the Grand Imperial Hotel.
Since that time several important steps have occurred.
First, a syllabus was designed in accordance with the direction provided by the workshop participants. The prototype syllabus is attached as
an Exhibit to this report. The syllabus is based on a twelve-week model. It incorporates the themes and parameters for content that the
stakeholders developed during the workshop.
Second, work has begun on developing a textbook for the course. The text book will be a twelve chapter book aligned with the twelve
week course. The editorial committee has identified several authors for the book chapters. Authors include individuals in academics and
the judiciary. Of particular interest is a commitment from Prof. George W. Kanyeihamba to draft the two chapters concerning the role of the
judiciary. We are also waiting for confirmation of participation from another luminary of the Ugandan bench. Initial drafts of chapters will
be submitted in the next month. The hope is to have a textbook completed by July of 2011.
Efforts have been made to establish an educational committee although this committee is taking longer to organize than would be hoped.
The purpose of the committee is to allow other leaders in legal education in Uganda as well as other more general stakeholders in the
Ugandan educational system to oversee the development of the course and provide input. If you are aware of individuals who would be
willing and able members of such an educational committee please contact Brian Dennison by e-mail at dbriandennison@gmail .com or by
phone at 0777852885.
At this time the course itself has yet to be offered. The Faculty of Law at Uganda Christian University hopes to offer the course by the
September semester of the 2011academic year. Of course our hope is that other law schools will choose to offer the course when the is
completed and the course approved by the requisite administrative bodies in Uganda.
Student Clinical Activities
One of the key elements in the LIEN initiative is the involvement of Uganda University Clinical students in community outreach and
sensitization. Since April of 2010 there have been many opportunities for law students to participate in community directed activities. UCU
law students designed and presented community sensitizations for community members in Iganga, Mukono, Kampala, and Kanshaka. UCU
students also made presentations to schools in Mukono, Entebbe and Gulu.
Additional opportunities are presenting themselves as partners in the LIEN project are incorporating UCU law students into their
community outreach. The Institute for International Law is in the process of training ten clinical students to serve as community
sensitization volunteers in Tororo, Iganga, Bushenyi and Ssembabule. (Please see a more detailed report in this training in a story by Jesse
Mugero in this edition of the Student Focal Report) Foundation for Human Rights Initiative is hoping to train 40 law students to serves as
community sensitization volunteers in those same districts.
In addition to community and school sensitization efforts law students from UCU have continued to serve the community with other clinical
partners. Law students continue to assist Uganda Christian Lawyers Fraternity by providing students to conduct prisoner interviews.
Students also assist International Justice Mission through the provision of legal research, client intake interviews and assistance in will
writing clinics.
Presently the clinical program at Uganda Christian University is working on the launch of a new program called Streams of Justice. This
program will conduct three-day seminars for justice leaders in various districts of the Uganda. The Justice Streams program hopes to
provide local justice leaders with the knowledge and materials they need to empower their communities through legal education.
6.A night of ethical Jazz at the launch of UCU Law Alumni
Association
Someone can surely question what Jazz has got to do with Ethics and Integrity but there is no doubt that the beautiful manner in
which Isaiah Katumwa blew his saxophone to entertain guests at the inaugural dinner and the launch of the Uganda Christian
University Law Alumni Association was one of the highlights of that historical night.
Nonetheless that cannot undermine the fact that ethics and integrity remained the gist of the occasion that was organized under the
theme “Integrity in the legal practice” as various speakers strongly urged the guests at the dinner to become part of the battle against
the declining levels of ethics and integrity in the legal profession.
Atenyi Tibaijuka an experienced legal practitioner with Tibaijuka and co Advocates and also the Chief Guest that graced the
occasion told guests at the dinner that the public perception of the legal profession for the 25 years that he had spent in legal practice
had been steadily moving from bad to worse over the years.
“During these 25 years that I have been in practice I have observed a shift in the public perception of the legal profession.” Tibaijuka
told guests.
“Originally we were referred to as liars and the accountants were referred to as thieves but today it is us the lawyers who are also
referred to as the thieves.” The experienced legal practitioner said.
He said that integrity in the profession had been undermined by what he referred as “both internal and external factors.”
Tibaijuka noted that the “internal factors” that have caused the decline in the ethical standards of the profession are greed and peer
pressure amongst members of the legal profession and cautioned guests against allowing these two factors to influence them into
unethical behavior in their legal practice.
“Greed should not compel you to swallow what might suffocate you.” He cautioned.
Tibaijuka said apart from that, some lawyers were being pushed into unethical behavior simply because such lawyers spend more
than they earn which is as a result of trying to maintain a high standard of living that some of their peers in the profession maintain.
“When you begin spending more what you are earning, that is when you start stealing from your clients” Tibaijuka said.
“So learn to leave within your means.” He quickly added.
He said the external factors that have negatively affected the ethical standards in the profession include both the unscrupulous clients
and corrupt public officials.
“For instance I had this client who once told me that he only comes to me when he has a straight forward matter and that when he has
a dirty deal he knows where to find the dirty lawyers.” Tibaijuka reminisced a personal experience he had had with a client.
“If it is a dirty deal a good advocate will be able to let go of the dirty deal because some of these deals involving clients and public
officials should be left to go however enticing.” Tibaijuka asserted.
Similarly Nicholas Opiyo of AA Legal Consultants and co advocates and also an Alumni of UCU‟s law school narrated how he and
some of his colleagues had resisted the temptation of undertaking some underhand methods of quickly accumulating wealth in the
course of their legal practice and how that as a result had made them live happier lives as opposed to those that had succumbed to the
temptation.
Opiyo also urged the faculty of Law, UCU to take advantage of the Alumni Association as a means through which students that are
still pursuing their degree can be encouraged to face the various challenges of the profession through integrity.
“Make us of use to the faculty because through this association there is a lot that we can offer to the students at the university.”
Opiyo suggested.
The Dean of Faculty of Law, UCU, Pamela Tibihikira- Kalyegira
welcomed the suggestion and urged the UCU Alumni to participate
in the mentorship programme of the faculty which is aimed at
helping shape students into people that are strong enough
to overcome the various challenges of the profession when they
leave university.
“You are a very important part of our work. We now have a
mentorship programme which is constrained by the fact that
there are so many students that have to be mentored yet we
have very few lecturers to mentor them effectively.”
Tibihikira- Kalyegira told the UCU Alumni.
“That is how we you could come on board and help us make
this venture more effective.” She added.
The inaugural dinner and the launch of the association attracted
over fifty guests that included not only the Alumni of UCU but
students and lecturers of Uganda Christian University among other
guests.
The association presently has an interim Chairperson who is
Samuel Kiriaghe a lecturer at the UCU law faculty and hopes to
vote for a fully fledged chairperson soon.
5. Kanyeihamba slams perpetrators of unethical
conduct in legal profession
The Retired Judge of the Supreme Court, Justice George Kanyeihamba had no kind words for lawyers that have failed to stand up to the
ethical expectations of the legal profession and have in effect become perpetrators of unethical conduct in the profession.
While addressing students of Uganda Christian University during a public lecture that ran under the theme "Legal Ethics and Poor
Services in the Legal Profession," Kanyeihamba said that in Uganda the people are largely dissatisfied with what the lawyers are doing
because of the widespread unethical conduct in the profession.
"In Uganda today there are thousands of loud voices of dissatisfaction both in the public and the government for the poor functions
performed by members of the legal profession." Kanyeihamba said
He blamed the high levels of unethical conduct in the profession on lawyers being more interested in serving the interests of the rich in
society as opposed to helping the poor access justice.
"In Uganda lawyers continue to draw most of their clientele from wealthy property owners, business and industrial giants plus the rich
but suspected crooks." Kanyeihamba told students.
"Unfortunately some of these lawyers because of this end up becoming rich through means other than legitimate or legal."
“Because of that they are imprisoned in such cocoons of rich people which makes them view anything beyond their fees and charges
with abject indifference." the retired judge said.
Kanyeihamba said that to him lawyers that serve the interests of the rich at the expense of the poor are lawyers that are not worth their
salt.
He said that it is unfortunate that some of the lawyers that are taken to be reputable and rich lawyers in town are those that obtain their
riches through means other than legal.
"One can be the richest lawyer but if one obtains his riches through helping the crooks secure their loot then such a lawyer in my
opinion is not a good lawyer." Kanyeihamba asserted.
