CAT/C/CR/34/UGA
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(c)
The continued allegations of widespread torture and ill-treatment by the State’s
security forces and agencies, together with the apparent impunity enjoyed by its perpetrators;
(d)
The wide array of security forces and agencies in Uganda with the power to
arrest, detain and investigate;
(e)
The disproportion between the high number of reports of torture and
ill-treatment and the very small number of convictions for such offences, as well as the
unjustifiable delays in the investigation of cases of torture, both of which contribute to the
impunity prevailing in this area;
(f)
The pervasive problem of sexual violence, including in places of detention and
in camps for internally displaced persons;
(g)
Alleged reprisals, intimidation and threats against persons reporting acts of
torture and ill-treatment;
(h)
The magnitude of the problem of abduction of children by the Lord’s Resistance
Army, in particular in northern Uganda;
(i)
Reports of customary torture in the area of Karamuja.
7.
The Committee takes note of the explanation provided by the delegation about the
outlawing of “ungazetted” or unauthorized places of detention or “safe houses” where persons
have been subjected to torture by military personnel. Nevertheless, it remains concerned about
the widespread practice of torture and ill-treatment of persons detained by the military as well
as by other law enforcement officials.
8.
While acknowledging the important role of the Uganda Human Rights Commission in
the promotion and protection of human rights in Uganda, the Committee is concerned about
the frequent lack of implementation by the State party of the Commission’s decisions
concerning both awards of compensation to victims of torture and the prosecution of human
rights offenders in the limited cases in which the Commission had recommended such
prosecution.
9.
Furthermore, the Committee regrets that the State party has not taken sufficient steps to
ensure the protection of persons affected by the armed conflict in northern Uganda, in
particular internally displaced persons currently confined in camps.
E. Recommendations
10.
The Committee recommends that the State party take all necessary legislative,
administrative and judicial measures to prevent acts of torture and ill-treatment in its territory,
and in particular that it:
(a)
Adopt a definition of torture that covers all the elements contained in article 1 of
the Convention, and amend domestic penal law accordingly;