The Justice cited over-charging fees and expenses as the one of the commonest forms of unethical behavior in the legal profession.
Kanyeihamba noted that several practitioners have been reported as charging excessive fees and expenses basing on concocted lies that
they need more money to pay a bribe to the presiding judicial officer to rule in their favor.
The retired Judge said in other cases lawyers of a loosing party may even collude with the lawyer representing the successful party in
litigation such that the lawyers of the loosing party do not oppose the excessive fees claimed by the lawyer of the successful party under
a secret pact.
He said that when those fees are paid, the lawyers of the loosing party then get a percentage of the costs given in court.
Atenyi Tibaijuka an experienced legal practitioner speaks after
unveiling the logo of the newly created UCU Law Almuni
Assciation at the dinner that officially launched the Association
as the Dean of Faculty of Law Pamela Tibihikira– Kalyegira
looks on.
Some of the notable guests that attended the dinner; from right to left. Sam Munobe, Lecturer at the Faculty of Law UCU, Brian
Dennison Lecturer UCU, Pamela Tibihikira– Kalyegira, Dean Faculty of Law UCU, Atenyi Tibaijuka Experienced Legal
Practitioner with Tibaijuka and co advocates, Samuel Kiriaghe Interim Chaiperson of UCU Law Almuni Association
This report is prepared by Tiberindwa Zakaria, Mugero Jesse and Manyali Yovani
Contacts
+256 775 03 93 16
+256 794 64 30 94
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Draft 10/3/2010
Legal Integrity Education Network
LIEN Uganda Mission
Pilot Project with UCU Faculty of Law
Kampala February 14th – 21st 2010
MISSION REPORT
By
Rafolisy Patrick, Head of Integrity Africa, Tiri
Petter Langseth, LIEN consultant
Kennedy Otieno, Coordinator PPI East Africa, Tiri
/
5th March, 2010
TABLE OF CONTENTS
A. INTRODUCTION
According to the TOR attached to the present report, the mission’s main objective was to introduce the LIEN approach to the legal community in Uganda and focus on a coalition building and strategic preparation of the pilot initiative with the UCU Faculty of Law and other key local stakeholders (Judiciary, Uganda Law Society,)
The expected main outputs of the mission included:
1. A list of personalities committed to meet the visiting team, agenda and schedule of arranged meetings
2. A strategy document specifying among others the: (i) concept, (ii) orientation, (iii) approaches, (iv) resources priorities and (v) measurement of the LIEN Project with the UCU
3. Grant agreement to UCU signed
4. MOU with relevant partners signed
5. Letter of commitment signed by the hon. Chief Justice Ben Odoke
6. A Mission Completion Report including: (i) main events, (ii) agreed LIEN Uganda strategy, (iii) eventually agreement documents and (iv) agreed action plan involving all key stakeholders.
The present report summarizes the activities of the mission and presents the achievements in regards to the expected outputs and objectives of the LIEN Uganda project.
B. COALITION BUILDING
It was agreed between the mission members that if the main beneficiaries of the pilot exercise were the future law graduates, it would be more responsible to also prepare the environment in which they would practice their integrity values after the law school. To make this a more realistic project, the mission decided to meet and enroll support of key stakeholders that can contribute to the integrity education during and after the law school. The outcome of this efforts was that in addition to UCU as a key stakeholder and partner, the mission identified: (i) the Judiciary (represented by the Chairman of the Judiciary Integrity Committee, Head of the pilot Magistrate Courts and the Chief Registrar of the High Court, (ii) Uganda Law Society, (iii) International Law Institute (ILI), and (iv) Foundation for Human Rights Initiatives (FHRI)
1. Meeting with Augustine Ruzindana, Former Head of IGG and (APNAC)
a. Issues discussed
The discussion evolved around what key stakeholders could be instrumental in advancing the LIEN project in Uganda. It was agreed that retired judges with outstanding integrity and professional records and reputation should be invited to participate in the education both at the university and in selected courts where law students should be invited to attend the court proceedings and to discuss the cases with the judge. The example of such a judge was Hon Justice Georges Kanyeihamba
The role of civil society and the judiciary overseeing the governance and transparency needed in the extractive industries in the country, was discussed and the mission agreed that too many African countries had experienced serious problems due to lack of integrity, transparency and accountability in the extractive industries. The mission agreed to raise this issue with Norwegian Embassy that is in the process of launching an Oil for Development Project in Uganda.
Ruzindana was also concerned that Uganda so far had not joined the Extractive Industries Transpareny Initiative (EITI) and that recent pressure from the civil society to increase the transparency around the ongoing oil exploration had been rejected by the President and later blocked in the courts.
On the collaboration between African Parlamentarians Network Against Corruption (APNAC) and Tiri in the PPI project, Ruzindana remarked that although he had been given the mandate to continue this collaboration by the new Chairman of APNCA, Tiri has recently been dealing directly with the APNAC Executive Director.
Ruzindana also raised the issue of empowering the civil society to oversee the oil exploration in Uganda. The mission promised to raise this issue with the institutions in Norway responsible for the oil for development program in Uganda to find out if any resources are earmarked t
b. Agreements reached
- The mission agreed to look into the relationship between Tiri and APNAC
- The mission also agreed to raise the issue regarding Uganda joining the EITI as
part of an effort to increase the increase the transparency and accountability in the extractive industries.
- Finally the mission agreed to find out to what extent the Oil for Development Program has allocated resources to empower the civil society to oversee the extractive industries
2. Meeting with Hon Chief Justice of Uganda, Ben Odoki
a. Topics discussed:
- The implementation of the LIEN Project in Uganda
- Electoral Justice Principal Project
- Support for the Judiciary in Liberia
- Future collaboration with the Judicial Integrity Group (JIG)
b. The Implementation of the LIEN Project in Uganda
(i) Background
The Chief Justice was given a briefing of the Tiri Missions meeting with different stakeholders from Uganda Christian University (UCU). He was given a copy of the draft LIEN Strategy Document discussed and agreed with the UCU earlier in the day.
The CJ agreed with the basic concept of the LIEN program and explained how he had already initiated similar integrity activities in the judiciary in Uganda.
He explained that Uganda already was involved in the Justice Law and Order Sector (JLOS) project with support of key donors and that he himself was the Chairman of this project.
He also mentioned the fact that the Uganda Judiciary had worked hard to introduced a rather advanced IT function across the judiciary including an impressive web page presenting all their excellent work. The mission recognized the quality of their webpage and many of the rather advanced related initiatives already underway with the Chief Justice strong support
Regarding involving key partners he suggested: UCU, Law Society, the Inspectors of the Courts function and the Law Development Centre. He also suggested that the mission should meet with Chief Registrar of the High Court and Justice GM Okello (Chairman, Judiciary Integrity Committee)
(ii) Agreements reached with the CJ regarding the LIEN project:
- Judiciary will be a key partner in implementation of the LIEN program in Uganda
starting with 2 pilot districts (Mukono and Iganga) with two pilot courts in each pilot district. He was pleased with selection of the pilots as his former assistant had just been promoted to be the Chief Magistrate in the Iganga District.
o He agreed to host a meeting inviting all key stakeholders/partners to finalize the LIEN Strategic Framework paper and to launch the project 19/02/10 14.30.
o For the actual implementation of the LIEN project in the pilot districts, he suggested the involvement of the Inspectors of the Courts.
o He also agreed to review and write the foreword to judicial integrity publications presented to the UCU related to the LIEN Project
o He will review and sign a letter of commitment regarding the implementation of the LIEN Program in Uganda
o The CJ will present the LIEN Pilot Project in Uganda and the lessons learned from this project to the Judicial Integrity Group
o He welcomed the development and pilot testing of a Court User Charter informing the public about their rights and their obligation. He suggested to build on the existing judicial service charter.
- He accepted the four levels of code of conduct implementation:
+ Sending the revised Code of Conduct out to all Judges and court staff (done)
+ Assure that the Code of Conduct has be read and understood by all key staff in the judiciary.
+ That the Code of Conduct Principles had to be accepted and internalized by all key parties and that
+ The Code of Conduct has to be enforced
3. Meeting with the African Centre for Legal Excellence (ILI)
a. People Met
- Swithin Munyantwali, Executive Director,
- Neha Pandya Deputy Director – Programmes and Special Projects
- Debora Rogo, Assistant Programme Coordinator.
b. Issues discussed
The mission proposed the participation of UCU law student in its PPI initiative, ILI will consider to have an intervention in one magistrate court for example in Iganga in addition to those planned to the local council courts (LCC).
Our interlocutor explained the relevance of the intervention at LCC level, in terms of access to justice, and the benefit of the law student to participate in working on the integrity performance of the selected LCCs. It was also agreed that there was need for much more information in local languages regarding the laws and other relevant tools that could help the LCCs in doing a better job.
c. Agreements reached
- ILI will consider to work on the ethical framework of the selected LCC in addition to the others training activities already planned within PPI. In agreement with the UCU Faculty of Law, the targeted student will be invited to fully participate in ILI activities including the development of the internal integrity measures, tools and methodology.
- ILI agreed to participate in the curriculum development process planned in LIEN pilot with UCU.
- The cost of engaging the law students to ILI activities in PPI will be planned and added to the PPI phase II budget.
- ILI will send a representative to participate in the first stakeholders meeting planned to be held at the Chief Justice’s Chamber on Friday 19th afternoon.
4. Meeting with Uganda Law Society (ULC)
a. People Met
- Sylvia Mukasa, Executive Director ,
- Grace Babihuga, Manager, Professional Development
b. Issues discussed
The interlocutors found the project relevant because of the increasing demand of integrity measures and competence in the law profession.
The ULS has a long experience of legal aid practices under a project supported by the Norwegian Bar Association and it was discussed how to expose UCU law students to law offices with an excellent integrity and professional reputation. ULS was willing to identify law offices with a good reputation.
Other activities related to integrity was also discussed, such as: (i) the introduction of a mandatory professional ethics course, (ii) pro bono requirement, and (iii) the amendment of the advocates acts and performance tracking of lawyers.
The differentiation of role between the Law Council, disciplinary body for lawyers, and the ULS was discussed and explained. It was agreed that the Law Council should be involved in the LIEN project and they were invited to attend the Stakeholder meeting planned later in the week.
The idea of having a legal service charter coupled with a citizen charter was found as very attractive and necessary and it was agreed to be considered as practicing opportunity for law student to participate in the development and implementation of these very important integrity measures.
c. Agreements reached
+ ULS will help identify model lawyers to mentor or educate law students
+ ULS will participate in the curriculum development process
+ ULS is willing to collaborate with UCU Faculty of Law in the work of amending the Advocate Acts
+ Tiri mission will confirm the agenda and timing of the stakeholders meeting on Friday 19th for ULS to plan the participation of its Chairman
#
5. Meeting with DANIDA (Human Rights and Good Governance Programme)
a. People Met;
- Dr Katja Kerschbaumer, Advisor Access to Justice;
- Modoi Musa, Programme Coordinator Access to Justice
- Walakira Winfred, Programme Officer Legal Aid Basket Fund (LABF)
b. Issues discussed
Donors assistance in the justice sector in Uganda is through basket funds such under the JLOS programme and the LABF but DANIDA has been assisting the Judiciary separately for 15 years now. Even tough Integrity is recognized as a main focus of their assistance, it has not so far not been considered as the main focus.
Despite progress in the sectors, still much improvement is needed and the integrity issue is an important one. Specifically, concerns were raised regarding: (i) the professionalism (work duties) of magistrates outside Kampala, (ii) monitoring of judicial ethics, (iii) scoring system, (iv) economic driven attitudes, (v) culture of extra benefits and (vi) the questionable performance of the Judicial Service Committee.
It was concluded that there is currently no recent study on the public trust on courts, and DANIDA also agreed that they had not established a baseline against which they could monitor the performance of their different initiatives.
There seems to be a need for strong coordination among the donors and with the national stakeholders. Other contacts of donors’ officials working in the sectors has by the way been provided.
It is unlikely for a University to apply for and receive financial support from DANIDA under their current project on justice sector.
c. Agreements reached
The documentation and data related to the judiciary project assisted by DANIDA can be made accessible to law students doing their research and participating in the LIEN project.
6. Meeting with NORAD
a. People Met
- Samuel Kajoba, Senior Programme Officer
- Pettersen, Firste Secretary at the Embassy
b. Issues discussed
The mission presented the LIEN program and Mr Kajoba welcomed this new initative as very important in Uganda
Judicial integrity and rule of law was seen as key challenges facing Uganda and it was agreed that lots of work was needed in this area. The mission was made aware of similar project tried launched by Jussformidling- Lions Bergen to address the issues of judicial integrity as part of the education of future lawyers. The mission later received the description of this program from the Embassy and PL will follow up with the responsible Norwegian institutions during his visit to Norway in March 2010.
The mission also had questions regarding the planned Oil for Development project financed by the Norway. Mr Kajoba agreed to set up a meeting with the first secretary at the Embassy, responsible for this project.
PL met with the First Secretary at the Norwegian Embassy, Per Johansen, who responsible for the coordination regarding the Oil for Development Project. The mission was informed that Norway was about to finalize the agreement for the Oil for Development Project and when asked to what extent the EITI was part of the agreement, the mission was informed that the Project Description was of the Oil for Development (OfD) Project was not perfect and according to the First Secretary there was no conditionality in the OfD agreement that Uganda had to join the EITI
c. Agreements reached
- It was agreed that PL would follow up with the Oil for Development Project in Oslo
March 2010 (done)
- The mission also agreed with Mr Kajoba that we would contact the Jussformidling-
Lions Bergen to if they would be interested in the LIEN Uganda Project
7. Dinner with the Hon Chief Justice and the Chairperson of the JIC
a. Issues discussed
The Judiciary Integrity Committee is an advisory body assisting judges and judicial officers in promoting integrity in the profession. Members are going on tour to meet professionals and the citizen to advance the Committee`s agenda. The professionals seem to be open and receptive of the mission of the Committee.
The Chairman expressed the desire to know more about the Tiri methodologies to advance integrity in judicial setting. It has been clarified that Tiri is only facilitating and supporting partners to find the appropriate methodologies for their context.
b. Agreements reached
The Chairman of the JIC agreed to:
- participate in the stakeholders meeting on Friday the 19th and
- participate in the curriculum development process
8. Meeting with the Law Development Centre (LDC)
a. People Met
- Elijahm Wante, Executive Director
b. Issues discussed
The LDC in its curriculum for initial education of lawyers has professional ethics component and integrity among the topic discussed. It trains also other judicial officers in continuing education.
The Executive Director is also member of the Law Council and was interested in involving LIEN Uganda to strengthen the focus on integrity in the legal education.
c. Agreements reached
The LDC will be happy to collaborate on the curriculum development process and need a formal request from Tiri to be able to do so. Upon this request, the mission will be linked to the trainer in charge of the professional ethics for collaboration perspective.
9. Meeting with GTZ
a. People Met
Diana Doris Akiidii, Consultant Good Governance
b. Issues discussed
In the review of the donors assistance and coordination on good governance, it has been noted that DFID is chairing the donor working group on good governance and it would be important to meet with the officer in charge. A meeting of the group was planned and it could be a great opportunity for the mission to present LIEN there.
GTZ assistance in governance will be ending soon and no other initiatives will be supported under this assistance.
c. Agreements reached
The interlocutor agreed to talk with the DFID governance person for a meeting and to put LIEN in the group agenda during the meeting.
10. Travel to the Iganga District
a. Meeting at the Iganga Chief Magistrate Court with the (FHRI)
(i) People Met
- Chief Magistrate
- Magistrate Grade 1
- Magistrate Grade 2
(ii) Issues discussed
Common integrity challenges faced by magistrates and court staff have been discussed and one of them was agreed to be the lack of professionalism regarding: (i) work attendance (many who are working across Uganda have their families in Kampala and spend long weekends there resulting in a 3 days working week) , (ii) enforcement of code of conduct, (iii) .
Insufficient knowledge on legal matters and the understanding of the judicial system has been seen to be the cause of low public trust in the courts and the judiciary as a whole. The meeting concluded that it is practically impossible for a Chief magistrate to supervise the many LCCs under his/her responsibility and the practice is to systematically reject cases mishandled by LCCs.
One interesting point raised during discussion was the fact that Courts improving their performance and thereby the public trust in the courts, are likely to see an increase in workload as a result. It was agreed that the judiciary should be flexible in increasing the staffing to keep up with the increased workload to avoid the otherwise negative effects on a courts doing a good job.
Some integrity measures such as… has been suggested and can be useful for students to participate.
Another interesting point raised during the discussion was the fact that the public perception of the judiciary is based on the work of the LCCs as much as the Magistrate Courts and a general improvement of the public trust in the legal system will only be possible if the performance of the LCCs and the Magistrate Courts.
(iii) Agreements reached
- It has been acknowledged that without serious care to the LCC performance, the perception of the judiciary will not improve despite efforts to reform at formal courts.
- The Court in Iganga was also interested in the pilot testing of tools that could improve the public understanding of their rights and the work of the courts including: (i) the development and pilot testing of a Court User Charter, (ii) improved information about the law through the radio or through written material, both in local languages.
- The court in Iganga would be happy to welcome students to participate in their activities and the integrity agenda.
b. Meeting at the Iganga Local Council Court (LCC)
(i) People Met
Chairmen (around 12) of LCC in Iganga District
(ii) Issues discussed
Common misbehavior dealt by LCCs are theft, defilement, corruption and adultery. They apply the law according to common sense.
Challenges faced by LCC in administrating justice are: (i) lack of training, (ii) adequate resources in keeping records, (iii) fees charged to the litigants, (iv) relationship with the magistrate courts, (v) lack of access to relevant legal information in local language; (vi) lack of a code of conduct for the LCC members also in local language.
High trust level of community members to the LCC seems to be due to: (i) the proximity to the court itself, (ii) the respect for and trust in the LCC representatives from their own community, (iii) the reconciliation approach and (iv) the understandable language used.
The LCC representatives felt strongly the need for more access to the (i) Law, (ii) important cases and (iii) Code of conduct all in local language.
They also welcomed the development and dissemination of Court User Charter to educate the court users about their rights.
Participation of law students to the improvement of LCCs integrity performance and their activities is generally welcomed.
(iii) Agreements reached
- The students are welcomed to contribute to the translation of the legal
framework of the LCC to major local languages and to the right awareness raising of the community members.
- The LCC representatives also welcomed the pilot testing of (i) Code of Conduct for the members of the LCC, (ii) the mandate and jurisdiction of the LCC and (iii) a Court User Charter, all in local language.
c . Meeting with Teaching Staff at the Bugweri College School Idudi
(i) People Met
- Kibedi James Richard, School Director
- School Principal
- 3 teachers
(ii) Issues discussed
Schools face high rate of drop-out and most of the time the causes are from the parents who still need sensitization on the importance of education.
Having law students teaching law to high school students (street law type) are welcomed and even the teaching staff would like to benefit from such a course. It was expressed as important that the parents should also be targeted by the law and integrity education and that such training would be most appropriated if done in local language.
(iii) Agreement Reached
It was agreed that the mission would coordinate with UCU to see to what
extent Law Students could be involved in a project at the Bugweri College
School Idudi
d. Meeting with Tiri Buwanda Community Centre for Integrity (TBCCI), Kanengo
(i) People Met
- Moses Kyewalyanga, coordinator
- Executive Committee and Staff members
- Local Councilors
- 300-400 Community members of all ages
(ii) Issues discussed
A series of speeches described the achievement and the action plan of the TBCCI which was started in 2009. The Community wanted to start with post primary education.
It was reported that thanks to empowerment facilitated by PPI project, the community was able to make the case for a new school financed by local government funds. At the time of our visit to the community, we witnessed the construction of the new school by military engineer unit.
The mission planted two trees for the integrity center on the land given by the community to set up the Integrity Center office.
11. Meeting with the Judicial Service Commission (JSC)
a. People Met
Henry Kyemba, Member (non judicial)
b. Issues discussed
The Commission is the regulatory body of judges and magistrates and the discussion was around the smooth transition of law graduates to the profession with the likelihood to find support at the workplace when behaving in lines with infused values from Law school.
It was also acknowledged that it is unfair to give wrong expectation to law students on the integrity status of the professions and let them know the reality. It is therefore necessary to encourage all the involved parties to learn from the Ugandan mistakes in the past rather than those lessons learned from other countries.
The meeting agreed that there is need for improve the enforcement of the code of conduct and to start a process in the pilot courts with the testing of the situation regarding the four levels of the Coded of conduct:
- access to the Code of Conduct
- understanding of the content of the CoC
- accepting the content of the CoC
- fair, transparent and consistent enforcement of the CoC
The meeting also agreed that rule of law is critical for the development of Uganda and that the code of conduct was, despite many good initiatives launched by the judicial service commission, not enforced sufficiently. As a result judicial staff were not enforcing rule of law resulting in low public trust in the courts.
It was also agreed that increased focus on integrity in the law schools was an excellent initiative that the judicial service commission welcomed and was willing to support.
c. Agreements reached
- Upon request to the Chairman, the record of the Committee on the disciplinary cases will be open to the law students for research and case studies.
- The Judicial Service Commission was willing to join the effort to increase the performance of the pilot courts
- The Judicial Service Commission was also willing to help facilitate the increased enforcement of Code of Conducts in the pilot courts and to pilot test a Court User Chart to educate the courts users understanding of their rights
12. Meeting with the Flavia Senoga Anglin Chief Registrar of the High Court
a. Issues discussed
1. The progresses in the integrity movement at the lower courts and the role of the Chief registrar in the regulation was well described by the Chief Registrar (CR).
2. The issue of absenteeism of magistrates posted in courts outside Kampala was also discussed and presented as a key challenge facing the judiciary,
3. The meeting also discussed the challenges facing judiciary due to the lack of enforcement of the existing code of conduct.
4. The CR described how the judiciary under the strong leadership of the Chief Justice, hd enforced
5. The Chief Registrar welcomed the introduction of integrity in the Law Schools and agreed that increased interface between law students and well run model courts would be an important aspect of integrity training for the students
6. Several integrity measures have been suggested and could be of benefit of the law students such as…
b. Agreements reached
1. The Chief Registrar agreed to be a member of the proposed LIEN Uganda Steering Committee.
2. The Chief Registrar also agreed that in order to improve the public trust in the judiciary and the courts, it is necessary to increase the enforcement of the Code of Conduct (CoC) through several credible initiatives including:
- Increase the follow up of public complaints
- Increase the sharing of completed corruption cases involving judges
13. Meeting with the Chief Justice and the LIEN Uganda Partners
a. People Met
Hon. Chief Justice and attended by: Justice GM Okello (Chairman, Judiciary Integrity Committee), Bruce Kyerere (President, Uganda Law Society), Sylvia Mukasa (Dirctor ULS), Grace Babihunga (ULS), Debora Rogo (International Law Institute, Africa), Achieng Miriam Uganda Christian University (UCU) and Tulibagenyi Daniel (UCU), Brian Dennison (Lecturer, Legal Clinic Education) (UCU), Patrick Rafolisy (Tiri), Dr. Petter Langseth (Tiri consultant), Ken Otieno (Tiri)
b. Issues discussed
See separate report in Attachment 1
c. Agreements reached
See separate report in Attachment 1
C. PREPARATION OF THE LIEN UGANDA STRATEGY WITH UCU
Two (2) sessions were organized to discuss the foundation of the LIEN strategy of UCU and Tiri for the 3 coming years.
1. Monday 15th, Meeting with the UCU Law Faculty Staff in Mukono,
a. People Met
- Hope Atuhairwe, Acting Dean of the UCU Law School,
- Brian Dennison, Lecturer, Legal Clinic Education,
- Achieng Miriam , Assistant Lecturer
- Tulibagenyi Daniel, Assistant Lecturer
- 2 Student Representatives
b. Issues discussed
The UCU staff explained their vision and how they were going to introduce integrity and ethics into the curriculum in the law school.
One issue raised by the Tiri delegation was to what extent it was necessary to, in addition to increase the students integrity and ethical values, initiate programs that would improve the integrity both in the private law firms and in the judiciary. The UCU staff and students welcomed this approach and they also suggested that the law students could possibly play a role in facilitating this change by empowering the public when it comes to understand their rights.
The UCU staff has already developed many interesting activities that can capitalized.
c. Agreements reached
The session will be continued on the 17th.
2. Wednesday 17th Meeting with the UCU Law Faculty Staff in Mukono,
a. Issues discussed
This second session was devoted to discuss the logical framework (See draft in Annex 3) of the LIEN-U and to finalize the draft strategic framework.
b. Agreements reached
- The draft strategic document will be shared with the key stakeholders during the meeting on Friday 19th afternoon decided to be held in Kampala in the Chief Justice’s Chamber. See draft in Annex 2.
- According to the changes from the strategic sessions, UCU will send a revised proposal with appropriate budget.
- UCU and Tiri will review the action plan and agree on dates for the joint activities. Each party will set up dates for the activities they lead and will inform the other party.
- The signature of the grant agreement will be done once the two parties agreed on the activities and the budget, given that changes can occur after the stakeholders meeting.
3. Meeting with Students attending the Integrity Clinic at the Law School
a. People Met
The UCU staff from the Legal Clinic Education
12 students attending the Integrity Course.
b. Issues discussed
The session was about international and regional indicators of good governance and corruption, such as the Mo Ibrahim index. The opportunity was taken to: (i) introduce the LIEN initiative in Uganda to the UCU Faculty of Law and (iii) to test the interest of law students in the proposed LIEN project.
The students were eager to join the initiative and suggested many interesting innovative activities for the integrity education.
Going around the table each of the students were asked to suggest an activity that could help strengthen the integrity among law students.
Activities recommended by the students included:
1. Internship and attachment of graduate students to legal aid projects to provide opportunity for exposure.
2. Students could contribute to the integrity page of the ULS magazine and other publications
3. Development and dissemination of information education and communication materials in local languages to various stakeholders (brochures, pamphlets, web pages etc.)
4. Radio and TV talk shows in local languages about the law
5. Attachment of law students to some of the pilot courts for assistance and exposure
6. Translation of relevant materials into local languages
7. Students to run a law journal on integrity
8. Law students to participate in court monitoring together with civil society organisation, e.g with the Foundation of Human Rights Initiatives (FHRI)
9. Law Council using student interns to help manage the case load
c. Agreement Reached
1. Representatives from the UCU and Tiri agreed to develop a format that would finance the involvement of students in:
(i) curriculum development
(ii) participation in projects at the pilot court level
(iii) participation in projects at the LCC level
2. Another agreement reached was to develop a TOR for a Students Focal Point (SFP) involving three students currently studying at the UCU Law Faculty and inrolled at the Legal Clinic.
3. It was also agreed to look for additional funding for the activities above
D. CONCLUSION
The decision to increase the scope the number of local partners involved in the project, turned out to be a good decision. The Chief Justice himself agreed to be a champion for the project and he encouraged key players in the judiciary including: (i) the Chairman of the Judiciary Service Committee, (ii) the Chief Registrar of the High Court and (iii) the Heads of Chief Magistrate Courts in the pilot districts, all to be actively involved in the project.
A LIEN Uganda project Steering Committee was elected with credible members representing key institutions including the: (i) the Judiciary (represented by the Chairman of the Judiciary Integrity Committee, Head of the pilot Magistrate Courts and the Chief Registrar of the High Court, (ii) Uganda Law Society, (iii) International Law Institute (ILI), (iv) Foundation for Human Rights Initiatives (FHRI) and the Uganda Christian University (UCU) represented by the Dean of the Law school and the lecturer of legal clinic education
The Chief Justice shared with the LIEN Uganda Steering Committee how he had been a member of the international Judicial Integrity Group (JIG) responsible for developing the Bangalore Principles for Judicial Integrity and emphasized the importance of empowering key partners to disseminate and help enforce these key principles.
He also invited key partners to develop and disseminate a Citizen or Court User Charter to empower and help the court users and the citizens to better understand their rights and obligations. The CJ welcomed a pilot testing of the Citizen Charter in the two LIEN pilot regions (Mukono and Iganga) involving the judiciary, court users/the public, UCU law students and the other LIEN partners in the process.
He noted that there has been a gap between ethics and integrity training needed by lawyers and the training offered and he was confident that the Tiri Legal Integrity Education Network (LIEN) pilot programme planned for Uganda would greatly contribute towards filling this gap.
He also observed that public empowerment through sensitization and education was necessary to complement efforts to reform the integrity of the courts and public empowerment should therefore be a complementary factor in the LIEN Uganda program.
He welcomed the innovative approach of targeting law students to improve the integrity of the judiciary and he welcomed the active involvement of the UCU which he saw as a very credible partner.
He also emphasized the importance of establishing a baseline against which the impact of the pilot program could be monitored in a transparent manner. He encourage the application of action learning allowing the stakeholders to try new approaches and use the regular monitoring to identify what initiatives are increasing the public trust in the courts and what does not.
With this excellent guidance and support from the Chief Justice of the Uganda and the credible and representative LIEN Uganda Steering Committee in place, the challenge for the project and Tiri is to: (i) facilitate the development of a realistic project action plan that is fully endorsed by all key stakeholders and partners and (ii) identify the necessary funding to implement the agreed action plan.
To allow for the action learning to take place, it is critical that a base line is established in both the two pilot districts and two other districts to allow a credible benchmarking.
Another key challenge is the active involvement of the students in the process of empowering the citizens so that they better understand their rights and obligations.
On outstanding issues that needs to be explored during the next mission is to identify credible institutions to represent: (i) the civil society and (ii) the people working in the local courts.
Legal Integrity Education Network
LIEN Uganda Mission
Pilot Project with UCU Faculty of Law
Kampala February 14th – 21st 2010
MISSION REPORT
By
Rafolisy Patrick, Head of Integrity Africa, Tiri
Petter Langseth, LIEN consultant
Kennedy Otieno, Coordinator PPI East Africa, Tiri
/
5th March, 2010
TABLE OF CONTENTS
A. INTRODUCTION
According to the TOR attached to the present report, the mission’s main objective was to introduce the LIEN approach to the legal community in Uganda and focus on a coalition building and strategic preparation of the pilot initiative with the UCU Faculty of Law and other key local stakeholders (Judiciary, Uganda Law Society,)
The expected main outputs of the mission included:
1. A list of personalities committed to meet the visiting team, agenda and schedule of arranged meetings
2. A strategy document specifying among others the: (i) concept, (ii) orientation, (iii) approaches, (iv) resources priorities and (v) measurement of the LIEN Project with the UCU
3. Grant agreement to UCU signed
4. MOU with relevant partners signed
5. Letter of commitment signed by the hon. Chief Justice Ben Odoke
6. A Mission Completion Report including: (i) main events, (ii) agreed LIEN Uganda strategy, (iii) eventually agreement documents and (iv) agreed action plan involving all key stakeholders.
The present report summarizes the activities of the mission and presents the achievements in regards to the expected outputs and objectives of the LIEN Uganda project.
B. COALITION BUILDING
It was agreed between the mission members that if the main beneficiaries of the pilot exercise were the future law graduates, it would be more responsible to also prepare the environment in which they would practice their integrity values after the law school. To make this a more realistic project, the mission decided to meet and enroll support of key stakeholders that can contribute to the integrity education during and after the law school. The outcome of this efforts was that in addition to UCU as a key stakeholder and partner, the mission identified: (i) the Judiciary (represented by the Chairman of the Judiciary Integrity Committee, Head of the pilot Magistrate Courts and the Chief Registrar of the High Court, (ii) Uganda Law Society, (iii) International Law Institute (ILI), and (iv) Foundation for Human Rights Initiatives (FHRI)
1. Meeting with Augustine Ruzindana, Former Head of IGG and (APNAC)
a. Issues discussed
The discussion evolved around what key stakeholders could be instrumental in advancing the LIEN project in Uganda. It was agreed that retired judges with outstanding integrity and professional records and reputation should be invited to participate in the education both at the university and in selected courts where law students should be invited to attend the court proceedings and to discuss the cases with the judge. The example of such a judge was Hon Justice Georges Kanyeihamba
The role of civil society and the judiciary overseeing the governance and transparency needed in the extractive industries in the country, was discussed and the mission agreed that too many African countries had experienced serious problems due to lack of integrity, transparency and accountability in the extractive industries. The mission agreed to raise this issue with Norwegian Embassy that is in the process of launching an Oil for Development Project in Uganda.
Ruzindana was also concerned that Uganda so far had not joined the Extractive Industries Transpareny Initiative (EITI) and that recent pressure from the civil society to increase the transparency around the ongoing oil exploration had been rejected by the President and later blocked in the courts.
On the collaboration between African Parlamentarians Network Against Corruption (APNAC) and Tiri in the PPI project, Ruzindana remarked that although he had been given the mandate to continue this collaboration by the new Chairman of APNCA, Tiri has recently been dealing directly with the APNAC Executive Director.
Ruzindana also raised the issue of empowering the civil society to oversee the oil exploration in Uganda. The mission promised to raise this issue with the institutions in Norway responsible for the oil for development program in Uganda to find out if any resources are earmarked t
b. Agreements reached
- The mission agreed to look into the relationship between Tiri and APNAC
- The mission also agreed to raise the issue regarding Uganda joining the EITI as
part of an effort to increase the increase the transparency and accountability in the extractive industries.
- Finally the mission agreed to find out to what extent the Oil for Development Program has allocated resources to empower the civil society to oversee the extractive industries
2. Meeting with Hon Chief Justice of Uganda, Ben Odoki
a. Topics discussed:
- The implementation of the LIEN Project in Uganda
- Electoral Justice Principal Project
- Support for the Judiciary in Liberia
- Future collaboration with the Judicial Integrity Group (JIG)
b. The Implementation of the LIEN Project in Uganda
(i) Background
The Chief Justice was given a briefing of the Tiri Missions meeting with different stakeholders from Uganda Christian University (UCU). He was given a copy of the draft LIEN Strategy Document discussed and agreed with the UCU earlier in the day.
The CJ agreed with the basic concept of the LIEN program and explained how he had already initiated similar integrity activities in the judiciary in Uganda.
He explained that Uganda already was involved in the Justice Law and Order Sector (JLOS) project with support of key donors and that he himself was the Chairman of this project.
He also mentioned the fact that the Uganda Judiciary had worked hard to introduced a rather advanced IT function across the judiciary including an impressive web page presenting all their excellent work. The mission recognized the quality of their webpage and many of the rather advanced related initiatives already underway with the Chief Justice strong support
Regarding involving key partners he suggested: UCU, Law Society, the Inspectors of the Courts function and the Law Development Centre. He also suggested that the mission should meet with Chief Registrar of the High Court and Justice GM Okello (Chairman, Judiciary Integrity Committee)
(ii) Agreements reached with the CJ regarding the LIEN project:
- Judiciary will be a key partner in implementation of the LIEN program in Uganda
starting with 2 pilot districts (Mukono and Iganga) with two pilot courts in each pilot district. He was pleased with selection of the pilots as his former assistant had just been promoted to be the Chief Magistrate in the Iganga District.
o He agreed to host a meeting inviting all key stakeholders/partners to finalize the LIEN Strategic Framework paper and to launch the project 19/02/10 14.30.
o For the actual implementation of the LIEN project in the pilot districts, he suggested the involvement of the Inspectors of the Courts.
o He also agreed to review and write the foreword to judicial integrity publications presented to the UCU related to the LIEN Project
o He will review and sign a letter of commitment regarding the implementation of the LIEN Program in Uganda
o The CJ will present the LIEN Pilot Project in Uganda and the lessons learned from this project to the Judicial Integrity Group
o He welcomed the development and pilot testing of a Court User Charter informing the public about their rights and their obligation. He suggested to build on the existing judicial service charter.
- He accepted the four levels of code of conduct implementation:
+ Sending the revised Code of Conduct out to all Judges and court staff (done)
+ Assure that the Code of Conduct has be read and understood by all key staff in the judiciary.
+ That the Code of Conduct Principles had to be accepted and internalized by all key parties and that
+ The Code of Conduct has to be enforced
3. Meeting with the African Centre for Legal Excellence (ILI)
a. People Met
- Swithin Munyantwali, Executive Director,
- Neha Pandya Deputy Director – Programmes and Special Projects
- Debora Rogo, Assistant Programme Coordinator.
b. Issues discussed
The mission proposed the participation of UCU law student in its PPI initiative, ILI will consider to have an intervention in one magistrate court for example in Iganga in addition to those planned to the local council courts (LCC).
Our interlocutor explained the relevance of the intervention at LCC level, in terms of access to justice, and the benefit of the law student to participate in working on the integrity performance of the selected LCCs. It was also agreed that there was need for much more information in local languages regarding the laws and other relevant tools that could help the LCCs in doing a better job.
c. Agreements reached
- ILI will consider to work on the ethical framework of the selected LCC in addition to the others training activities already planned within PPI. In agreement with the UCU Faculty of Law, the targeted student will be invited to fully participate in ILI activities including the development of the internal integrity measures, tools and methodology.
- ILI agreed to participate in the curriculum development process planned in LIEN pilot with UCU.
- The cost of engaging the law students to ILI activities in PPI will be planned and added to the PPI phase II budget.
- ILI will send a representative to participate in the first stakeholders meeting planned to be held at the Chief Justice’s Chamber on Friday 19th afternoon.
4. Meeting with Uganda Law Society (ULC)
a. People Met
- Sylvia Mukasa, Executive Director ,
- Grace Babihuga, Manager, Professional Development
b. Issues discussed
The interlocutors found the project relevant because of the increasing demand of integrity measures and competence in the law profession.
The ULS has a long experience of legal aid practices under a project supported by the Norwegian Bar Association and it was discussed how to expose UCU law students to law offices with an excellent integrity and professional reputation. ULS was willing to identify law offices with a good reputation.
Other activities related to integrity was also discussed, such as: (i) the introduction of a mandatory professional ethics course, (ii) pro bono requirement, and (iii) the amendment of the advocates acts and performance tracking of lawyers.
The differentiation of role between the Law Council, disciplinary body for lawyers, and the ULS was discussed and explained. It was agreed that the Law Council should be involved in the LIEN project and they were invited to attend the Stakeholder meeting planned later in the week.
The idea of having a legal service charter coupled with a citizen charter was found as very attractive and necessary and it was agreed to be considered as practicing opportunity for law student to participate in the development and implementation of these very important integrity measures.
c. Agreements reached
+ ULS will help identify model lawyers to mentor or educate law students
+ ULS will participate in the curriculum development process
+ ULS is willing to collaborate with UCU Faculty of Law in the work of amending the Advocate Acts
+ Tiri mission will confirm the agenda and timing of the stakeholders meeting on Friday 19th for ULS to plan the participation of its Chairman
#
5. Meeting with DANIDA (Human Rights and Good Governance Programme)
a. People Met;
- Dr Katja Kerschbaumer, Advisor Access to Justice;
- Modoi Musa, Programme Coordinator Access to Justice
- Walakira Winfred, Programme Officer Legal Aid Basket Fund (LABF)
b. Issues discussed
Donors assistance in the justice sector in Uganda is through basket funds such under the JLOS programme and the LABF but DANIDA has been assisting the Judiciary separately for 15 years now. Even tough Integrity is recognized as a main focus of their assistance, it has not so far not been considered as the main focus.
Despite progress in the sectors, still much improvement is needed and the integrity issue is an important one. Specifically, concerns were raised regarding: (i) the professionalism (work duties) of magistrates outside Kampala, (ii) monitoring of judicial ethics, (iii) scoring system, (iv) economic driven attitudes, (v) culture of extra benefits and (vi) the questionable performance of the Judicial Service Committee.
It was concluded that there is currently no recent study on the public trust on courts, and DANIDA also agreed that they had not established a baseline against which they could monitor the performance of their different initiatives.
There seems to be a need for strong coordination among the donors and with the national stakeholders. Other contacts of donors’ officials working in the sectors has by the way been provided.
It is unlikely for a University to apply for and receive financial support from DANIDA under their current project on justice sector.
c. Agreements reached
The documentation and data related to the judiciary project assisted by DANIDA can be made accessible to law students doing their research and participating in the LIEN project.
6. Meeting with NORAD
a. People Met
- Samuel Kajoba, Senior Programme Officer
- Pettersen, Firste Secretary at the Embassy
b. Issues discussed
The mission presented the LIEN program and Mr Kajoba welcomed this new initative as very important in Uganda
Judicial integrity and rule of law was seen as key challenges facing Uganda and it was agreed that lots of work was needed in this area. The mission was made aware of similar project tried launched by Jussformidling- Lions Bergen to address the issues of judicial integrity as part of the education of future lawyers. The mission later received the description of this program from the Embassy and PL will follow up with the responsible Norwegian institutions during his visit to Norway in March 2010.
The mission also had questions regarding the planned Oil for Development project financed by the Norway. Mr Kajoba agreed to set up a meeting with the first secretary at the Embassy, responsible for this project.
PL met with the First Secretary at the Norwegian Embassy, Per Johansen, who responsible for the coordination regarding the Oil for Development Project. The mission was informed that Norway was about to finalize the agreement for the Oil for Development Project and when asked to what extent the EITI was part of the agreement, the mission was informed that the Project Description was of the Oil for Development (OfD) Project was not perfect and according to the First Secretary there was no conditionality in the OfD agreement that Uganda had to join the EITI
c. Agreements reached
- It was agreed that PL would follow up with the Oil for Development Project in Oslo
March 2010 (done)
- The mission also agreed with Mr Kajoba that we would contact the Jussformidling-
Lions Bergen to if they would be interested in the LIEN Uganda Project
7. Dinner with the Hon Chief Justice and the Chairperson of the JIC
a. Issues discussed
The Judiciary Integrity Committee is an advisory body assisting judges and judicial officers in promoting integrity in the profession. Members are going on tour to meet professionals and the citizen to advance the Committee`s agenda. The professionals seem to be open and receptive of the mission of the Committee.
The Chairman expressed the desire to know more about the Tiri methodologies to advance integrity in judicial setting. It has been clarified that Tiri is only facilitating and supporting partners to find the appropriate methodologies for their context.
b. Agreements reached
The Chairman of the JIC agreed to:
- participate in the stakeholders meeting on Friday the 19th and
- participate in the curriculum development process
8. Meeting with the Law Development Centre (LDC)
a. People Met
- Elijahm Wante, Executive Director
b. Issues discussed
The LDC in its curriculum for initial education of lawyers has professional ethics component and integrity among the topic discussed. It trains also other judicial officers in continuing education.
The Executive Director is also member of the Law Council and was interested in involving LIEN Uganda to strengthen the focus on integrity in the legal education.
c. Agreements reached
The LDC will be happy to collaborate on the curriculum development process and need a formal request from Tiri to be able to do so. Upon this request, the mission will be linked to the trainer in charge of the professional ethics for collaboration perspective.
9. Meeting with GTZ
a. People Met
Diana Doris Akiidii, Consultant Good Governance
b. Issues discussed
In the review of the donors assistance and coordination on good governance, it has been noted that DFID is chairing the donor working group on good governance and it would be important to meet with the officer in charge. A meeting of the group was planned and it could be a great opportunity for the mission to present LIEN there.
GTZ assistance in governance will be ending soon and no other initiatives will be supported under this assistance.
c. Agreements reached
The interlocutor agreed to talk with the DFID governance person for a meeting and to put LIEN in the group agenda during the meeting.
10. Travel to the Iganga District
a. Meeting at the Iganga Chief Magistrate Court with the (FHRI)
(i) People Met
- Chief Magistrate
- Magistrate Grade 1
- Magistrate Grade 2
(ii) Issues discussed
Common integrity challenges faced by magistrates and court staff have been discussed and one of them was agreed to be the lack of professionalism regarding: (i) work attendance (many who are working across Uganda have their families in Kampala and spend long weekends there resulting in a 3 days working week) , (ii) enforcement of code of conduct, (iii) .
Insufficient knowledge on legal matters and the understanding of the judicial system has been seen to be the cause of low public trust in the courts and the judiciary as a whole. The meeting concluded that it is practically impossible for a Chief magistrate to supervise the many LCCs under his/her responsibility and the practice is to systematically reject cases mishandled by LCCs.
One interesting point raised during discussion was the fact that Courts improving their performance and thereby the public trust in the courts, are likely to see an increase in workload as a result. It was agreed that the judiciary should be flexible in increasing the staffing to keep up with the increased workload to avoid the otherwise negative effects on a courts doing a good job.
Some integrity measures such as… has been suggested and can be useful for students to participate.
Another interesting point raised during the discussion was the fact that the public perception of the judiciary is based on the work of the LCCs as much as the Magistrate Courts and a general improvement of the public trust in the legal system will only be possible if the performance of the LCCs and the Magistrate Courts.
(iii) Agreements reached
- It has been acknowledged that without serious care to the LCC performance, the perception of the judiciary will not improve despite efforts to reform at formal courts.
- The Court in Iganga was also interested in the pilot testing of tools that could improve the public understanding of their rights and the work of the courts including: (i) the development and pilot testing of a Court User Charter, (ii) improved information about the law through the radio or through written material, both in local languages.
- The court in Iganga would be happy to welcome students to participate in their activities and the integrity agenda.
b. Meeting at the Iganga Local Council Court (LCC)
(i) People Met
Chairmen (around 12) of LCC in Iganga District
(ii) Issues discussed
Common misbehavior dealt by LCCs are theft, defilement, corruption and adultery. They apply the law according to common sense.
Challenges faced by LCC in administrating justice are: (i) lack of training, (ii) adequate resources in keeping records, (iii) fees charged to the litigants, (iv) relationship with the magistrate courts, (v) lack of access to relevant legal information in local language; (vi) lack of a code of conduct for the LCC members also in local language.
High trust level of community members to the LCC seems to be due to: (i) the proximity to the court itself, (ii) the respect for and trust in the LCC representatives from their own community, (iii) the reconciliation approach and (iv) the understandable language used.
The LCC representatives felt strongly the need for more access to the (i) Law, (ii) important cases and (iii) Code of conduct all in local language.
They also welcomed the development and dissemination of Court User Charter to educate the court users about their rights.
Participation of law students to the improvement of LCCs integrity performance and their activities is generally welcomed.
(iii) Agreements reached
- The students are welcomed to contribute to the translation of the legal
framework of the LCC to major local languages and to the right awareness raising of the community members.
- The LCC representatives also welcomed the pilot testing of (i) Code of Conduct for the members of the LCC, (ii) the mandate and jurisdiction of the LCC and (iii) a Court User Charter, all in local language.
c . Meeting with Teaching Staff at the Bugweri College School Idudi
(i) People Met
- Kibedi James Richard, School Director
- School Principal
- 3 teachers
(ii) Issues discussed
Schools face high rate of drop-out and most of the time the causes are from the parents who still need sensitization on the importance of education.
Having law students teaching law to high school students (street law type) are welcomed and even the teaching staff would like to benefit from such a course. It was expressed as important that the parents should also be targeted by the law and integrity education and that such training would be most appropriated if done in local language.
(iii) Agreement Reached
It was agreed that the mission would coordinate with UCU to see to what
extent Law Students could be involved in a project at the Bugweri College
School Idudi
d. Meeting with Tiri Buwanda Community Centre for Integrity (TBCCI), Kanengo
(i) People Met
- Moses Kyewalyanga, coordinator
- Executive Committee and Staff members
- Local Councilors
- 300-400 Community members of all ages
(ii) Issues discussed
A series of speeches described the achievement and the action plan of the TBCCI which was started in 2009. The Community wanted to start with post primary education.
It was reported that thanks to empowerment facilitated by PPI project, the community was able to make the case for a new school financed by local government funds. At the time of our visit to the community, we witnessed the construction of the new school by military engineer unit.
The mission planted two trees for the integrity center on the land given by the community to set up the Integrity Center office.
11. Meeting with the Judicial Service Commission (JSC)
a. People Met
Henry Kyemba, Member (non judicial)
b. Issues discussed
The Commission is the regulatory body of judges and magistrates and the discussion was around the smooth transition of law graduates to the profession with the likelihood to find support at the workplace when behaving in lines with infused values from Law school.
It was also acknowledged that it is unfair to give wrong expectation to law students on the integrity status of the professions and let them know the reality. It is therefore necessary to encourage all the involved parties to learn from the Ugandan mistakes in the past rather than those lessons learned from other countries.
The meeting agreed that there is need for improve the enforcement of the code of conduct and to start a process in the pilot courts with the testing of the situation regarding the four levels of the Coded of conduct:
- access to the Code of Conduct
- understanding of the content of the CoC
- accepting the content of the CoC
- fair, transparent and consistent enforcement of the CoC
The meeting also agreed that rule of law is critical for the development of Uganda and that the code of conduct was, despite many good initiatives launched by the judicial service commission, not enforced sufficiently. As a result judicial staff were not enforcing rule of law resulting in low public trust in the courts.
It was also agreed that increased focus on integrity in the law schools was an excellent initiative that the judicial service commission welcomed and was willing to support.
c. Agreements reached
- Upon request to the Chairman, the record of the Committee on the disciplinary cases will be open to the law students for research and case studies.
- The Judicial Service Commission was willing to join the effort to increase the performance of the pilot courts
- The Judicial Service Commission was also willing to help facilitate the increased enforcement of Code of Conducts in the pilot courts and to pilot test a Court User Chart to educate the courts users understanding of their rights
12. Meeting with the Flavia Senoga Anglin Chief Registrar of the High Court
a. Issues discussed
1. The progresses in the integrity movement at the lower courts and the role of the Chief registrar in the regulation was well described by the Chief Registrar (CR).
2. The issue of absenteeism of magistrates posted in courts outside Kampala was also discussed and presented as a key challenge facing the judiciary,
3. The meeting also discussed the challenges facing judiciary due to the lack of enforcement of the existing code of conduct.
4. The CR described how the judiciary under the strong leadership of the Chief Justice, hd enforced
5. The Chief Registrar welcomed the introduction of integrity in the Law Schools and agreed that increased interface between law students and well run model courts would be an important aspect of integrity training for the students
6. Several integrity measures have been suggested and could be of benefit of the law students such as…
b. Agreements reached
1. The Chief Registrar agreed to be a member of the proposed LIEN Uganda Steering Committee.
2. The Chief Registrar also agreed that in order to improve the public trust in the judiciary and the courts, it is necessary to increase the enforcement of the Code of Conduct (CoC) through several credible initiatives including:
- Increase the follow up of public complaints
- Increase the sharing of completed corruption cases involving judges
13. Meeting with the Chief Justice and the LIEN Uganda Partners
a. People Met
Hon. Chief Justice and attended by: Justice GM Okello (Chairman, Judiciary Integrity Committee), Bruce Kyerere (President, Uganda Law Society), Sylvia Mukasa (Dirctor ULS), Grace Babihunga (ULS), Debora Rogo (International Law Institute, Africa), Achieng Miriam Uganda Christian University (UCU) and Tulibagenyi Daniel (UCU), Brian Dennison (Lecturer, Legal Clinic Education) (UCU), Patrick Rafolisy (Tiri), Dr. Petter Langseth (Tiri consultant), Ken Otieno (Tiri)
b. Issues discussed
See separate report in Attachment 1
c. Agreements reached
See separate report in Attachment 1
C. PREPARATION OF THE LIEN UGANDA STRATEGY WITH UCU
Two (2) sessions were organized to discuss the foundation of the LIEN strategy of UCU and Tiri for the 3 coming years.
1. Monday 15th, Meeting with the UCU Law Faculty Staff in Mukono,
a. People Met
- Hope Atuhairwe, Acting Dean of the UCU Law School,
- Brian Dennison, Lecturer, Legal Clinic Education,
- Achieng Miriam , Assistant Lecturer
- Tulibagenyi Daniel, Assistant Lecturer
- 2 Student Representatives
b. Issues discussed
The UCU staff explained their vision and how they were going to introduce integrity and ethics into the curriculum in the law school.
One issue raised by the Tiri delegation was to what extent it was necessary to, in addition to increase the students integrity and ethical values, initiate programs that would improve the integrity both in the private law firms and in the judiciary. The UCU staff and students welcomed this approach and they also suggested that the law students could possibly play a role in facilitating this change by empowering the public when it comes to understand their rights.
The UCU staff has already developed many interesting activities that can capitalized.
c. Agreements reached
The session will be continued on the 17th.
2. Wednesday 17th Meeting with the UCU Law Faculty Staff in Mukono,
a. Issues discussed
This second session was devoted to discuss the logical framework (See draft in Annex 3) of the LIEN-U and to finalize the draft strategic framework.
b. Agreements reached
- The draft strategic document will be shared with the key stakeholders during the meeting on Friday 19th afternoon decided to be held in Kampala in the Chief Justice’s Chamber. See draft in Annex 2.
- According to the changes from the strategic sessions, UCU will send a revised proposal with appropriate budget.
- UCU and Tiri will review the action plan and agree on dates for the joint activities. Each party will set up dates for the activities they lead and will inform the other party.
- The signature of the grant agreement will be done once the two parties agreed on the activities and the budget, given that changes can occur after the stakeholders meeting.
3. Meeting with Students attending the Integrity Clinic at the Law School
a. People Met
The UCU staff from the Legal Clinic Education
12 students attending the Integrity Course.
b. Issues discussed
The session was about international and regional indicators of good governance and corruption, such as the Mo Ibrahim index. The opportunity was taken to: (i) introduce the LIEN initiative in Uganda to the UCU Faculty of Law and (iii) to test the interest of law students in the proposed LIEN project.
The students were eager to join the initiative and suggested many interesting innovative activities for the integrity education.
Going around the table each of the students were asked to suggest an activity that could help strengthen the integrity among law students.
Activities recommended by the students included:
1. Internship and attachment of graduate students to legal aid projects to provide opportunity for exposure.
2. Students could contribute to the integrity page of the ULS magazine and other publications
3. Development and dissemination of information education and communication materials in local languages to various stakeholders (brochures, pamphlets, web pages etc.)
4. Radio and TV talk shows in local languages about the law
5. Attachment of law students to some of the pilot courts for assistance and exposure
6. Translation of relevant materials into local languages
7. Students to run a law journal on integrity
8. Law students to participate in court monitoring together with civil society organisation, e.g with the Foundation of Human Rights Initiatives (FHRI)
9. Law Council using student interns to help manage the case load
c. Agreement Reached
1. Representatives from the UCU and Tiri agreed to develop a format that would finance the involvement of students in:
(i) curriculum development
(ii) participation in projects at the pilot court level
(iii) participation in projects at the LCC level
2. Another agreement reached was to develop a TOR for a Students Focal Point (SFP) involving three students currently studying at the UCU Law Faculty and inrolled at the Legal Clinic.
3. It was also agreed to look for additional funding for the activities above
D. CONCLUSION
The decision to increase the scope the number of local partners involved in the project, turned out to be a good decision. The Chief Justice himself agreed to be a champion for the project and he encouraged key players in the judiciary including: (i) the Chairman of the Judiciary Service Committee, (ii) the Chief Registrar of the High Court and (iii) the Heads of Chief Magistrate Courts in the pilot districts, all to be actively involved in the project.
A LIEN Uganda project Steering Committee was elected with credible members representing key institutions including the: (i) the Judiciary (represented by the Chairman of the Judiciary Integrity Committee, Head of the pilot Magistrate Courts and the Chief Registrar of the High Court, (ii) Uganda Law Society, (iii) International Law Institute (ILI), (iv) Foundation for Human Rights Initiatives (FHRI) and the Uganda Christian University (UCU) represented by the Dean of the Law school and the lecturer of legal clinic education
The Chief Justice shared with the LIEN Uganda Steering Committee how he had been a member of the international Judicial Integrity Group (JIG) responsible for developing the Bangalore Principles for Judicial Integrity and emphasized the importance of empowering key partners to disseminate and help enforce these key principles.
He also invited key partners to develop and disseminate a Citizen or Court User Charter to empower and help the court users and the citizens to better understand their rights and obligations. The CJ welcomed a pilot testing of the Citizen Charter in the two LIEN pilot regions (Mukono and Iganga) involving the judiciary, court users/the public, UCU law students and the other LIEN partners in the process.
He noted that there has been a gap between ethics and integrity training needed by lawyers and the training offered and he was confident that the Tiri Legal Integrity Education Network (LIEN) pilot programme planned for Uganda would greatly contribute towards filling this gap.
He also observed that public empowerment through sensitization and education was necessary to complement efforts to reform the integrity of the courts and public empowerment should therefore be a complementary factor in the LIEN Uganda program.
He welcomed the innovative approach of targeting law students to improve the integrity of the judiciary and he welcomed the active involvement of the UCU which he saw as a very credible partner.
He also emphasized the importance of establishing a baseline against which the impact of the pilot program could be monitored in a transparent manner. He encourage the application of action learning allowing the stakeholders to try new approaches and use the regular monitoring to identify what initiatives are increasing the public trust in the courts and what does not.
With this excellent guidance and support from the Chief Justice of the Uganda and the credible and representative LIEN Uganda Steering Committee in place, the challenge for the project and Tiri is to: (i) facilitate the development of a realistic project action plan that is fully endorsed by all key stakeholders and partners and (ii) identify the necessary funding to implement the agreed action plan.
To allow for the action learning to take place, it is critical that a base line is established in both the two pilot districts and two other districts to allow a credible benchmarking.
Another key challenge is the active involvement of the students in the process of empowering the citizens so that they better understand their rights and obligations.
On outstanding issues that needs to be explored during the next mission is to identify credible institutions to represent: (i) the civil society and (ii) the people working in the local courts.
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